Couple New Bighorn Shots. . .

Ah yes, mid to late august, that's a great location to find BH. Those two shots were in glacier park too, but very little of the Park is open so I rode my bike past the gates as far as I could them hiked the rest of the way. I seldom go to logan to find them anymore.

Of late, over the last two/three years, the sheep have not been as dependable as they once were around logan. They seem to move around a lot.

As for how close you can get, youre right, if you get in a position to "intercept" their movement and sit still they soon will ignore you. However, this is not always a good thing as once they ignore you, they also tend to keep their heads in the dirt, so to speek, sleep, or, they put their butts to you.

Dull, overcast light is the BEST for BH's. I would give up 10 days if shooting them in the sun, for one day shooting them in overcast. . .

Stunning!

Hi Tony,

That first shot blows my mind. Very well done.

James

I hope that someday I will get that close to a large big horn ram. However, the days of hikeing up a mountain are long behind me.
Great images.
Bill

Tony,

The first one is great. That shot, and the one of the goats in the other string, are really nice. I never seem to be able to get that close to those elusive animals.

You seem to really be able to get out into the back country a lot to get these shots. Do you combine this with backpacking and camping trips, or are these mostly day hikes?

You are amazing those are awesome. I can only imagine how it feels to stand there looking at them in real life.
What is the purpose of tipping his head up like that, is it a signal of some kind to the other guy?

It's stretching, and scratching. This time of year they often use their horns to rub their necks - there are a lot of ticks this year.

Rams almost always are competitive. In fact, they compete for dominance year round. If you ever get to be around them, just watch how the males always are trying to get in front, or lead the pack. Sometimes you will see one or two larger males off, on the edges - they, to me are the smart ones. They sit back and save energy while the younger, more aggressive ones peck at one another. Until the rut, some of the larger males don’t play in that game. On the other hand, some of the larger, older more mature males never seem to out grow it. It's a preservation mechanism.

If a larger, mature male is killed, there always will be one or two to replace him. Mule deer are similar in this fashion. In a hard winter, the one's that save their energy survive to breed, usually that's the ones that are NOT always on the hook so to speak, or always fighting for dominance.

Thanks for looking and for your comments.

Tony

You seem to really be able to get out into the back country a lot to get these shots. Do you combine this with backpacking and camping trips, or are these mostly day hikes?


sorry dave, missed this. thanks for your kind words.

I usually do "day stuff." I also do a lot of camping in my truck, and "hide." I dont camp in the campgrounds but I do camp. . .

As for long term "backcountry" It's too much to take 40 lbs of phototraphy gear AND camping gear on your back. Also, if i'm in glacier park, I need a backcounty pass (to spend the night, also you have to use approved sites), i hate that and therefore I dont play that game. . .

I leave VERY early, and return VERY late, but have been known to weather a night here and there if it's not too cold.

Did you read my description of how I got these shots?

I do like the idea of being gone on a backcountry safri but cant afford to hire the stock and therefore I stick to my own feet for travel.

I wondered if he was scratching,that would explain the look of ecstacy on his face lol. Interesting isn't it how nature ensures the survival of the fittest. Nature can be quite cruel (I often think how nice if everyone were vegetarians!) but the mechanisms work well for the species. I don't know but would think over hunting could throw it off whack by taking the biggest and best rather than weeding out the weak?

Tony,

Thanks for the information. I can see that to get the kind of shots you get the equipment would be heavy. That kind of weight does preclude backpacking with camping equipment. It does sound like you know your way around the backcountry and that helps you find the right places to be.