Ah. I love camping. I really need to get out and camp more often. I spent Thanksgiving Break in Buffalo Gap National Grassland, an area of wide open prairies, bordering the South Dakotan Badlands. It was beautiful. Wide horizons, blue skies, golden grasses. I really want to come back in the spring and see it when everything is green. Here's a brief synposis of my trip.
What I saw: 2 coyotes, 4 hawks, 4 pronghorn antelope, 7 somethings (probably antelope, but they were too far away to be certain), 2 rabbits, 3 other birds, and hundreds of prairie dogs, expansive vistas, the badlands formations, grasses, forbs, yucca, junipers, a dry creek bed, the milky way
What I heard: lots of coyotes, some owls, wind, silence, prairie dog alarm calls, a couple of planes
What I felt: bitter wind, warm sunshine, warmth from a cow chip fire, sore feet and shoulders
What I smelt: pretty much nothing
What I tasted: ramen, lipton's instant thai noodles, whole wheat bagels with fresh havarti cheese, raw tender bits, nature valley crunchy granola bars, instant oatmeal
Unfortunately, I left behind my 35mm camera due to weight considerations, so I couldn't get any decent photos of the animals that I saw, but I did take quite a few shots of the scenery. Here's a few. If you want to see shots of some of the flora, visit biophilia.
Greg, did you go by yourself? Are you sure that's safe?
ReplyDeleteYour pictures are beautiful.
You know, in all my travels, I don't think I've been to Buffalo Gap... Just how close is it to the Badlands?
ReplyDeleteGregory Leighton James Fitzgerald Okimi--BLOG already!!!!
ReplyDeletegreg, those pictures are beautiful. they make me homesick for north dakota. although, when we were little we camped in all the badlands, so i do have good memories of them all. i love meeting buffalo on the trail. ok, really it just freaked us out and we climbed straight up a butte. not an easy feat, but definitely a fun memory.
ReplyDeletethanks for reminding me. :)
Carissa: Yep. Sure did. Nope, not sure at all, but definitely worth it. Thanks, there's a lot of trashy ones that didn't make the cut, but I was lucky to get some good ones :)
ReplyDeleteDavid: Intimately close. In fact, you pretty much can't get to the Badlands without passing through some part of Buffalo Gap, since it surrounds the Badlands.
Katie: See comment on biophilia :)
Angela!: Thanks. I had fun taking them. :) I was hoping, but not really expecting to see some buffalo. I'm laughing just imagining a bunch of people scrabbling up a butte to escape a buffalo. No problem, and thanks as well :)
You are a very talented photographer. Wow!
ReplyDelete