On Tuesday, Oct. 8th we drove thirty miles out into the high desert to Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge where we found the visitor's center closed. So we set off on our own and took a long hike out into the reserve, hunting for Sand Hill Cranes. Unfortunately, we found none, only a small herd of mule deer.
When we returned to the visitor's center we found it open and took the opportunity to learn as much as we could from the ranger inside. She sent us to several places to look for the Cranes and told us the White Pelicans had all migrated further South for the winter. We finally found some Sand Hill Cranes out on Stanley Road, near Monte Vista, CO.
Some of them were right in among the cows in a farmer's field.
Then we drove about twenty miles further South to the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge and there we found hundreds of these majestic birds.
Whether in-flight or on the ground they are very animated birds that are slowly migrating South on a flight-path that has been used generation after generation for hundreds if not thousands of years.
On Wednesday, Oct. 9th we drove about twenty-five miles out to the Blanka Wetlands Reserve but found no birds, only a few Pronghorn Antelopes. So, we went back to the Monte Vista Refuge again.
This was some sort of disagreement between two of the Cranes.
Some of them were right in among the cows in a farmer's field.
Then we drove about twenty miles further South to the Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge and there we found hundreds of these majestic birds.
Whether in-flight or on the ground they are very animated birds that are slowly migrating South on a flight-path that has been used generation after generation for hundreds if not thousands of years.
On Wednesday, Oct. 9th we drove about twenty-five miles out to the Blanka Wetlands Reserve but found no birds, only a few Pronghorn Antelopes. So, we went back to the Monte Vista Refuge again.
This was some sort of disagreement between two of the Cranes.
More and more small flocks of the Sand Hill Cranes kept flying into the wetlands while we watched from a pull-off area. There were hundreds of them by the time we left.
After lunch we drove back to Great Sand Dunes NP again, to take a hike up into the mountains to the Dunes Overlook. It was a spectacular sight.
As you can see from these pictures, many of these dunes are three to four hundred feet or more high. The highest one, the Star Dune, is 745 feet high.
We made it to the top of the Dunes Overlook trail and Dad snapped a picture of me and Mom at the overlook. The trail was a 500-foot verticle rise, 2.7 miles long one way, and well worth the effort to get there. So we said "goodbye" to Great Sand Dunes NP and headed home near sunset.
Tomorrow we are moving on to Mesa Verde National Park and two more National Monuments in southern Colorado😊.
I wonder, can we play in the sand dunes...they're are wondrous! The cranes are beautiful and appear to be blue in color on some. Love the picture of Mom...very rare! Love and miss you Kohdie!!
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