As most of you know, Coyote and I have been heading out to see the Sandhill cranes every year for the past decade. Our second or third year out there we saw "Bob" the lone Whooping Crane. Most years after that we have been able to find Bob. He was somehow separated from the other Whooping Cranes and now migrates with the Sandhill cranes. This year was like every other year It didn't take long and we found him. He was a little further west than he normally is, but as usual, he was way out in the center of the field.
Coyote and I usually plan our trip for the week after St Patrick's Day when the Sandhill Cranes are near peak, and that's when we went this year. A few weeks before our tip, I was on Rowe Sanctuary's website and I noticed they had an opening during the first week of April for their overnight Photography Blind. I thought with the crazy winter, I would roll the dice and book that opening for a second photo trip to see the cranes.
On Tuesday 4/3 I headed west to the Platte River in Central Nebraska. I arrived mid afternoon and was pleased to see there were still tons of Sandhill Cranes. I spent the night Tuesday Night/Wednesday Morning in the overnight photo blind. The overnight blind was awesome, cold (13 degrees) but awesome! Those photos are going to come in a future thread.
Later that afternoon (Wednesday), I was surprised when I pulled up on one of the nice grass areas and there was Bob! I figured this late in the season, Bob would have been well on his way now. Also, we have never seen Bob anywhere but a cornfield.
1. Bob in the grass.
2. He started walking towards a more open area.
3. Then all of the sudden he took off!
4. It was great to see him fly. Coyote and I have seen him fly real short distances, close to the ground, but never up in the air like this. And bonus, he turned towards the camera.
5 He landed in a corn field, not too far away.
6 So I watched him for a little bit.
7. I drove around for a while in hopes he would come closer to the road, but when I came back, he was still out in the field.
8. I watched him a little whole longer.
The next morning (Thursday)....
So where's where an awesome photo trip turns to an Amazing photo trip.
I am sitting on the side of the gravel road, waiting for sunrise. A gravel road that Coyote and I photograph sunrise from a lot. a Local pulls up and says "There's a dozen Whooping Cranes in the river over there". I said a dozen? He replied back "I think that's what they are." "Big tall white bird". I was skeptical, but kept thinking what if... I waited just a little bit longer and soon realized sunrise was going to be a bust so I packed up and went out looking for the whooping cranes. I have never seen a whooping crane in my like that wasn't Bob. There are only 450 Migrating Whooping Cranes left in the wild. I start heading to where the guy pointed and before I got there, I came across 5 Whopping cranes! 1% of the wild Whooping Crane population right there in front of me!
9. Five whooping cranes! 1% of the wild Whooping Crane population in a single photo!
I watched for a while when of the of the five took off. Flew straight south and never came back. Not sure what the deal was. Was that Bob trying to get back with the Whooping Cranes? Was that some other Whooping Crane that decided to get away? For the next couple hours I watched the whooping cranes off and on and they never really moved. Finally, I was getting ready to pack up and start heading back to Omaha when I heard a bunch a commotion from back behind the Whooping Cranes. Apparently there was a large flock of Sandhill cranes behind them and they all took off at once. Once the Sandhill Cranes flew over the Whooping Cranes, the Whooping Cranes took off too.
10. 4 Whooping Cranes take flight
11. The Whooping Cranes eventually broke away from the Sandhill Cranes and landed in the Platte River, right next to a public road!
12. The Whooping Cranes played in the river for quite a while.
13. Walking around in the river
14. The Whooping Cranes took flight again.
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Wow, what an experience! So Amazing to get to spend the morning with 5 Whooping Cranes!
Thanks for checking out my photos. I should have a video to go along with these photos and also Sandhill Crane photos from the overnight photo blind coming soon.
Brad
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