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To the Beauty of Birds

An important part of appreciating the Sandhill Cranes is to get up at 4 AM to be at the Bosque by 5:50 and to the marshes by 6:00 AM to watch the Cranes fly out from the nighttime protection of the shallow marshes to the feeding grounds of the corn fields.
In addition to the early rising, a second challenging part of this scenario was the cold. Starting in Socorro with a temperature in the mid 30’s we watched as the temperature progressively dropped the closer we got to the Bosque with its almost freezing marshes. Standing at the edge of the marsh for several hours was an efficient way to test whether the clothes we brought were warm enough. They were, just barely. The photo of Sally 3137 in her long johns shows a moderately comfortable camper. The photo of me 3139 without long johns shows a person freezing his you know what off.
The first six photos show the Sandhill Cranes in the semi-darkness before the sun is up. In photos 3148 and 0707 it the sun is just up. The next four photos show the Sandhill Cranes flying off into the developing sunrises, often with Snow Geese in the distance.

Sandhill Cranes at Dawn