Elk & Sandhill Cranes: Welcome Back!

Even for Butte, America, "spring" has been cool & snowy. This has helped me stay focused on the work for our kitchen renovation, but as Mrs Rover & I sat at the supper table watching the snow pile up outside the window, we thought "Hooray, hooray, it's the first of May. Outdoor (ah, hiking?) starts today!"

So as the storm moved on the next day and the skies cleared a bit (view of front of our home):

We took a walk out back (once north of our home in Walkerville, the landscape is mostly "open range"). The green grass was not complaining as it found its way through the snow:

MollyTheDog (MTD) was not complaining as she found an old ribcage from a deer:

And allowed her "inner wolf" to go off on a romp:

Well, maybe Raven Clan complained a little (they always do) over dog/wolf making off with their bones:

By the next day, the wind & sun had  made off with the snow like MTD with a rack of ribs. We drove over to the Big Hole River side of the Divide for a hike. Sandhill Crane (Grus canadensis) was back from its winter range (in far away southern U.S. or Mexico) and strutting its stuff for a mate:

The Moose People (Alces alces) were also out and about. Most we saw a long ways off, but this poor, gangly, lonely yearling seemed downright lonesome (Mother Cow Moose chases her yearling off before she drops a new calf):

We visited old RolyTheDog's grave, our dear friend that we laid away about this time last year. It's a beautiful spot for a dog's soul to roam, whether across the high prairie:

Or out over the willow bottoms, creeks, and valleys to the mountain peaks of the Pintler Wilderness:

Elk Cow People (Cervus canadensis) are just moving back to their calving grounds from their winter range 30 or so miles away. Wapiti, meaning "white butt," is from the Cree People, and is a very apt name (photo through my compact binoculars):

Unlike Moose, Elk is a herd animal. Oftentimes, once you spot the first Wapiti, you find more:

May you fatten and all bear healthy calves, Elk People. And come November, may one of you find your way to my freezer as meat for the next year.