One thing that I truly enjoy about wildlife photography is the challenge to continually obtain new, exciting and hard to capture moments. Each time I am able to photograph a new species there is a sense of accomplishment. Being able to locate a new animal is exciting in itself, being able to get an image is even better but capturing the essence of the animal in its natural environment is the ultimate goal. Last Fall I was able to catch a glimpse of some mountain goats at about 14,000 ft elevation. That glimpse stuck with me all Fall, Winter and Spring. I was determined to carve out some time and get back to the top of the that 14,000 ft peak and find these majestic animals again. Fortune was on my side this week. I made the trek to the mountain with my trusted K-9 partner and set out to find the unpredictable mountain climbers. After first locating a group on a sheer cliffside above a lake I thought I was out of luck as the area was inaccessible. The goats can literally stand on a vertical cliffside as they are incredible climbers and agile as any animal. I continued my search further up the mountain. Just as the rain and clouds broke I spotted a few mountain goats working their way down a cliffside heading towards a small flat area. I was able to scramble and position myself below them with the hopes of a few images. The next 20 minutes was an experience I will not soon forget. A whole group of goats appeared which included males, females, new borns and yearlings. It was an incredible sight to watch the whole group appear right in front of me. I sat in awe with adrenaline rushing and my heart beating from the close interaction and the elevation. At higher elevations the temperature can drop 3-5 degrees for every 1,000 gained and the sun is 5% stronger for every 1,000 feet gained. The air is pretty thin up to and I was feeling it. After taking as many photos as possible the herd moved on but one large Rocky Mountain Goat remained. I was able to share a cliffside with it while listening to it call the herd. This goat seemed to be overseeing the movement of the rest of the herd. Spending a few minutes on the cliff with this 200+ pound animal was nothing short of magical. The mountain range as a back drop at sunset just enhances the experience. I hope you enjoy this image and I will be sharing more Rocky Mountain Goat images soon. Feel free to share or check out the high resolution image on my site at - kevin-dietrich.artistwebsites/products/mountain-king-kevin-dietrich-framed-print.html 1/250 f14 iso 400 105mm
Posted on: Mon, 14 Jul 2014 13:51:25 +0000
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