08/31/26

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  Today's image is of one of my Zinnias.  Instead of a peppermint candy look, this one is a yellow variety which I find quite nice as well.  Almost looks like paint has been splattered on it.

 

08/30/26

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is of locomotive 463 heading back into Antonito Colorado on August 1 after it's double header with 168 for the Centennial Limited event.  It was about an hour or more late getting back and found out later from someone riding that they had lost and had to recover pressure at one point.  There was a storm in the vicinity so it made for a rather dramatic image i thought.

 

08/29/26

 We have been getting rain somewhat regularly this summer.  I have been riding my bike later in the day as well so I was able to capture this storm moving in around sunset recently.

 

08/28/26

 It's Friday, TGIF!  I usually post my Sea Oats Grass in autumn with the brown color but I was at the pond the other day and saw that it was looking lovely while still green as well.  It had some wonderful bubble bokeh behind so sharing for today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious here on the Blog!

 

08/27/26

 The Common Milkweed in my yard has been done blooming for a good while now.  It is still serving it's purpose though as I have been seeing Monarch caterpillars on them recently.  This one was the largest one I have ever seen so nice and healthy.  Shortly after I took this image it disappeared.  I hope it has made a cocoon somewhere and will be a monarch soon. 

 

08/26/26

 It's a double digit day!  😁  It's also Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog.  Today's flower is one that I don't see blooming very often, Wild Lettuce.  It usually blooms July through September.  It is in the Sunflower family.  The leaves were picked and eaten as greens, the stems are milky though.  When grazed, it can cause the milk to have an off flavor.

 

08/25/26

 While I have been out on bike rides lately I have seen a couple of neat birds.  One is a lifer that I have yet to capture, Quail.  The other is this, a Nighthawk.  These I usually only saw out on Konza Prairie but they seem to frequent a farm filed I ride by fairly often.  I got this capture a couple of weeks ago.  They are fairly distinctive because of the white marks on their wings and also the noise they make while diving after prey.

 

08/24/26

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  My Stella D'oro Lilies have been in bloom recently.  I captured one of them up close.  These are perennial flowers that are very reliable bloomers with very little care.

 

08/23/26

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image goes back to the Union Pacific Big Boy 4014 coming through my town on a rainy day this past July.  We are lucky that it is a point it comes through on a lot of trips back home to Cheyenne Wyoming.  It usually stops as well for a quick maintenance check.  I took this image as it was just entering the small rail yard in my town.

 

08/22/26

 A bit different image today.  This is a view of the field in Minnesota with the Sandhill Cranes.  Even this doesn't really do it justice as this is only about 1/3 to 1/4th of the flock that was there.  It was so cool to be able to see and photograph them.

 

08/21/26

 It's Friday, TGIF!  Today's image is one I was able to get recently of a Hummingbird visiting something other than the feeder.  It was feeding on my Calibrachoa flowers.  I liked the nice soft bokeh behind so sharing today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious here on the Blog!

 

08/20/26

 I have not been seeing many butterflies this summer.  I would see one once in a while flying through the yard but not stopping.  This Giant Swallowtail finally was one that stayed around a bit and chose to feed from the Zinnias as opposed to the other flowers I have growing.  I have always said, if you want a very cheap, that you can grow from seed easily, flower for butterflies, Zinnias are it.  There is also a Silver Potted Skipper enjoying them as well.

 

08/19/26

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog once again.  The year is already more than half over, time flies when you are having fun.  Today's flower is the Fringe-leaf Ruellia also known as a Prairie Petunia.  It usually blooms June through September, I found this one in early July.  It's another where the flower opens at night and usually only lasts a day.  It is very drought hardy.

 

08/18/26

 I had to make a trip to Minnesota this past weekend for a family issue and on the trip up I was treated to an experience that was a "lifer" for me.  I got to see and capture a very large flock of Sandhill Cranes!  They were in a harvested wheat field and some were even dancing and doing their odd call.  This is a link to their call at All About Birds:  Sandhill Crane Listen  This image is just a very small portion of the flock.

 

 

 

08/17/26

 Happy Monday and happy new week!  Decided to start the week off with something that makes me happy and hope it makes you happy as well.  This is a yellow Sunflower I have growing in one of my gardens that was blooming last week.

 

08/16/26

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  The Cumbres & Toltec Railway was running a Centennial Limited special to celebrate Colorado's 150th birthday and the nation's 250th.  They ran a special double header train on August 1.  I was out there to capture it.  This image was taken in the railroad town of Sublette, New Mexico where trains stop to take on water when they are heading out of Antonito ( they sop here on the way from Chama too but don't take on water as it is heading downhill all the way and they have enough.  Locomotives 168 and 463 were being watered up to head to Osier Station for lunch and 168 would head back on it's own as they do not double head down grade due to uneven wear because of the weight of the train on the fairly steep grades.

 

 

08/15/26

 We have been incredibly hot this past week, at or near 100 F and humid too.  UGH  Remembering back a couple of weekends to my trip to Colorado in the lovely cooler dry air.  I was treated to a lovely sunset on the second evening as well.

 

08/14/26

 Happy Friday, TGIF!  Today's image is a close up image of one of my orange Cosmos flowers.  They have a different shape to them than the pink and white ones but they are all Cosmos.  This image has some very nice bokeh in it which also makes me happy and is great for today because Friday's Are Bokehlicious here on the Blog!

 

08/13/26

 I was out taking photos pf flowers last week and found this Ladybug on a wildflower in one of the gardens.  I always love finding them because they are great for keeping aphids off the plants.  Plus, they are cute.

 

08/12/26

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's flower is one of my favorites, Butterfly Milkweed.  It blooms June through August but is mostly done already in my area.  It can be found in varying colors of orange, from very light to an almost red.  It is in the Dogbane family and is very attractive to butterflies, hence the name.

 

 

08/11/26

 While I was in New Mexico waiting on a train, I had a wonderful experience.  I got to see an owl in the wild up close!  It was so cool.  It sat there for a bit so I could get several pictures of it before it decided to fly away.  I believe it is a Flammulated Owl and they feed mainly on insects.  They usually are in Pine or Fir trees so are hard to spot but this one happened to be sitting in an Aspen tree.  It was very cool to see it. 

 

08/10/26

Happy Monday and happy new week!  My Zinnias are finally blooming and drawing in a butterfly or 2.  I love this variety which reminds me a lot of a peppermint candy. 

 

08/09/26

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  I went to Colorado to see the Cumbres & Toltec Rwy Centennial Limited special train event celebrating Colorado's 150 birthday and America 250.   They were going to run Locomotive 168, an 1883 restored engine and also double head with 463 which is an older locomotive as well and not run very often.  I took this image on the day they were getting ready to double head.  168 is in the front with 463 behind.

 

08/08/26

 It's a double digit day today!  Also, it posted at 08 am!  😁  I was in Colorado last weekend and the first night was beautiful and clear so i decided to try out the Night Sky Capture feature on my phone.  I thought it turned out fairly well for a phone.

 

08/07/26

 It's Friday, TGIF!  My Butterfly Bush or Buddleja is blooming and bringing in some small butterflies currently.  I love it's little groups of flowers and find it a nice photography subject.  This image was great for today due to the wonderful bubbly bokeh captured because Friday's Are bokehlicious!

 

08/06/26

 I was out in Colorado and New Mexico for a special event that the Cumbres & Toltec Railroad was holding.  While waiting for a train in Sublette, New Mexico I saw this little Chipmunk running around and captured this image of it while it posed on the rail.

 

08/05/26

 It's Wildflower Wednesday here on the Blog!  Today's flower is Chicory.  Chicory is another in the Sunflower family and usually blooms July through September.  Chicory is a harder one for me to get usually because the flower opens in the morning and then closes around noon.  It will stay open longer on cloudy days and that is when I captured this one.  It is drought hardy with a long taproot.  I have this one growing in my yard.

 

08/04/26

 Today's image is one from this Spring when the Cedar Waxwings were around and visiting my pond.  This image is while a group of them were sitting in the Walnut tree in-between flying down and getting a drink.

 

8/03/26

 Happy Monday and happy new week.  My yellow Lilies are blooming.  I find them lovely and make for a nice start to the week.

 

08/02/26

 It's Steamy Sunday here on the Blog!  Today's image is from the 23rd when the Big Boy 4014 was rolling into Junction City, Kansas.  It was going to stop there for about 10 minutes or so for a bit of a maintenance check.  The locomotive and train were heading home to Cheyenne Wyoming after is 250 Celebration trip out east.  It's such a cool locomotive to see, so big in person.

I have video HERE of it heading into Grantville and also as it headed into town here. 

 

08/01/26

 I was out on an evening bike ride this past week and was treated to a lovely sky.  This is a view to the west over a large field for cattle.