Dundee just looks so strong and fiercely wild here, doesn’t she?
I took this pic just about as the nearly full moon was rising over the basin’s northeastern horizon. It wasn’t that spectacular, really, but Dundee always is. 🙂
The lunar eclipse likely wasn’t visible from Southwest Colorado in the early morning hours because of cloudy skies. I’m not too upset; we did get a bit of moisture out of those clouds!
Mama Shane and pumpkin Odin grazing together. He enjoys the watchful and doting protection of all the “aunties” in the band, but sometimes he just likes to be near mama. 🙂
Pretty Mariah a few evenings ago, napping with her band.
It’s a good thing the horses still have their winter coats because while we haven’t gotten any sticking snow, Thursday, some squall waves passed through the region that left the ground at least damp. Up on the southern ridges of Disappointment Valley, there was actual snow and at least a temporary inch to 3 (?) of the white stuff, despite the strong wind (we even had an advisory) that blew it sideways. It was wet stuff, though, and we’re always grateful for ANY wet stuff.
The evening I spent with Mariah was fairly still, which was pretty nice.
Tenaz was having a bit of a nap with the band when his attention was caught by another stallion down the hill. The two would eventually have a little chat, but before then, I caught him with the most excellent background.
******
I think I haven’t explained Tenaz’s name, and with such a unique name, I should! He was named by friends Lynn and Kathy, from New Mexico. I think I had mentioned in a post (when he was a baby) how *tenacious* he was, and they suggested Tenaz as his name.
From a search: “The name ‘Tenaz’ is derived from the Spanish word ‘tenaz,’ which directly translates to ‘tenacious’ in English, meaning someone who is persistent, determined, and holds fast to something; essentially signifying a strong-willed or unwavering character.”
It still fits him. 🙂
Better late than never, and when I finally got my act together, I thought Valentine’s Day would be the best day for this rundown.
As usual, these are 12 (and a bonus) images from the last year that came from each month. This year, I think, most of these photos have been on the blog previously. A little reminiscence of the events surrounding each image will follow the photos. Sometimes it’s those emotions and memories that make a particular image special for the photographer, and these are no exception to that. Just being out with the mustangs, in Spring Creek Basin, no matter the weather, is the very best part of what is impossible to share.
Enjoy … and please consider this is my love letter to Spring Creek Basin and its mustangs from 2024. 🙂
January last year was at least somewhat snowy (this year was very much NOT snowy). Skywalker had been a bachelor with a couple of bands until sometime last year, and here he is with some horses from one of those bands. Completing the composition is part of the Spring Creek canyon rimrocks in the near background and Utah’s La Sal Mountains in the far background. (I wish they were that snowy this year.)
This was a magical February visit with Mariah and her band. The low-angle sunshine made each snowflake a visible bit of earthly magic, and when she looked back at somebody – shazam. Magic captured.
Couldn’t pass up this snowy March day in the basin with Temple! Clearly, she had been enjoying the moisture and excuse to roll in the mud. I love the sunshine on her and the falling snow blurring the background.
I had so many opportunities with the mustangs in April, but this image of Hollywood was just *the one*. You all know exactly what I mean. (To update, I haven’t seen him again since the image I posted earlier this winter. It doesn’t mean anything other than I haven’t seen him. …)
When Spring Creek is running with rainwater, that is a time not to miss photographing it because it doesn’t happen often and water doesn’t run in the arroyo bed for very long. When Skywalker moseyed to the edge of the creek in May, just upstream of the canyon, the scene came alive with story: mustang drinking from an ephemeral stream in the desert.
In June, I was lucky to catch Sundance’s band near Odin’s band … and luckier still to see Sundance and Odin having a friendly little chat! Elder stallion and growing young stallion; what a moment. I’d love to know what wisdom Sundance was imparting to young Odin.
Terra’s stallion adores her. And I mean *adores* her. They travel with another band, but Venture has eyes only for Terra. This image is from July, when it’s hot and dry and the horses just like to doze.
Personally, this is one of my favorite images of the year because those are two of my favorite stallions: Storm and Buckeye. With their bands grazing nearby on this warm August evening, the boys greeted each other quietly and respectfully before returning to their mares.
Here’s your Valentine’s Day image, taken last September. 🙂 Buckeye and Rowan, especially, seem to have a special fondness for each other.
After Storm lost his band in October, the mares went through a couple of younger stallions that couldn’t seem to keep them. Flash ended up with Gaia … then also with Mysterium. And finally, as you know now, he gathered all of Storm’s girls (which, I think, probably was due more to them wanting to be together and evading the youngster that had them than to any particular skill Flash had at stealing them!). (I’ve seen Storm just once since he lost the band, way deep in the southeastern part of the basin.)
Last November, we had some great snow, and we were so optimistic for the winter to come! … And that was pretty much it. Here it is February, and we’re desperate for moisture of any kind while we watch the dirt turn to dust, to powder. But in November, Terra was a gorgeous girl in the sunlit snow, and life was good.
We had more lovely light in December – as seen glowing around lovely Winona – but not a heckuva lot of snow.
And as usual, a bonus:
Buckeye’s girls. 🙂 I don’t remember what caused them to run right past me, but I was stoked to capture this image of them nearly in a row, especially just as Bia was leaping a bit of sage or saltbush!
Thanks for following along, happy Valentine’s Day to you and your loved ones, and if we can have a bit of a love(ly) wish … more snow, please! 🙂
*** Update Friday morning: Disappointment Valley is getting RAIN! Not snow, RAIN. In February. In Colorado. Well, you know we’re in desperate need of moisture, so I’ll take it. (But 38F is hard on the wildlife under rain.)
Well, not only did we not get any of the semi-forecast snow Tuesday night (in the forecast, out of the forecast, in … out … ), the sky was as clear as crystal studded with diamonds, showing off that glorious ol’ moon at its best and brightest!
Earlier in the day (shown), we had semi-optimistic clouds (though nothing came of their presence), and also howling wind.
Temple was trying to take advantage of the semi-protection of a lone juniper (the wind was from the right/south), and you can see that she’s not the first mustang to ever seek shelter beneath its branches. It’s also in a bit of a shallow drainage on a hillside, so that might have helped, too.
Not long after this pic was taken, most of the rest of her family joined her, but apparently, there was some disagreement about who should stand where (maybe, about who had the seniority to stand most protected?), and they went off grazing again, leaving Temple (mostly) at peace (having, apparently, prevailed in her seniority). 🙂
P.S. What looks like a tiny dark slash at sort of upper left in the pic is a raven winging his/her way across the scene.
From Rowan’s viewpoint, what else do you need?!
She’s following Dundee to water trickling along the surface of the Spring Creek arroyo around the bend to my right. A number of bands had gathered above the arroyo – very peacefully – and I’m sure the water was the reason.
Later, they’d all gone their separate ways, still, very peaceful and calm.
Spring Creek Basin Herd Management Area may be small (slightly less than 22,000 acres), but it sure feels like big country.
No one could really call me a sports fan (Gig ’em, Aggies!), and certainly this blog about Spring Creek Basin’s mustangs isn’t the place you would think to read about the collegiate football national championship game.
But the Ohio State Buckeyes are playing Notre Dame (what are they? The Fighting Irish?), and my folks not only are from Ohio, my dad is an Ohio State Buckeye. 🙂
Have you wondered why Buckeye is named Buckeye? It’s not because he was born buckskin (though that would have been a good guess). It’s because he was born a couple of days before my mom’s birthday, and she named him when he was a baby!
So we’ll be rooting for the Buckeyes – of course! Go, Buckeyes!
Also celebrated today: the life of Martin Luther King Jr. According to Brittanica, “The day commemorates the life and work of Dr. King, who was a Baptist minister and prominent leader in the American civil rights movement. People are encouraged to use the day to ‘reflect on the principles of racial equality and nonviolent social change espoused by Dr. King.’”
Be kind to each other, and remember, we’re all on this planet together.
And for the incoming president, a hope from the last lines of Irish poet John O’Donahue’s poem, “For One Who Holds Power,” which I read recently:
“May integrity of soul be your first ideal.
The source that will guide and bless your work.“
(In polar news: Yesterday’s high temp in Disappointment Valley was about 28F. Not frigid, but it definitely was not warm. Buckeye and his family were able to find liquid water in the hoofprints through the ice layer in the bottom of the Spring Creek arroyo, so with that and their winter grazing, they’re not too bothered by the polar vortex.)
The cold front announced its arrival in Disappointment Valley yesterday morning with wind and dramatic skies. Utah’s La Sal Mountains were blocked from sight by a snow squall in/over western Disappointment Valley most of the afternoon.
I drove into Spring Creek Basin briefly, just in time to see a little snow squall rolling from north to south across the eastern ridges of the basin. In contrast to the other day, when the snow blazed a trail across the basin, yesterday, the snow was all around but never atop us.
Horses were visible in the distance, but I decided that this would be more of a scenery day.
On my way out of the basin, I happened upon the group of about 15 pronghorns that have been hanging around together lately. By the time I saw them, stopped, got the camera out of my pack and aimed, at least half of them had dropped off their little ridge.
Away out yonder in those breaks and canyons is the Dolores River.
From back on the Disappointment Road, another isolated little squall was dropping snow along Horse Park, a narrow little valley between Spring Creek Basin and beyond. You can recognize part of the far ridge as the same one in the background of the Maiku pic a couple of posts ago. The rimrocks at the bottom, semi-foreground are the western boundary of Spring Creek Basin.
And just a little south of the previous pic, the squall was still moving south over Temple Butte. In the near foreground are cottonwoods and tamarisk along Disappointment Creek.
This is yet farther south (from my vantage point, I’m looking sort of southeast-ish). While I was trying to get the snow over the very far (and much higher elevation) ridges, a golden eagle was flying over the scene. See it above the cottonwood at left?
We’ll close with another, tighter view across Disappointment Creek and Spring Creek Basin. You can see the basin’s western rimrocks, Flat Top, Round Top, submarine ridge, McKenna Peak and Temple Butte – snow beyond.
Gosh, I love this place. 🙂
Wherever you are, I hope you’re warm these next few days!
Spring Creek Basin Mustangs 