Alpine ridgeline on Mount Blue Sky

August 12, 2023 · Mount Blue Sky (Mount Evans), Colorado · Clear and cold at the summit lot, 42°F · Fujifilm X-T5, 150-600mm

Drove up before sunrise. The road was empty until about 7 a.m. and the parking lot at Summit Lake was just goats and me. I was hoping for white-tailed ptarmigan on the saddle — they’d been reported the week before. Took me forty-five minutes of walking the talus before I spotted one, crouched still against a rock that looked exactly like its flank. Once I saw it there were three more within fifty feet.

The 150-600 is heavier than I want at 13,000 feet. Had to sit down a few times. But the light was good, cold and clean, and the birds didn’t care about me.

Ptarmigan crouched among gray talus — I almost stepped on it. That brown is unreal. White-tailed Ptarmigan 450mm, 1/1250s, f/6.3, ISO 1000

Ptarmigan walking across alpine gravel — Same bird a minute later. Wasn't bothered. White-tailed Ptarmigan 500mm, 1/1600s, f/6.3, ISO 1250

American pipit perched on a rock — Pipits were everywhere once the sun hit. American Pipit 500mm, 1/1250s, f/8, ISO 800

Rosy-finch on a snow patch — Small flock working a snowbank below the road. Brown-capped Rosy-Finch 500mm, 1/1000s, f/8, ISO 1000

Mountain goat nanny with kid — Nanny with a kid, giving me a wide berth. Mountain Goat 200mm, 1/800s, f/8, ISO 640

Marmot sunning on a boulder — Less shy than any bird up there. Yellow-bellied Marmot 600mm, 1/1600s, f/6.3, ISO 1250

Tundra with wildflowers and distant ridge — Walking back to the car around 8:30. Alpine tundra, morning 23mm, 1/1000s, f/11, ISO 200

Horned lark on bare gravel — Heard before seen. Tiny and wind-blown. Horned Lark 300mm, 1/2000s, f/6.3, ISO 640

Clark's nutcracker in a dead limber pine — Nutcracker stashing. Three seeds a second. Clark's Nutcracker 400mm, 1/1000s, f/6.3, ISO 400

Close-up of alpine forget-me-nots — Forget-me-nots still going strong this high. Alpine wildflowers, macro 150mm, 1/500s, f/5.6, ISO 400

Pika with grass in mouth — Pika haying. Five short runs then back under. American Pika 200mm, 1/1000s, f/7.1, ISO 400

Summit Lake with last snow patches — Car-window frame on the way down. Summit Lake 23mm, 1/500s, f/11, ISO 400