Vics Blog

It’s four am and as I reach for the alarm and brush away the cobwebs of a deep sleep, my brain begins the eternal struggle of burying myself back in the comfort of the covers or rising to adventures that certainly await me. Through all the years I usually made the choice for the latter and for the most part have been richly rewarded with some really good pictures. Last evening’s forecast called for snow and below zero temperatures and a quick glance out the bedroom window confirms that the weatherman is right for once. It’s a quick shower, one last fleeting look at the warmth of the bed as it calls me back, winter clothes and hiking boots and out of the garage at fifteen below.
The tires of the Xterra crunch loudly on the snow when it’s this cold and the drive up the Poudre Canyon will be dark and slow. The guy on the radio says that everyone should consider staying home this morning. I reach for the hot tea on the console and steam fogs my glasses for just a second as a blizzard of endless snowflakes drift in the headlights. Not far from town there are several vehicles that have slid off the road so I slow the truck to a crawl and know that the trip will take a bit longer than usual. Am I nuts?
A couple hour later I pull off and park the truck a few feet from the trailhead. It’s always coldest in the minutes before dawn and the steam from my breath rises like a chugging locomotive as my legs churn through the deep snow and up towards the cliffs. Eventually I find a rocky outcrop of frozen granite that affords an incredible view and I have a sit to rest my lungs . My thoughts turn to the people back in town who’ll miss these beautiful moments but on the other hand maybe they won’t today.
For two bone chilling hours I scan the crevices and icy ledges looking through the telephoto lens for Bighorn rams. Nothing. Another hour passes and I have thoughts of moving somewhere else so that the blood will start moving in my backside again or just going home and calling it a day. Check the battery to make sure it hasn’t lost its charge, set the ISO for 600 which will give the camera ample shutter speed to stop any movement and stay for a few more minutes. Just a few more minutes.
Opportunities happen when patience, practice and perseverance come together and today is no exception. He moves silently and deftly around the corner of a long ledge and shows himself a mere fifty yards from me. My heart skips a beat as I observe his magnificence and slowly raise the camera, taking time to carefully focus and shoot. He scrapes away the snow with his horns and hooves to expose frozen blades of grass which he rips away by the roots. The long stems hanging from his mouth make it look likes he’s spitting flames. In those magical moments, when time stands still, I hear the click of the shutter over and over again and know that the “fire breathing ram” is worth every bone chilling minute.