A Week of Critters

The most interesting animal we encountered had to be the bighorn sheep. I've never seen one in the wild so this was a real treat. I could watch them for hours. We saw many rams along the roadway and you could see the females along the rugged Absaroka peaks and ledges where apparantly they have their young. A newborn can walk and climb nearly as well as its mother shortly after birth.

While watching through my binoculars, one sheep jumped downward, sending a horrifying sensation through my body. I thought for sure it had slipped off the edge and was falling to its death. Much to my relief it landed with grace on a ledge below. It's truly amazing how quickly they can get from one cliff to another.

The rugged terrain is ideal for these animals, providing protection from predators. Their hooves are hard at the outer edge and spongy in the center giving them excellent traction.

We noticed when the rams were on soft ground, their traction wasn't nearly as good as it was on solid rock.

I'm still astonished that over the years of vacationing in this area that I never once saw these amazing animals.

Despite the cold, wet weather, the wildlife we encountered made the trip worth while. Hopefully the next trip will be warmer and wildlife abundant.

Below are a few links you may find interesting as well as a page to view larger photos that I took.

Bighorn Sheep

Photos I took in the Shoshone National Forest

Video of the grizzly standing on his hind legs

Video of the rams we saw

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