Wildlife Near Denver

This past Saturday I decided to see if I could take some photographs of wildlife near Denver, and started with the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal was originally a chemical weapons plant built during WWII, located just to the east of Denver. After the Vietnam War, it became the location of a chemical factory, which closed in 1985. The site was heavily polluted, and after years of cleanup, it became a National Wildlife Refuge. I never had much luck finding wildlife here before, but this time I was able to find several herds of deer, which allowed me to take the photo on the left. There was also supposed to be bison here, too, although the only one I spotted was in a far off field and had it's back turned to me.

Wanting, for some unknown reason, to photograph bison, I decided to head west into the mountains to the Buffalo Outlook near Genesee Park, about 20 minutes west of Denver. I have often driven past this large pasture along Interstate 70 that is home to a buffalo herd, but have never stopped to take a look, and have seldom seen any buffalo. However, this past Saturday, I discovered the overlook and a walkway that takes you along the pasture. The buffalo were not very close to the fence, but I used a zoom lens to take the photo on the right. One thing I learned very quickly is that buffalo are not very interesting. They tend to graze and sit, and not do much else. Plus, they are not really buffalo - they are bison, misnamed by early settlers. And there you have it. Still another educational tidbit from this blog. No thanks necessary.