Beaver Creek

This is just one of many gorgeous scenes to be enjoyed along Beaver Creek. The terrain is very rugged and it's quite a trek to get to this spot, but well worth it for its seclusion, serenity and splendor. The upper Buffalo River area never ceases to impress me!

Close Encounters

Shooting from a blind is always an experience, sometimes boring with little to no activity, but usually there is plenty of action from the birds, squirrels, chipmunks and deer. This rainy, dreary day (and some feed) brought this whitetail doe in for some very close shooting. She was curious what the clicking noise was coming from behind the camouflage material and would often look directly into my lens as she was rewarded with a few bites of food. It was a great close-up experience!

I was prepared for not-so-close encounters and had my longest lens mounted. The 600mm lens has a shallow depth of field at close range, as is shown in these two images taken from less than 20 feet.

Waterfall

The deluge that took place last Thursday night created this brief, 150-200 foot waterfall at Steel Creek on the Buffalo River. It was raining as I took this picture so the clarity is hazy, but I like the effect. It's just amazing what you find when you go look, no matter what the conditions are.

Arkansas Elk

For anyone who has never experienced the elk in Arkansas, I would highly recommend a trip to Boxley Valley right now. The elk rut is on and there are several herds scattered along the length of Boxley with the highest concentration between the hwy 21/43 junction and Ponca.

The fall colors are also really firing up with the maples turning red and orange. Anytime within the next 2-3 weeks should prove worthy of a trip to the area for viewing the foliage and elk.

Notice the cattle mingling with the elk in the photo below. That is very odd and I've only seen them share a pasture a couple times before and never have I seen them intermingle like this. Not sure if the elk are competing for the fertilized graze pastures that the cattle rancher has provided or if they are just becoming acclimated to the cattle.