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Tag Archives: sunrise

Fog over Sheep Mountain; First frost

cold tickles, first frost—
a fine sheen reflects stacked coins–
fog shrouds Sheep Mountain.

 
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Posted by on September 20, 2021 in Nature and Wildlife, Poetry

 

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Solstice

Solstice sunrise

Solstice Sonnet

Season’s end draws, dims, slides down to the rest
of the year, where we await winter sleep,
Day’s end presents sundown, darkened nest
where quiet lures, lulls, to somnolent deep

and tempting dreams, where twilight dusk holds sway.
Dawn comes late, with sparking, shimmering freeze.
Solstice rays shoot beams, arrows into day–
Ancients rose, chanted, begged gods to be pleased

and halt sun’s chariot southering drift,
to change its course, to close its dogged lap.
Prayers intoned, begged for light’s return—strong, swift,
No more creeping darkness, to suck and sap

its sunlit balm. Now incline to summer–
swing past the solstice, past darkness’ slumber.

 
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Posted by on December 21, 2020 in Events, Nature and Wildlife, Poetry

 

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Sunrise blessing

 

Sunrise bleeds into
morning, day, season’s turning,
this blessing, a gift.

 
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Posted by on November 6, 2020 in Nature and Wildlife, Poetry

 

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Sangre de Cristo–Summer of Fire

Red sunrise over Sheep Mountain

Sangre de Cristo,
blood red against the sky,
smoky crimson sunrise
illuminates the dry

and murky landscape,
grey haze that turns to pink,
and throws a rosy glow
to make night’s shadows sink.

Mountains rise ephemeral,
magic light against their rock,
a brief illumination
shows their beauty with a shock.

of this pink and hazy glow
wrought by fires in the south,
fire in the sky,
and fires bred by drought.

Flames that rise and roar
and eat all before their path,
nature and man’s doings
give way before their wrath.

We watch from distant fastness
as smoky fingers curl,
long tendrils reach with greed
to menace with their swirl,

and spread a grim grey threat
to make us tear and choke.
We wear a gauzy veil
of ash and haze and smoke.

It filters through our valleys
where grass stands stiff and dry,
where leaves hang low and thirsty
beneath this pall of sky.

Tales now come to haunt us
of flames that leave a stark
and ancient calling card,
borne aloft by wind and spark.

We watch and wait and fret
that such could be our fate,
while distant matches flare,
in a tinderbox, we wait.

Such thoughts all disappear
with wonder and with awe,
as sunrise works its alchemy,
paints the country with a raw

and glowing pinkwash,
with a brief and fleeting dye.
Sangre de Cristo,
blood red against the sky.

Red sunset over Battle Mountain

 

 
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Posted by on August 22, 2020 in Nature and Wildlife, Poetry

 

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Another tough winter (continued)

Ready for the trucks

 

Here’s more photos from sorting the sheep, Who will head north for the winter and who will stay at Powder Flat? The ewe lambs and the younger ewes go to sugar beets and crop aftermath near Burlington. The older ewes and peewee lambs will receive special care at our Powder Flat ranch.

 

bravely guarding the sheep

Here’s the truck!

heading up the alleyway

Eamon and Ned, the brand inspector

Seamus in the chute

Seamus and Oscar

horses, sheep and cows, oh my!

 

 

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Almost Solstice

morning contrail over Sheep Mountain

 

 

Winter solstice seeks
Southern-most arc of sunrise,
craving darkness‘ end .

almost solstice sunrise

 
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Posted by on December 19, 2019 in Events, Nature and Wildlife, Poetry

 

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Grateful

sunirse with the cookhouse bell

the big kids’ table at Thanksgiving

sunrise over Flattop and Lucky Butte

 
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Posted by on November 22, 2018 in Events, Family, Folks, Nature and Wildlife

 

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Sorting at sunrise

bringing in the sheep

 

 

We sorted two bunches of sheep, starting at sunrise. It was a cold morning, but beautiful.

foggy morning

sheep and crew ready to go

the sheep, the chute, and sunrise over Muddy Mountain

grabbing a snack

 

clouds building

more clouds

then came the thunderstorm over Muddy Mountain

 

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Sun rising

Sunrise over Flattop

St. Francis and Sheep Mountain

winter

 
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Posted by on January 13, 2018 in Events

 

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Trailing Sunrise

Sunrise over the Sierra Madres

As we trail the sheep and the cows onto the Routt and Medicine Bow National Forests, we see a lot of sunrises.

 
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Posted by on June 30, 2017 in Nature and Wildlife

 

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