Osprey Update
August 21, 2009

I heard from several people today wondering where the Osprey were and if they have gone south already. I checked the feed from the cam often today and didn't see them until just a few minutes ago (3:49pm). It appears that they are done flapping their wings in the nest and are getting advanced tutoring in flying and fishing. Hopefully they learned a lot. All three of them are in the nest right now, probably taking a much needed break.

webcam capture

Bear on the shore of Waterton Lake

FINALLY!
August 21, 2009

It's finally happened. We have our first confirmed sighting of a bear on a webcam. Up to now we have had shadowy dark figures and small dark objects that seemed to move when the cameras refreshed, but nothing we could say for certain was a bear. NOT ANY MORE! Thanks to Francis and Holly and Ray I can share this very clear image (it's small but it's a bear) of a bear at Goat Haunt. Click on the image for the whole view.

My first thought was that it is a black bear. It looks like there might be a bit of a hump on the back, but sometimes black bears can show a hump when their heads are bent down. The nose also looks like a black bear nose. It seems more pointed and I don't see a clear dished in face, although that's not always apparent from all angles. It is black or very dark brown, but that is not a way to tell the two species apart. Both can be many different shades, from black to cinnamon to blond. I'll see if anyone working up there has seem this one and can confirm what we are looking at. In the mean time...how cool is that!

Doug, from our office, was over at St. Mary on Saturday evening and managed to capture this brief video clip of one of the chicks starting to flex its wings a bit. Any day now this guy should be testing the winds.

Here is a link to the QuickTime file. It's just under 1Mb.

Howe Ridge, Six Years Ago Tonight
August 10, 2009

It really doesn't seem like it was that long ago, but it was. Six years ago this evening Howe Ridge burned. We got to Apgar just in time to witness huge balls of fire overtopping the ridge near Rocky Point and the Fish Creek Campground. Heroic efforts of hundreds of firefighters saved the campground and the trail around Rocky Point, but the fire ultimately burned well up the ridge over the coming weeks, stopping only because of more firefighting efforts on Stanton Mountain.

Howe Ridge Fire video (wmv)
Howe Ridge Fire video (mov)

All kinds of emotions run through your mind when you see something like this and I still have conflicting thoughts. It was quite the adrenalin rush. Although it was miles away, we could feel the heat of the blaze and hear what sounded like a freight train as it came over the ridgeline. It was a very sad event as well. I think it's natural to feel that way when you know something familiar is changing. I always loved the way the larch forest changed color in the fall, and that doesn't happen anymore. Someday it will again, but not anytime soon. It was also exciting to be on the spot when such a powerful force of nature took control. It's quite something to see.

The immediate aftermath looks pretty bleak, but things do pop back to life very rapidly. Within a few days grasses were sprouting and about a month later shrubs, who's roots had survived, were already putting up new growth. The forest was changed dramatically, but it was not destroyed. There are just different ages of forests and we were there to see the birth of a new one.

Last night I hiked out on Howe Ridge and took a few photos. Here is what it looks like today. There are still dead standing trees, but the ground is covered with new growth and there are lots of 2 to 3 foot lodgepole pine trees taking advantage of the sunny slopes revealed by the passing fires. If you get a chance to hike through this area when you come out you should. It looks much different up close than it does from a distance.

There's a New Cam in Town!
August 9, 2009

Not in this town however, it's across the country in Maine. The new Webcam in Acadia National Park is online. It was launched rather quietly a couple of days ago. It's a nice view of the Tea House lawn and Jordon Pond in the background. I haven't talked to them since they got it online so I don't know if this is the final location, but I thought I'd link to it anyway. Visit the Acadia National Park Webcam Page and check it out!

Mid-week Thoughts
August 5, 2009

The webcams were wacko earlier this week...so was the Black Canyon of the Gunnison webcam and the webcam at Mt. Washburn in Yellowstone. Something happened to the server in Washington DC and I had to ask the Web Team back there to track down the problem. The company that hosts the NPS sites did some kind of merge of servers and that shut off webcams for some reason. Ours are back online and I assume the others are too.

Speaking of webcams, be on the watch for a brand new webcam from Acadia National Park. Our buddy Todd back there is in the process of setting up a new cam at someplace called the Jordon Pond House. We suggested to him he order one of the new ones like we have so he should be getting a very sharp and clear view of Jordon Pond and the Bubbles. I'll post a link to it when it's live.

What's New With the Osprey?
It appears that all three young are still going strong and the adults are very busy bringing fish back to the nest. Today one of the bigger chicks was flapping it's wings quite a bit, so it may not be long now before we see some erratic flying from the little guys (who are quite big now).