After I waved goodbye to the Black Hills, I made my way to Ten Sleep, Wyoming. I drove through the Bighorn Mountains, which were still rocking fresh snow from recent storms. It was the last week of May, but winter held the mountains firm in a wintery grip. All the campgrounds were still closed, while the RVers were crammed into roadside camps in Ten Sleep like sardines in a tin can, no doubt eagerly awaiting more spring-like weather.
Just west of Ten Sleep was a turn-off to Castle Gardens, a small recreation area that my friend Lang Elliott had discovered, and where we had agreed to meet. I arrived in mid-afternoon, and although the campground was tiny, I had no trouble finding a site. Castle Gardens is a lovely area of eroded white sandstone escarpment, resulting in hoodoos, cliffs, and interesting boulders. Just visible to the northeast are the snow-capped Bighorn Mountains. Juniper, sage, and grass created a nice mixed habitat that looked like it had great potential for an interesting variety of wildlife. I relaxed and explored the area, and Lang and Beth finally arrived just before dark as heavy clouds rolled in. They quickly set up their tents, then took off to retrieve some mics that Lang had set up before the weather looked so ominous.
With it looking very much like rain, I didn’t set out any mics overnight. That was a good thing, as it drizzled off and on until just before dawn. The clouds had mostly cleared out by morning, although a cool, stiff breeze remained. Lang and Beth headed for Ten Sleep to grab some breakfast, Wi-Fi, and showers, while I spent the morning exploring. On the other side of the rim of hoodoos that surrounds the camping area, I found a pretty basin of grass and sage. I set up a mic, and recorded a nice mid-morning chorus of Western Meadowlarks, with Chukar and Mountain Bluebirds chiming in.
After Lang and Beth returned from their adventure in town, we spent some time catching up. I hadn’t seen Lang in three years, and meeting Beth felt like unboxing a surprise gift. After dinner, we decided to explore more, taking advantage of the almost-clear night, which was perfect for setting our mics among the hoodoos. Barn Owls, Great Horned Owls, Rock Doves, American Kestrels, Rock Wrens, and European Starlings were all nesting in the rocks, creating quite the cacophony. In spite of a relentless breeze, I managed to snag a few minutes of a delightful evening chorus of Rock Wrens and Say’s Phoebes, along with the charming squawks of Barn Owl and Great Horned Owl chicks.
The next morning was bright and sunny, and the birds were singing like crazy. I picked up a nice dawn chorus in the middle of the hoodoos:
Lang and Beth zoomed off to Yellowstone, while I decided to stick around for an extra day. After a quick shower in town, I made my way back to the Bighorn Mountains, ready to discover if any campgrounds had deigned to open for Memorial Day weekend. They hadn’t, so I poked around the foothills a bit, before returning to Castle Gardens. I set up mics among the hoodoos and along the drive into the recreation area, which was nice mesa of grass and sage. The wind decided it wanted to pick up overnight, but I still managed to snag a recording overflowing with the delightful chaos of “larkiness” in the grassland: Western Meadowlarks, Lark Sparrows, and Lark Buntings!
After breakfast and collecting the recorders, I hit the road for Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge. I went the long way around, through Bozeman, to try to avoid the crowds in Yellowstone and by the time I arrived at Red Rocks another storm was rolling in. That’s where I’ll pick up the next installment.