Back from photo excursion

[MN Shutterbug]

Well, my escape to the north country was a bit disappointing. The wind pretty much kept the critters hiding out in dense brush and such. Someone thought it was due to the bridge work being done there a week or so before I got there. I saw very few animals and even the refuge people were a bit surprised. There was another photographer from Duluth there. He had the Canon 40D with a 100-400 IS lens, but when you can't find the wildlife, you can't shoot it. He was there to photo and document the duck banding at the refuge. They even called that off, due to the wind. I've been to the north and northeast part of the state, but this is the first time I've ever been this far north in the western part of the state. Talk about flat country. I'll take the northeastern half any day. However, I'll probably go back to Agassiz in the spring. They tell me it's a much better time to spot wildlife. The first 3 photos here are just to show that I actually saw them. They are really s****y photos but it's proof I made the attempt. The moose was spotted at 7:15 in the morning with dark clouds and plenty of wind. I was trying to brace myself against my suv but just couldn't hold steady in the wind. This was shot at ISO 400, 1/100 sec. @ 3.6 with an effective zoom of 734mm. The cranes were feeding in a field probably close to 100 yards out. They were very happy to stay in the center. There just wasn't much I could do about that. These were also shot at 734mm. With my binoculars, I counted around 135 cranes in the field. It was a cool sight.

Well, gotta take my mother microwave shopping. I'll upload a couple deer photos(no lack of them), a couple greater egrets and a pair of trumpeter swans. I promise, they are better than these crappy shots.

[Steve Foss]

Sorry your trip was a bit of a disappointment, XT.

But look at the bright side. Now that you've scouted Agassiz, you'll be ready to hit the ground running there in the spring.

[Dbl]

To bad about the weather X-tackleman. Hopefully you still had an enjoyable time getting out and enjoying a different kind of challenge.