While walking back home in the dark from what turned out to be a 6.5 mile walk, I could hear the owls hooting at each other. As I looked around to see where the hoots were coming from, I saw what looked like a large cat at the tip top of a cottonwood, backlit by the afterglow of the sunset. The owl was too far away, and it was too dark, for me to get anything but silhouettes of it.
We had several inches of snow in the morning, but the snow and clouds were almost all gone by sunset.
I went out for a walk along the Rio Grande just before sundown. A Bald Eagle was flying home along the far bank of the river, almost out of reach of my 70-200 mm zoom lens at 200 mm. The Sandhill Cranes were flying in for the night looking like bombers in formation as they flew overhead. As I made my way back home through the bosque, a lone crow sat on top of a branch watching the last bit of pink before it faded into the gray dusk.
We had a thin cloud cover most of the day Friday that produced muted light that colored everything with a grayish tint. The cranes had already flown off by the time I got to the riverbank at sunrise, but they flew back to the river at sunset.
Winter sunset.
I took a walk out to the river at sunset to see if the cranes or other birds were flying in to roost for the night. No cranes, but the glow after sunset was really beautiful.
Our stay at Desert Harbor Resort was a Christmas gift from Laurie’s parents, and we scheduled our stay for our 32nd wedding anniversary. Desert Harbor Resort is run by Raymond and his wife Wesley. Guests stay in a small house up the hill from the main house nestled below undulating cliffs among the juniper and piñon trees. The nightly rate includes breakfast, and guest have the option of ordering dinners as well. Guests can also get life counseling, time in a hot tub, and schedule messages for additional fees. There is a labyrinth guests can walk in and then sit in the center and meditate. On the other side of the cliffs the porch faces is a covered lookout, with a chair and a hammock, overlooking a canyon where one can relax, read or meditate. There are also trails for hiking in the canyon and beyond.
Rugged pink Sandias, paddlers at dusk, and a view of the sunset from the bosque.
Off Center & Not Even 