At around the 4.0 mile mark of the Auto Tour, there is an observation structure called Grefe Tower. One would think that tower would indicate a raised structure of more than four feet. Well, it's more like a deck. A nice deck to be sure, but a deck. For the area, there is ample parking to not block the one lane for traffic. Great place to take a break. Plus within walking distance there is a 'relief' station.
So as I arrived on Saturday, I saw there was a man on the 'tower' intently looking through binoculars out at the fields. I parked the truck and as quietly as I could, hit the trails behind the 'tower' for a little walking. The relief station is about 100 yards off the road. After that stop, I headed off to the Refuge photography blind. I had been to the blind two years ago, and I was surprised it is still advertised as being there. It was a 50/50 deal then that I would walk out to it, the deck plank wasn't that sturdy. I was hoping it had been repaired since I had been there last. I tried to approach the area as quiet as possible, but the wildlife net was alive and I could hear critters giving me plenty of room as they moved from my sight. As I moved closer to the photo blind, I could see there hasn't been much repair work in the past. This wasn't looking good.
The 50/50 proposition of walking that plank was looking more like 95/5 against. Then it was official.
I'm not coloring outside that line.
Time to head back to the truck. As I moved back into view of the tower, the bird watching gentleman motioned to me that he was looking at something close by. Eventually I saw hawk, just sitting in the tree. I started snapping away. It took some time to close the last 20 feet from the path, crossing the road and getting the tower ramp. Lots of shots on the way. I found out that the hawk wasn't very skiddish, and appeared to be ignoring the other man and myself. Some time later a car passed under the hawk, less than five feet away and the hawk just watched. That hawk was on it's own time.
Eventually you can shoot only so many pictures of a static subject, even accounting for making sure one of the them will be good.
I wound up talking to the Bird Watcher and turns out he's a fascinating guy. Said he was an Aussie and had the accent to back it up. He wasn't much of a hiker, so he was manning the tower until his wife returned from the trails. So we chatted until she returned. Wonderful time.
Here is the Broadwing Hawk. Again, the Refuge site says the hawk has been seen there and from what I can find, I think that is what this is.
ISO 800, f/5.6, 1/1000 sec, 600 mm
Technically, this is one of the clearest photos of the day for me. The light was cooperating which was a change from other subject locations and angles. Any post processing would only take away from the image. The absolute clarity of this lens continues to impress me.
Aesthetically I can now see why some folks really get caught up in wildlife photography. Although I am having so much fun with the Eagle photos, this one is different. Seems more at home. The colors on this bird are very interesting to me, especially the face area. I can see why serious birders have the lenses that they do. At some point, may have to get serious myself.
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