Listen to the haunting bugle calls of bull elk in the alpine meadows and valleys along the Big Thompson River. A compilation of short recordings made in Rocky Mountain National Park at dusk on October 3, 2022, and dawn the following day. Elevation 8040 feet. MORAINE PARK, COLORADO - Autumn is a spectacular time of year in Rocky Mountain National Park. The foliage changes color in vast waves that cascade down from the tundra as frosty temperatures and shorter days set in. The alpine shrubs and herbs that thrive above the treeline are the first to change color. Cadmium, crimson, rust, sienna, and umber hues sweep across the tundra and descend in waves that wash over the aspen groves, understory, and montane meadows of the lower elevations.But the changing colors in the landscape are not the only signs of autumn’s arrival in the park. This time of year includes another spectacular natural shift within the park—the arrival of the elk breeding season.As the cooler season sets in, elk move down from the high country and gather in the meadows at lower elevations. There they form large herds, and bull elk challenge one another to gain dominance over harems. Male yearlings—too young to claim a harem and too old to hide within one—linger on the periphery, somewhat confused by their lonely predicament. Throughout the rut, bulls engage in various displays of bravado. They bugle, they roll in the mud, and they rub their antlers against trees and shrubs. Such behaviors aim to attract cows and ward off competing bulls. These tactics sometimes fail to drive away the competition. In such instances, bulls face one another in battles to establish dominance.When cows come into estrus, they are receptive to mating with dominant bulls for a short time, just 24 hours. Cows can experience as many as four estrus cycles in a season, though most become pregnant in the first or second cycle. The gestation period generally lasts between 240 and 262 days, and cows give birth to a single calf (twins are rare) in late spring or early summer.Thanks for reading The Art of Exploration! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit artofexplora.substack.com
Experience the soothing sounds of a steady midwestern rain shower as it falls on a bed of coneflowers and sunflowers. Recorded on the afternoon of September 11, 2022, in northern Illinois. Elevation 755 feet.LAKE COUNTY, ILLINOIS — A couple of weeks ago, I drove across the Great Plains from northern Colorado to northern Illinois (with an overnight stop in Nebraska) to visit family and friends. It was my first trip back to the midwest in a while, and I enjoyed making the journey by car instead of by plane so that I could take in the vast open spaces along the way. It’s a long drive though, and I was exhausted when I arrived. I needed a day or two to recover.Not long after I unpacked the car and settled into the spare bedroom at my Mom’s house, a low-pressure system slumped into the Great Lakes region and stalled out. It rained non-stop for the next thirty-six hours straight. What a delight! Having lived in Colorado for nearly ten years, this type of rain—steady, sheeting rain—is a rare treat for me. It gave me the perfect excuse to lounge around for hours on end, reading and listening to the patter of raindrops on the window sill. The showers also gave me the opportunity to record ten-plus minutes of raindrops falling on the coneflowers and sunflowers growing along my Mom’s front porch.Thanks for reading The Art of Exploration! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit artofexplora.substack.com
Listen to the lazy late-summer whirs of grasshoppers as they rattle through the air at my campsite at the base of Beaver Mountain. Recorded in the late afternoon of August 30, 2022, at Moraine Park Campground in Rocky Mountain National Park. Elevation 8,180 feet.MORAINE PARK, COLORADO - I recently spent a few days camping at Moraine Park Campground in the heart of Rocky Mountain National Park. It’s been two years since I last camped in the mountains, and I was thrilled to get back into the wilderness again, even if only for a few nights.My campsite sat at the far edge of the campground near Beaver Mountain. It was a terrific site, with a small ridge of rocks that sheltered my tent. At dawn, I climbed the ridge to watch the first hints of sunshine wash over Gabletop Mountain and flood Fern Canyon.The mornings were comfortably cool. I spent them hiking, taking photographs, and chatting with my campsite neighbors. The afternoons were ferociously hot, so that’s when I retreated to the shade of a ponderosa pine to relax and read a book.During these sweltering afternoons, the fluttering wing clicks of grasshoppers filled the air—an iconic summertime vibe that I could not resist recording. This clicking, known as crepitation, is produced during the courtship display when male grasshoppers repeatedly snap their wings taut while flying to create an auditory performance that (hopefully) impresses the females watching on the ground below. I’m not sure which species of grasshoppers I recorded, but I believe it was some kind of Bandwing Grasshopper (Oedipodinae).Thanks for reading The Art of Exploration! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit artofexplora.substack.com
Experience the churning and sploshing of Mitchell Creek up close, as its snowmelt-swollen waters cascade down from Mitchell Lake towards Brainard Lake. Recorded on the evening of July 2, 2022, near the Arickaree Picnic Area at Brainard Lake in Indian Peaks Wilderness. Elevation 10,350 feet.INDIAN PEAKS WILDERNESS, COLORADO — July is here, and that means the trails above 10,000 feet are finally emerging from beneath a deep blanket of snow. So I drive up to Brainard Lake for a short evening hike and to record the second episode of my podcast, Wild By Nature.There are still patches of snow lingering in shady spots, and the creek churns with the abundant meltwater that rushes down from alpine peaks above. I find a small clearing next to Mitchell Creek, not far from the Arickaree Picnic Area at Brainard Lake. There, I set up my recording rig and sit back for a few minutes as I capture the roar of water. But it’s not long before the mosquitos locate me and attack. I endure their assault as long as I can, which turns out to be exactly 7 minutes and 22 seconds—the length of this recording.As with Episode 1 of this podcast, there’s no talking in this clip. Instead, it’s a solid wall-of-water sound, perhaps not as soothing as the gentle creek I recorded last time, but no less remarkable. This is the voice of one small creek, one summer evening, in a verdant glacial valley, nestled in the shadow of the Indian Peaks Range. It is beautiful, fleeting, and precious.Thanks for reading The Art of Exploration! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work.Thanks for reading The Art of Exploration! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit artofexplora.substack.com
Listen to the gentle flow of Sand Creek and hear the songs of Red-Winged Blackbirds, Spotted Towhees, and Green-Tailed Towhees. Recorded along the Bent Rock Trail in Red Mountain Open Space on a cool, cloudy morning in late June 2022. Elevation 6,285 feet.WELLINGTON, COLORADO — I am pleased to introduce my podcast, Wild By Nature. For the first episode, I share with you a sound recording I made when visiting Red Mountain Open Space in Larimer County, Colorado. There’s no talking in this episode—just the beautiful, complex, precious sounds of nature. I hope you like listening to this clip as much as I enjoyed recording it.Thanks for reading The Art of Exploration! Subscribe for free to receive new posts and support my work. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit artofexplora.substack.com