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Just behind that tree . . .

Just behind that tree . . .

Marty’s photo of the day #4788: In the summer, I move my office/writing room out to the front porch, which allows me to gaze out at the top level of the Essen Wildlife Refuge. I also have a motion-sensing camera that is roughly 100 yards straight out from the house. It doesn’t surprise me when […]

The wild in wildlife

The wild in wildlife

Marty’s photo of the day #4758: The “wild” in wildlife is pretty much a guarantee that whatever it is will refuse to be predictable. My wife’s college roommates and their husbands came to visit from Minnesota this past week, and most had heard about all the wildlife we have at the Essen Wildlife Refuge. But, […]

The Essen Wildlife Refuge

The Essen Wildlife Refuge

Marty’s photo of the day #4721: I captured this somewhat grainy image with one of my motion-sensing cameras. For 28 years, my wife and I have protected our 25 acres as the Essen Wildlife Refuge. In the grand scale of Montana, our acreage is hardly anything. Nevertheless, people like us are sometimes castigated as greedy […]

Front porch elk

Front porch elk

Marty’s photo of the day #4660: Other than Yellowstone National Park, The Amazon Rainforest of Peru, or Mana Pools National Park in Zimbabwe, I’ve never experienced more consistent wildlife sightings than on the Essen Wildlife Refuge (the 25 acres Deb and I own and fiercely protect, surrounding our house). Rarely does a day goes by […]

Stalking with Nellie

Stalking with Nellie

Marty’s photo of the day #4499: I shot this elk photo yesterday morning on the Essen Wildlife Refuge. We get a lot of elk here, but because elk move to different locations depending on the season, seeing an elk on the refuge with a full rack is rare. This bull was with five to fifteen […]

Is she a fan?

Is she a fan?

Marty’s photos of the day #4480-4481: Deb’s and my house sits roughly in the middle of the 25-acre Essen Wildlife Refuge. A long gravel driveway comes in from the side, crosses in front of the house, and wraps around to our garage. A long raised porch runs across the front of our house, the porch […]

The headless elk parade

The headless elk parade

Marty’s photo of the day #4405: Here’s another elk photo from my motion-sensing camera. I always aim my camera low—in hopes of capturing wolf, fox, and mountain lion shots―so up-close elk have to be positioned just right, or the camera decapitates them. This is the tail end of the herd, which was following about 15 […]

Flowers for dinner

Flowers for dinner

Marty’s photo of the day #4404: During the past few weeks, we’ve had a ton of wildlife action at the Essen Wildlife Refuge, including moose, deer, wild turkeys, wild peacocks, nighthawks, foxes, and even a probable fisher. We also have a large herd of elk hanging around. This elk, photographed last week with my motion-sensing […]

Little Dog on the Prairie

Little Dog on the Prairie

Marty’s photo of the day #4094: “The Little Dog on the Prairie.” Okay, at 58 pounds, Nellie is more of a medium-to-large-sized-dog, but you get the point. I shot this photo during a long hike in the American Prairie Reserve, after Deb and I discovered that Nellie could successfully dodge all the cactus and gave […]

Flowers of waves

Flowers of waves

Marty’s photo of the day #4010: All the rain this year has made for spectacular waves of wildflowers at the Essen Wildlife Refuge, surrounding Deb’s and my house. A few weeks ago, the white flowers of the serviceberry bushes were everywhere; then they were replaced by the yellow flowers of arrowleaf balsamroots; now they are […]

Elk on the prairie

Elk on the prairie

Marty’s photo of the day #3760: Stalking elk on the open prairie isn’t easy—especially when accompanied by a very active, medium-sized dog. The elk were at the beginning of their rut, when Deb, Nellie, and I visited the American Prairie Reserve earlier this month. A few times we even heard them bugling. These two bulls […]

Calliope hummingbird

Calliope hummingbird

Marty’s photo of the day #2950: In the summer, I move my office out to the front porch. That means that while I work a wide variety of animals pass in front of me. On some days it could be a moose, a bear, a herd of elk, wild turkeys, or a peacock. But every […]

Mother and foal

Mother and foal

Marty’s photo of the day #2893: Early each morning I go on a bike ride (I live on a steep mountain hill, so it’s my daily workout), and each morning brings me a new sight. It could be a bear, a moose, a deer, an elk, or even a groundhog. The last few mornings, I’ve […]