Ram On The Run - Rick's Hideout

RallyPoint Members, Friends, and Connection, please check out SFC Richard Williamson or Rick's Hideout for his new Blog! Enjoy!

Hello Folks, and welcome to Rick’s hideout. This is a place where there is absolutely nothing expected of you, except for maybe enjoying yourself, or just taking a deep breath and relaxing, even if only for a few moments. My name is Rick Williamson and I’m the owner/developer of this blog and it’s my way of venting, ranting, relaxing, and sharing with others, some of my photography, as well as sharing with you, who and where I am.

In some of my past blogs, I’ve stated that my wife and I live in a place where everyday can be an adventure, just by walking outside or going into town. You see, we live in a small town in northwest Montana, called Plains. Some call it “Wildhorse Plains”, even though are no wild horses here. Plains is situated on the Lower Clark Fork River and is a mere 9 miles from the confluence of the Clark Fork and Flathead Rivers, two of the most pristine rivers I’ve ever seen.

Here, we are surrounded by the Rocky Mountains and the wildlife is phenomenal. In this area, we enjoy the blessings of God’s creatures, big and small. We have deer, whitetails and mulies, elk, moose, bears, black & grizzlies, bighorn sheep, and and an abundance of waterfowl, from ducks to swans and even an occasional white pelican.

We also have an amazing population of eagles, both bald and golden. The bald eagles, I believe, out number the golden eagles, but both give us enjoyment almost daily. It never fails, that the sight of an eagle, gives me a quick adrenalin rush. I have 100s of photos of eagles from around our area, but the ones that I enjoy the most, are the ones of the nesting pair of baldies, less than a quarter mile from our home.

A couple of months ago, I went for one of my usual drives, from home, into town, then over to Paradise and then back home via River Road East. I, personally, call this “The Loop”. I was thrilled to capture this bighorn sheep standing high atop this rock bluff, that is known as “Rocky Point”. I shot these photos with my main camera, and with afterthought, I should have used my Powershot with the video recorder, but I didn’t.

This ram was a couple hundred feet above the road and I figured I’d be safe parking roughly 75 yards back from the base of this rock, on the road. He saw me and I guess curiosity got the best of him and he did not turn his attention away from me. I thought maybe, as he started his descent, that he’d stay on the bluff and move away from me. I was wrong.

As he started down toward the road, I was standing in front of my truck, shooting shot after shot, and was amazed that, when he reached the road, about 50 yards away from me, he didn’t turn, but rather headed straight toward me. Now that he’s on the road, I figured it would be a very good idea to retreat back to my truck. So, I walked backward until I was behind the driver side door, still standing on the road. The final shot in this series shows the top of his head/horns and there’s a blur; that’s the hood of my truck. After looking at me over the hood, he must’ve been satisfied that I was no danger or I wasn’t his “type”, because he continued to amble on down the road behind me, for about a 1/4 mile and then went back up into the rocks. NOTE: This was during the mating season, more commonly referred to as “The Rut”.