One of the challenges with the Sandhill cranes on the Platte river is that some of them…well, many of them, will start their day pretty early. Many will depart off the river, even before the sun has risen. Couple that with the common fog that envelopes the river in the early hours, and you have … Read more
Some cranes, most likely the elders of the of the group, show a form of confidence that can only come through years of trial mixed with the tribulation of overcoming most everything. They are, or should I say, become, an incredibly durable bird. Migration flights of thousands of miles. Enduring all kinds of weather, from … Read more
Some Sandhill cranes are downright playful. It’s not uncommon to find them grabbing stalks and sticks and just tossing them as high into the air as they can….or jump with some object in their mouth and just fling it upward with what appears to be an almost gleeful attitude. I guess in a sense, Nebraska … Read more
It’s no secret that one of my favorite things to do in the spring is to visit the Kearney Nebraska area and watch the Sandhill Crane migration come through there. I could toss around a lot of superlatives but really none ever do justice to the actual event. You have to see it to believe … Read more
It’s time to depart again…to gather along the Platte river in central Nebraska…and enjoy a reunion with the Sandhill cranes. There is nothing else like this phenomenon on the North American continent…an ancient ritual of spring where hundreds of thousands of cranes gather to rest and recharge in preparation for their final push north to … Read more
“High horns, low horns, silence, and finally a pandemonium of trumpets, rattles, croaks, and cries that almost shakes the bog with its nearness … A new day has begun on the crane marsh. A sense of time lies thick and heavy on such a place.” ~ Aldo Leopold