Sandhill Crane Viewing; Part Six [Morning]

Rowe Sanctuary near Gibbon NE --

When we awoke this morning and peeked outside, the ground was covered with fresh snow and the thermometer was registering around 25 degrees. A northwest wind of about 20-30 miles per hour was blowing snow! "What a miserable morning this is going to be," Grumpy muttered to himself, thinking of standing in that well-ventilated blind for three or four hours.

But Grumpy is no "wuss" -- I mean he has hunted deer in worse weather than this! And even rode horse-back through blizzard conditions just to go visit his best friend in high school.

Ah!! But that was a long, long, long time ago -- when Grumpy was a teenager or mid-twenty something. Now is now, and Grumpy was dreading what might be the discomfort this morning's weather would mete upon his old, tired body.

It was quite dark when Hazel and Grumpy arrived at the blind -- the same one from which we had viewed the Cranes the evening before. We expected to see plenty of them as it seemed to be the central spot for them last night. We were not disappointed!In fact, the cold North wind had apparently "encouraged" the Cranes to move to the South shore of the Platte, nearer to our blind! And the noises they were making!! Grumpy opined that it was probably all of the Mares (females) complaining bitterly to their Roans (males) about his idea of leaving the warm, sunny Louisiana or Northern Mexico to come all the way up here to Nebraska when it was still Winter!! Grumpy imagined he heard the Mares ask, "Didn't you ask for weather directions before we left!?".

I'm sure that any enterprising coyote could have splashed his way right into the midst of that "mob" before any one was the wiser!

Under normal weather conditions, the Cranes would have made a more or less massive takeoff which would have been great to have witnessed. A few brave groups -- maybe more hungry than the others -- took off and headed out to the corn fields to put on more of the fat energy that they will need to make their long journey to Saskatchewan -- or Alaska -- or Siberia!For the most part, the blizzard conditions apparently changed the mood of most of the Cranes on this day, so after a couple hours of watching their nervous (or angry?!) pacing back and forth wading in that cold Platte River water, we finally opted to leave the blind and head back to the headquarters building where we warmed our hands and innards with a cup of coffee. When Grumpy's fingers finally resumed their feeling we hurried to the parking lot where we climbed into our car and aimed for breakfast at the Perkins restaurant in Kearney.

Although somewhat disappointed in not seeing the mass takeoff, we both felt rewarded in seeing the more rare sight of what the Cranes do instead on a cold, miserable morning.

Sandhill Crane Viewing; Part Five [Evening]

Rowe Sanctuary near Gibbon NE --

The weather was quite comfortable this evening and, being in the enclosed blind kept most of the wind and all of the occasional sprinkles of rain from bothering us. It didn't seem to bother the Cranes, either, as they came swooping in by the two's, three's, four's and "more's"!

A group of two or three is generally a life-long mated male and female, with the third individual being last year's "chick". Proper terminology for the threesome is: Roan (male), Mare (female), Colt (last year's chick). If a fourth member is in the group, it is likely a "widowed" male or female that has bonded with the others for companionship or safety. Sandhill Cranes are hunted in every State through which they fly -- except Nebraska! The fact that they are hunted almost everywhere explains why there are a number of "widows" and/or orphans as evidenced by the fairly common sight of a group of four -- or even five.

There were about 15 or 20 people in the group that was led out to the blind by a volunteer. The pathway to the blind was shielded, by trees and underbrush, from the views of the Platte River (and the Cranes' view of us as we made our way along!). The blind was a building about six feet wide and approximately 20 feet long, oriented with the long side parallel with the River. Spaced about three feet apart along the long side were openings, each about 12 inches high and 18 inches wide. The openings alternated between a comfortable eye-height for me, a 6-footer, and a similarly comfortable eye-height for a 5 foot 2 inch woman or child. A step stool was available to accommodate those who were "height-challenged".

The view of the Cranes flying in from their day of feeding in the nearby fields was fascinating! Some of the maneuvers as individuals sought to adjust their airspeed and position in the "landing pattern" were absolutely amazing to Grumpy, an old ex-Navy pilot! I saw several Cranes do double or triple successive roll 180's (90 degree bank to one side followed directly by a 90 degree bank in the opposite direction!). In basic flight training in the Navy, we were taught a maneuver called "S-Turns to the Circle"; these turns are aerodynamically inefficient, thereby allowing rapid loss of altitude to adjust the glide path so as to touch down within a prescribed circle of about 100 feet in diameter (this with an aircraft that had a landing speed of over 50 miles per hour!). In effect, the Cranes were performing a similar maneuver, except they did it much more sharply and rapidly than Grumpy ever did in the "Yellow Peril"!!

The first groups of Cranes to arrive, landed on the opposite side of the River about 1/4 mile distant from our blind. As this far area became quite "solid" with Cranes, the sandbar and open water nearer our blind began to be populated. Eventually, it seemed that there was no space for any late arrivals to find a spot on which to land. Yet they continued to come, seeming to drop into an open spot with no apparent contact with adjacent birds.

Why do the Cranes fly into the River at night? Well, it was explained that by their "roosting" on the sandbars or in the water, they would be alerted by the splashing of an approaching predator (coyote, bobcat, mink or whatever) and thus be able to take evasive actions. As the evening wore on (we stayed until nearly nine -- well after dark) the question arose: "How can they hear anything splashing when they are making so much noise!?" The answer, "They get quite a bit quieter as the night gets later", had Grumpy and sister Hazel more than a bit dubious, since the noise had not perceptibly decreased in volume by the time we left the blind!

I took some of the later photos using my camera's ability to manually select a ISO setting of 32oo. As one of the reviews of the camera had said, "The graininess is noticable at the ISO setting of 3200".

Sandhill Crane Viewing; A Surprise Meeting

Rowe Sanctuary near Gibbon NE --

After an early supper in nearby Kearney, we arrived at the Sanctuary headquarters in time for walking out to our blind at about 6:30 pm. As I had inquired about the possibility of purchasing something, such as a lifetime viewing membership or an individual gift viewing permit, I was introduced to the new director of the Sanctuary, Bill Taddicken. I briefed him of my interest in providing an opportunity for people, such as my late sister Donagene Bell, to witness the sights and sounds of the Sandhill Cranes.

Although he had not been at the Sanctuary at the time three years ago, when Donagene had made her visit to see the Cranes before she died a few days later, Bill was familiar with the story of the terminally-ill lady who had wanted to "see" the Cranes one last time. He mentioned that another volunteer and/or staff member had written an article describing his encounter with Donagene, helping her out to the blind, using a golf cart and wheel chair, and ensuring that she had a comfortable place to sit at a viewing window while she listened to the Cranes and heard her sister's description of what was to be seen. Bill promised that he would try to find a copy of the article that had been written, for us to take with us when we came the following morning.

When we returned from the blind the following morning, we were met by Director Taddicken who surprised us by introducing us to the author of the article, Alan Bartels. Mr. Bartels is a Contributing Writer/Photographer for Nebraska Life magazine. True to his promise, Bill Taddicken had found copies of the article (one for Hazel and one for me). I shall strive to provide access, by some link on this BLOG, for those interested in reading this touching story.

Meeting the author of the story and hearing his personal feelings (some of which he also handwrote at the end of the copies, thinking he wouldn't get to see us in person), were experiences that made this visit to the Rowe Sanctuary extra special for me -- a memory to my dear older sister Donagene who loved the Sandhill Cranes so much that she endured with virtually her dying strength to make a last visit to see and hear them. Hazel said that Donagene uttered these words, "I won't be here to see them next year, but they will be here for as long as there is a River!" To insure that Donagene's vision will endure, Hazel and I have each made memorial contributions in her name to the Rowe Sanctuary. I will pursue additional ways, as I mentioned at the beginning of this post, to afford the opportunity for others not as fortunate as I, to view the Sandhill Cranes at this unique site.

Sandhill Crane Viewing; Part Four [Afternoon]

Rowe Sanctuary, near Gibbon NE --

Arriving in the area early on the Monday for which we had evening reservations for a prime viewing blind at the Rowe Sanctuary, we drove around the corn fields and open pastures where we spotted feeding or loafing cranes. At one place, where a large (flock?, gaggle?, congregation? -- take your pick) of cranes appeared easy to drive close to. Grumpy stopped the car at about 100 yards away when the cranes raised their heads in alarm. We could plainly see some of them jumping up and down, flapping their huge wings (7-foot spread!). A video was necessary to catch this action and Grumpy urges anyone interested in large birds to take advantage of an opportunity to witness this sight for themselves.

Their dancing antics, we were to learn, can be an expression of courting or simply an exercise of joy! Some of their movements with their long legs, as they leap sometimes kicking into the air, and their sideways/backwards movement that occurs while airborne, almost makes one laugh! At a casual glance, they appeared to be so ungainly -- a conclusion that was to be totally debunked later, as we saw them in flight!

A curious situation arose as we watched this farmer on his tractor, tilling the corn field where a large flock of cranes were feeding. What happened next can be seen by watching this short slide show. A one-second interval is suggested to get a "motion picture" effect.

We had an early supper in Kearney before returning to the Sanctuary headquarters for our evening viewing from the blind. See subsequent post for samples of what we saw.

Sandhill Crane Viewing; Part Three [Caravan to NE with Hazel]

Sunday, on the Road to Nebraska --

Hazel had driven from Carlisle IA in her F-150, attending to important business in Philip SD before meeting me in Rapid for our visit with Cousin Ann and Jack. We travelled caravan style, down the East side of the Black Hills where the tall prairie grass, in its winter dormant phase, evidenced the previous good moisture year(s). It was a beautiful sight for Grumpy to see, reminiscent of his childhood growing up "out on the prairie" of Western SD. Grumpy strained his eyes (watching the road at the same time!) trying to spot some Buffalo pasturing in this lush grassland; unfortunately he missed seeing some wild turkeys on both sides of the road! Hazel teased him about his oversight later.

At the junction of our North-South highway and Nebraska SR-2 in Alliance, we stopped briefly to visit the Car Henge. This is someone's idea of "modern" art! The Grand Mother and Grumpy stopped last summer to see this, and Hazel indicated that she was interested in seeing it too. Although it was "on the way", Grumpy (who was leading the caravan using his trusty GPS) managed to miss two (2) opportunities to turn off. Grumpy even forgot the route information posted on a huge road sign aways before! So we had to make a side trip (up and back) of about 4 miles after going through Alliance, in order to see this "art".

In mid-afternoon we arrived at our Cousin Marvin & Gaylene's home in Arnold NE where we visited, had supper with them and enjoyed their hospitality for the night, with a delicious toast-n-egg breakfast the next morning.

Sandhill Crane Viewing; Part Two [Visit with Jack & Ann, and Hazel]

Saturday in Rapid City--

Ann is the daughter of my Uncle Ted and Aunt Zelma Z. Don Z, who lives here in the Seattle area, is her older brother. Jack and Ann "retired" from their ranch south of Faith about a year ago and moved into a nice apartment in the Bakken Park area of Rapid. Hazel and Grumpy were thankful that they lived in Rapid, as the threat of melting snow on the "gumbo" extant on the roads into and out of the ranch would have forbade our visiting them there!

Jack took us for a visit to the "Journey" museum in Rapid and also to Hill City where we enjoyed a light lunch and desert in a fine German cuisine restaurant occupying the former Hill City Hotel. Our waitress willingly took our picture as we enjoyed our roast beef vegetable soup.

Sandhill Crane Viewing; Part One [Eastbound]

I-90 and US-212; Thursday Afternoon & Friday--

Leaving Seattle at about 3 p.m. on Thursday was deemed to be frugal of time because Grumpy sleeps only fitfully when anticipating an adventure. And this trip was to be an adventure, indeed! More about that in subsequent posts in this series.

Roads bare and dry all the way, except over Snoqualmie Pass -- what else is new!? Keeping with the policy set last summer when the First Wife requested "no more than 65 miles per hour", Grumpy dutifully set the Cruise Control at 65 (plus or minus 0.5) and watched the miles ponderously roll by. Going all the way to Missoula MT (490 miles) before refueling was easy as the Red Rocket with a full 17-plus tank, easily exceeds 34 mpg at this cruising speed. Grumpy checked into the "best motel in Drummond MT" at about 11 p.m.

Friday morning, "on the road again", Grumpy saw the signs of the 24 inches of snow (and drifted snow) that had hit the area north and west of the Black Hills a day or two before! These big piles of snow in Broadus MT and the grazing Mule deer witness to the scale of the snowfall.

621 miles after refuelling in Missoula, with the "fuel warning" light blazing for over 50 miles, Grumpy rolled into Belle Fourche to again fill the tank. Snow was piled over 7 or 8 feet deep!

Stop of the day was at Cousin Ann's & Jack's apartment in Rapid City where my Sister Hazel had arrived earlier that morning.

The Grand Mother's Fall

At Home -- Third Week of March 2009:

This week started out with a "bang" -- literally! Mother fell in her room in the wee hours of Sunday morning. Grumpy was sleeping lightly and but didn't awaken with the bang, but did come conscious when he heard something immediately following, which his sleep-benumbed mind categorized as a romantic Tom cat. As it turned out, it was the Grand Mother's best attempt at a scream.

After mulling the "Tomcat" sound over in his mind and being also conscious of maybe hearing a "bump" just before that, Grumpy decided it best to go investigate. Darrell, who sleeps immediately below the Grand Mother's room, had also heard both noises; he and Grumpy arrived at the doorway to Grand Mother's room at the same time. The above photo shows the marks about 3 hours later. The three vertical reddish lines were caused by the contact with an air cleaner; the black and blue area above the right eyebrow was apparently caused by impacting the edge of the same air cleaner. Grumpy thought "this is going to look really bad in about 24 hours later!"

Ha! The next day about 32 hours after the fall, much to the amazement of both of us, it hardly looked worse! One difference, though: note the dark hemorrhage that has moved across to the inner part of her right eye. "This may be a 'doozy' by Tuesday", Grumpy thought half out loud.

"Do you want me to go with you to the Boeing Cronie lunch tomorrow looking like this?" Grand Mother asked, half teasing (maybe?!?).

"It all depends on what you are going to say about your face if someone asks," Grumpy wisely (thoughtlessly?!?) responded.

At the lunch the next day, the Grand Mother sat with her back to the glare of the windows; Grumpy noted that her face discoloration was hardly noticeable in that contrasting light. [Whew!! No embarrassing questions; no opportunity for Grumpy's typically silly (and generally unwise) answers.]

But now, some four days and 15 hours after the fall, look at what has developed!! The vertical reddish lines are nearly indiscernible with a large area of the right side of the Grand Mother's face having turned an ugly, greenish brown color. Maybe Grumpy should suggest she wear a "burqua" (Arabic: برقع‎ ) in public.

Maybe Grumpy should just learn to keep his mouth shut for a change, especially if he ever wants another of one of the Grand Mother's inimitably delectable and delicious Lemon Meringue Pies. Or, if he even wants to keep on living!!

A Visit with Old Friends

Friday -- South King County:

The First Wife and Grumpy stopped by to visit old South Dakota friends, Jack and Elinor, this morning. The two ladies chatted away for a too-short visit (which lasted over an hour and a half!) while Jack and Grumpy nursed a couple cups of good old-fashioned, Navy-type* coffee as they reminisced of days of yore when their youth was not yet spent.

Memories unearthed in the process between these two ex-Boeing compatriots (and ex-Mechanical Engineering Instructor/Student relationship at SDSM&T) included incidents of fishing with our old Professor, Eldon Stensaas; professional embarassment of Grumpy in front of said Professor "Stens"; memories of the time Grumpy's older brother boiled his woolen underwear dry in the apartment shared by Jack and Jim; and memorable as well as forgettable school renunions.

Jack started at SDSM&T the same year as brother Jim. Grumpy's older sister, Donagene started a year later. Both Jim and Donagene graduated from the Mines in 1943 -- Jim in June and Donagene in December. Jack joined the US Navy in 1940, serving until 1945; he graduated with a double degree (ME and EE) in 1947. Following graduation, Jack accepted a postion as an Instructor in the Mechanical Engineering department where Professor Stensaas was the department head.

After his discharge from the Navy in July 1947, Grumpy started at the Mines as a Sophomore, having completed two years of Engineering-type course work as a Naval Aviation Cadet. Grumpy's choice of the Mechanical Engineering department was filled, so he was encouraged by brother Bob to enroll in the Geology department, which had vacancies! Six months later, having established himself as a bona fide student, he transferred from the Geol to the M. E. department.

The Meekers' and the Zimmermans' friendship span more than a half a century, dating back to Grumpy's start at the School of Mines, but stretching even further back -- to 1939 -- when Jack and brother Jim shared a basement room on 8th Street in Rapid City. Their friendship drew closer as both families, living in Seattle, raised children of nearly the same ages and as Jack and Grumpy worked together on projects at Boeing. Such friendships are the most treasured of anything that can be found on this Earth in this mortal life.

*"Navy-type" coffee is that which is said to have been brewed on a Saturday morning, in a 55-cup percolator, is kept hot until the following Wednesday morning when it is proclaimed "ready to serve"; cream and sugar are necessary additions!!