![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/rough-legged-hawk-3474-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"rough-legged-hawk-3474-ron-dudley\\"")
<\/p>\nAnd a series of three wicked snowstorms, the first of which blew in last night.<\/p>\n
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1\/4000, f\/6.3, ISO 400, Canon 7D Mark II, Canon EF 500mm f\/4L IS II USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in<\/em><\/p>\n A week ago today I photographed this male Rough-legged Hawk soon after he took off from his perch at Bear River MBR. If you haven’t already guessed as much, this is the same hawk that had his back to me while he was perched but immediately after takeoff he performed an impressive twisting maneuver<\/a><\/span><\/span> that put him coming more my way rather than flying away from me.<\/p>\n I quite like the photo, even though there’s little detail in the shadows on his left wing and one wingtip is a little too close to the upper frame edge.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n A slightly different crop of the same photo reveals a tiny portion of the sign that he just took off from. Having it there puts his takeoff posture in perspective but I’m not sure I like it because there’s so little of it showing. Showing significantly more of the sign ruins the composition of the photo for my tastes.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The next few days are going to be challenging for this hawk, for all birds really, and for yours truly.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n We’re in the midst of a series of wicked snowstorms, the first of which blew in with a bang last night just before 9 pm. This is what it looked like out my back door at 3:15 this morning during a brief lull in the storm. There’s 11″ out there already (I measured) and it’s supposed to continue on and off until 11 AM today. After that it’s supposed to let up for a while before another storm comes in late tonight and into tomorrow and a third wave is lined up to hit us sometime late Thursday through Friday morning.<\/p>\n Yes, that’s one of my bird feeders on the left – nearly falling over because of the heavy, wet snow.<\/p>\n I’m trying not to complain too much because we need the moisture so badly but for me the timing sure isn’t good. I have an appointment with Ford early tomorrow morning to have some transmission work done on my pickup so I’ll probably be without a vehicle for a couple of days. Just getting it to Ford in all this snow is going to be, shall we say – tricky. I also have an appointment early tomorrow morning with a technician to repair my fireplace insert. Both appointments took me weeks to get so I don’t dare try to juggle either one of them. But they’re at about the same time so I still haven’t figured out how it’s all going to work in all this snow, if it works out at all.<\/p>\n To throw another monkey wrench into the works my coffeemaker is on the fritz so I need to buy a new one but I’m far from sure the roads will be passable with so much snow. Assuming I even have a vehicle available when I can<\/em> get out.<\/p>\n The thought of me going days without coffee gives me the willies.<\/p>\n Ron<\/p>\n <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/featheredphotography.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/12\/rough-legged-hawk3474-alternate-crop-ron-dudley.jpg\" "\\"rough-legged-hawk3474-alternate-crop-ron-dudley\\"")
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