Where to see 1000s of Sandhill Cranes in Arizona
But watch out for the mosquitos
I knew the sandhill cranes were back, so last Saturday we planned an afternoon trip over to Whitewater Draw. It’s only about any hour’s drive, so it was easy to plan it so that we would arrive about 45 minutes before sunset.
This was not my first time at Whitewater Draw.
We also went back in January of 2024. That was before I had the big Sigma lens, so I didn’t get the close-up pictures I’d hoped for, but man the sunset was nice that evening.
My expectations about Whitewater Draw were based on that January visit.
But on Nov 8th of this year, we still hadn’t had our first freeze.
So while we did see plenty of cranes, and even a big flock of yellow headed blackbirds
The swarms of mosquitoes dwarfed them all.
… and holy hell, those mosquitoes were hungry.
But we were here to see the cranes … and I did capture a few images that weren’t bad.
The cranes will be there until about March, so I’m pretty sure we’ll go back again.
Probably in the morning next time, to catch them all leaving at sunrise to go feed in the area fields.
I can tell you one thing for sure though, it won’t be until after the overnight temperatures have gotten a lot colder and the damn mosquitos are gone. 😎
Til next time,
Todd
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