After braving 100+ MPH winds last week in the nearby canyons, I wondered how the Atlas herd was doing now that things have calmed down. My last sighting of the group as of this journal entry was several weeks ago when I last visited their canyon refuge.
On this day, they were nowhere to be found. They're prone to move around several times in the winter, and it's no surprise that they'd be gone after such intense weather. Perhaps they were just a a bit further up the cliffs, or maybe they were miles away.
I waited for around two hours, and eventually a nice looking ram came trotting into the canyon. He immediately saw me from a good 1,000 ft away. He seemed keen to find other bighorn sheep, and to my surprise he called out with the characteristic "bahhh" that sheep are known for. The ram continued my direction, and was actively looking around for others. Soon he sat down on a large boulder around 500-600 feet away. Occasionally he repeated his calls, but mostly he looked up and down.. very much focused on scanning the area.
After some time, I decided that I would drift his direction to try and get a better shot. I could see some really nice potential for a frame that included him and the cliffs, but it would be really tough to get close. It's possible that he would have come on over to me if I had waited long enough, but sometimes these guys can stay put for hours. I usually don't walk their direction, but on this day I couldn't resist.
Eventually, I was around 60 ft. He hadn't moved, but was definitely watching me more as I drew closer. I still wasn't in the best position, but the ideal shot felt impossibly close. Happy with the images that I was able to get, I tested a very slow motion approach to attempt the ideal angle. The ram leisurely rose to his feet and watched me for a moment. I knew that he was either going to drift my way, or depart entirely.
He decided to go back towards where he had come, so I turned around and did the same. I love the shots in the final moment of this encounter, but there's some really nice potential for more. Hopefully I get another chance from that same spot.
