Spending time at one of my favorite camping spots near Wheatland. This will be my last time here for a long time. I am looking forward to new adventures in new places, but am enjoying being here for now.  When I first arrived in Wyoming, the banks of the reservoir had many cottonwoods. Now, you can see how sparse they are thanks to high water levels, which kills them off.  This reservoir provides cooling water for a nearby power plant, and they keep the water levels high when possible.

Photos from evening one:

By January, the reservoir will be frozen solid. I have many memories of walking with Tango and watching ice fishermen out here in the bitter cold.

Eventually, I got a fire going and cooked dinner. The cast iron pot is just to the left of the main campfire. I cooked up apple/chicken sausage, onions and potatoes, finished with a speck of Maple Crown Royal .

While I cooked and ate outside in the chilly air, Tango refused to leave his cozy spot

This morning I heard a pack of coyotes. While snuggled in bed I watched the world light up. The cottonwood tree outside the window changed from a dark shapeless form to a golden tree as the sun rose and reflected off the leaves. Cottonwood leaves quake, like the Aspen in the slight breeze.  I jumped out for some morning photos and discovered fog across the water.

This is late Autumn in Wyoming, when the golden leaves actually fall to the ground. The cottonwoods start turning in August, one branch at a time, but the leaves don’t fall until late October, even early November in warm years.  Soon the branches will be bare, and we will shift to early winter.  The end of daylight savings time hastens the feel of winter up here.

I am not seeing many birds. Last year, when the water level was low, migrating ducks of all kinds floated in the little coves and backwaters. This year, they are probably in an inaccessible part of the reservoir that is more protected.

I see only two neighbors. We are each hunkered down under a remaining cottonwood tree, about ¼ mile apart. Across the reservoir, at the WY National Guard base, the troops are playing war, setting off loud rounds that scare Tango.

Onward into a beautiful day!