I'm wondering if any of you have spent much time in the Steens Mountain area. I'm really interested in shooting wild horses there, but any wildlife info would be great. Maybe some of you landscape guys have stumbled into some critters on your trips out there..
I've never seen wild horses in the Steens, in over 100 days spent in that region. I know a few others have though. Lots of Antelope and the occasional Big Horn though. You can also find the sheep on Hart Mountain's West cliffs, as well as Mountain Lion. Antelope are incredibly abundant there as well, to the East, as well as Sheldon refuge nearby. Where I have seen Wild Horses are in the remote ranges to the North and West of Nevada's black rock desert - one area in particular stands out....Red Mountain, I believe it was called (it's been 10 years), to the West. Nevada's Pine Mountain range to the East, and Sheldon to the North of the Black Rock have also been known to have sightings, and are more accessable by road.
I have run across wild horses there. We ran across some mid-day, so the light was pretty bad for photos, but I took some shots since we didn't think we'd see them again. These horses were along the Steens Mountain Lower Loop, which is supposed to be one of the better areas to see wild horses (it worked for us). They can appear out of nowhere, we drove by a pond and there was nothing around it, 15 minutes we drove back by there were two groups of horses with the head stallions from each group putting on a show to establish dominance, it was pretty cool. When we first saw them we were quite a distance away and in the car. I was unable to get shots of the action. The two groups started heading their seperate ways and I was able to take some shots.
Other areas around Steens that are supposed to be good:
Warm Springs resivoir east of Burns
Kiger WHMA (Whild Horse Management Area) near Diamaon
Rddle WHMA southeast of burns
There are severa WHMAs in the area, but I believe the South Steens WHMA has the largest numbers (around 300), so the south Steens loop might be your best bet.
As Marc indicated, you can spend a lot of time in the Steens area and never see any horses. It's hit and miss, but they are out there.
I'd also recommend driving through the Malhuer NWR from Frenchglen north to the refuge headquarters on the gravel road that parallels the highway. Depending on time of year, you'll see various birds, but also pronghorn in herds of 10-20 animals. This is an excellent "shoot from the window" route, with the wildlife completely accustomed to cars with photographers inside. We've always done this road in September, after a frost, simply to avoid the bugs, but it is open most of the year (I think).
Also in the area: Diamond Craters is well worth exploring, as is the Hart Mountain Nat'l Antelope Refuge, to the west. Big country out there!
Discussion
4 repliesMarc
Other areas around Steens that are supposed to be good:
Warm Springs resivoir east of Burns
Kiger WHMA (Whild Horse Management Area) near Diamaon
Rddle WHMA southeast of burns
There are severa WHMAs in the area, but I believe the South Steens WHMA has the largest numbers (around 300), so the south Steens loop might be your best bet.
As Marc indicated, you can spend a lot of time in the Steens area and never see any horses. It's hit and miss, but they are out there.
Also in the area: Diamond Craters is well worth exploring, as is the Hart Mountain Nat'l Antelope Refuge, to the west. Big country out there!
Tom