White-tailed Ptarmigan – Rocky Mountain National Park

After a pre 4am wake-up call, my wife Sara and i made it to Rocky Mountain National Park a bit after sunrise. We took the Medicine Bow Curve trail that is at 11,500ft above sea level to find this particular bird. Sara and I walked amongst the snow caps for a time before stopping to catch our breath. During a short break Sara spotted this life bird, White-tailed Ptarmigan, five feet behind me sitting very still, like they do. We slowly moved back giving the bird plenty of space and watched it preen over the next 30 minutes. What an experience!