Our Excursion: 20230915: Colorado Trip Day 6 – Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge
(Part of trip: )
Date of our excursion: 2023-09-15
Location: Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge
Mileage: 5.02
Our Planned Itinerary:
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Travelers on this Excursion: |
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We hit some cool places.
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Continents: North America |
Some featured areas we visited: |
Some points of interest we hit: |
Friday, September 15, 2023
Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge
Today we are going to see the wildlife. First stop is Babajoons for some lunch. Then we head to Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge, maybe we’ll see live bison, maybe only stuffed bison.
We visit the visitor center and view the info displays and learn about the chemicals and bombs that were manufactured here during the war. We head out on the trail and stop by the ferret exhibit. Ferrets make their homes in prairie dog tunnels and gobble up the prairie dogs at night when the prairie dogs are sleeping peacefully and securely in their homes. What an easy life a ferret has. These ferrets are nocturnal so we see them sleeping in their glass cages.
On the trail, we see wildlife: lots of bugs, grasshoppers, beetles, birds, rabbits, deer, elk, prairie dogs (haven’t all been eaten by ferrets yet), and a snake stretched out across the trail. Well, the snake appears squished at first, but as we are taking pictures, we notice it is alive. The markings are similar to a rattlesnake. yikes. There is no rattling going on, but there is a black end on the tail. An image search states that google thinks it is a rattlesnake. We decide to move on as it has already coiled into its defensive position and we don’t want to bother it enough that is decides to strike.
We walk around the lakes and get some good views and mostly a nice breeze. There are a couple shaky bridges that don’t scare us. We make it back to the visitor center and begin our drive on the Wildlife Drive. Sometimes you can see the bison herds. Not today. Today, we see bold prairie dogs and some deer. However, after we leave the park, we see some bison roaming the outside edge of the park. We could have skipped the Wildlife Drive and just drove out the exit for the views.
Back to the roof to enjoy the breeze and shade!