Everyone seems to have a routine when it comes to the end of day and the sun sets a little lower in the sky before dropping behind the horizon as nighttime falls. Even in Siouxland it seems critters use the remaining daylight hours to enjoy the moment before the coming night.
I enjoy driving about this time of day, and if parked somewhere in the country, the bird song fills the air almost up until evening is fully descended. Restoring a sense of calm and quiet, it’s a pleasant way to end one’s day. As the days get a bit longer there will be more time to enjoy the countryside and its residents if they care to share with a visitor passing through.
While out driving about some backroads in Siouxland I always feel so lucky when I come across wildlife and they take the time to acknowledge me, in a cautious way, as I try to take a few photographs from a distance to see if I can. I shoot a lot of frames these days because I know how fleeting some of these moments can be. Also, driving slowly on the back roads with minimal if no traffic is helpful in that I can pull to the side or shoulder safely and slip out of the car seat to get a better vantage point or angle and not feel like I am a contortionist behind the steering wheel.
This young deer came up from out of a field not far from where some Turkey Vultures were gathered eating carrion on the roadway. The deer looked about warily, walked a bit, ate a bit and then walked some more, stopping and starting as it found the greens it was looking for before disappearing off the roadway down into another field safe for another day.
Some days in Siouxland I find myself checking out a location just to see what I might find. These days I don’t expect to make spectacular photographs or even interesting ones. It’s just nice to be outside, without freezing one’s a____ off and enjoying a drive.
I do like swinging by Badger Lake in rural Monona County. The water levels had been very low, then have increased with some recent rain showers and so while no overly populated as during a heavy migration period, there are still some water fowl taking advantage of the almost “exclusive” availability of the watering hole. No crowding, “elbowing” for space. Just a nice relaxing spring day to enjoy.
It seems one of life’s lessons for many species, even those here in Siouxland, is that sometimes one needs to share. Driving out in the country recently I came across a demised raccoon on a gravel road with Turkey Vultures posturing and maneuvering to get a chance to eat some of the remains. And the vultures did a little dance until finally they decided that maybe it is best to be patient and share in the spoils.
With the migrating waterfowl like the American White Pelicans passing through Siouxland, I sometimes get confused about what birds find a home in this area and those that are passing on to another destination. Like the majority of Canada geese that use Siouxland as flyover country, but others call it home.
As I occasionally check various locations around the area to see who’s hanging out, sometimes I am delighted, other times disappointed when I find nothing. But then there is another day, and these critters like we humans are dealing with roller coaster weather than runs cold, then hot, dry, then wet, which probably interrupts their travels as much as it does our daily lives. And some of us are not traveling as far.
Wishing these critters a safe journey and fair winds as they journey to their summer destination.
Harvest time has arrived in Siouxland as elsewhere where agriculture plays a big part of a state’s economy. Farmers are working quickly and long hours to get their crops out after a year in the state of Iowa where drought has maintained a presence for quite a while. And recently rains are predicted for the area, which during harvest is not always welcomed even in drought situations as it adds unwanted water content to the soybeans delaying harvest and hurting farmer’s profits as the soybeans like corn must fall within a certain water content criteria for grain elevators to accept them without being “docked money per pounds. And these days, pennies count.
Some scenes I come upon can be generic in a way. They could be photographed in many places in the U.S. and possibly even Europe. Simple scenes, like doors and flowers. Shapes and texture. Something I try to impart on students when teaching photography. Always be looking and have a camera. Cell phones work in a pinch. But the moments pass, fleeting, never to be the same again. But even isolated scenes in a small Northwest Iowa town can be universal, it just depends on how one sees it.
There is nothing like celebrating the Fourth of July in a small town and attending its parade. The enthusiasm of the participants and the residents and guests who come to watch is unmatched. I visited Whiting, Iowa for its Independence Day celebration this Fourth of July and enjoyed a hometown celebration, joy and pride. Honoring their nation and those who serve it and those who live in it.
Jerry Mennenga
Sioux City, Iowa
Grain elevators loom over the downtown area as people celebrate the Fourth of July parade in Whiting, Iowa Thursday, July 4, 2016.
No parade in a small rural community is complete without implement machinery as people watch and participate celebrating the Fourth of July in Whiting, Iowa Thursday, July 4, 2016.
PATTI MARR, Whiting, Iowa, poses as Miss Liberty on a family float celebrating the Fourth of July during the parade in Whiting, Iowa Thursday, July 4, 2016.
CORI PERSINGER, left dressed for the holidy, and EVA UHL, right, grabbing tossed candy, are sisters from Kansas City, MO, watching the Fourth of July parade while visiting family in Whiting, Iowa Thursday, July 4, 2016.
Some of the names on the Whiting American Legion WWII Service Board situated on the community’s main street as residents and guests celebrate the Fourth of July parade in Whiting, Iowa Thursday, July 4, 2016.
I live in the Siouxland area that encompasses a wide swatch of land in northwest Iowa, northeastern Nebraska and southeastern South Dakota. The people that inhabit this area are generous folk and your basic honest, Midwestern people you like to have as neighbors. I explore the area and share observations, mostly photographic, sometimes through video, and and short text. All images and video are copyrighted material of the author.
Jerry Mennenga, Sioux City, Iowa
jerrylmennenga@yahoo.com
lostinsiouxland 