Themes Flowers Focus on Water Sunrise, Sunset Wildlife Mountain Goats

Mountain goats have to be fairly nimble and coordinated to live where they do. There is one herd of goats that we like to photograph, mainly because they are easy to find and somewhat used to folks pouring out of their vehicles to take a look. All of the goat pictures on this page were taken during various trips to Mount Evans, Colorado. We have a page dedicated to that location in our Trips section here if you would like to take a look later. But stop and take a look at the goats first, since you're here.

"Mountain Goats on Mount Evans" Mount Evans, Colorado Big Picture

This first image is found on several pages on our web site, mainly because we like it. As mentioned elsewhere, the goats on Mount Evans are fairly tolerant of people. For this particular picture we had climbed up on a rock to be safely out of the way of the goats. It didn't seem to matter; this mother and her baby walked right up to and then past our vantage point. It was an enjoyable event... even the baby goat seemed to enjoy the new experience.

We waited until they were safely away before climbing down off of our rock and moving on ourselves.

"On Top of the World" Mount Evans, Colorado Big Picture

Light colored animals like mountain goats present an interesting exposure challenge. The cloudy sky provides an excellent backdrop for this goat, while helping to keep the lighting balanced. This picture might have been more difficult to take on a sunny day.

Most of the pictures on this page - with the exception of the first one, as mentioned - were taken with long zoom lenses in order to avoid approaching the animals.

"Push Me Pull Who?" Mount Evans, Colorado Big Picture

This picture is almost the exact opposite of the previous one... in this case, we were above the goats looking down. The valley behind them was shaded by storm clouds that were rolling in, which presented a dramatic dark background. The light-colored goats really stand out against the darker blue horizon.

This is probably one of the more unusual goat pictures that we have... doesn't it remind you of an animal from a particular children's book?

"Where Do I Go From Here?" Mount Evans, Colorado Big Picture

Another cloud backdrop picture, this time from behind the goat. Who knows what's on the other side of the ridge? Let's find out!

The goats were particularly shaggy (except for the babies) as they were in the process of losing their winter coats. The wool that is lost by the goats as they shed will be picked up by birds and various rodents (or other animals) and used as a nesting material. The wool that kept the goat warm last winter may very well keep a pika or marmot warm for the next winter season.

Speaking of baby goats...

"Early Snow on Baby Mountain Goat" Mount Evans, Colorado Big Picture

It really doesn't matter what sort of animal you might be taking pictures of... if it's a baby, then it's cute! Even baby snakes and lizards are cute... but no match for this cute little fellow. On this particular trip it started snowing as we were leaving the mountain slopes. In fact, that was the last afternoon that the mountain was open for visitors for that season. Hopefully this youngster made it through the winter okay.

Thanks for visiting our mountain goat show. Next time you are near Denver, Colorado, you might want to take the short trip to Mount Evans and see them for yourself.