By Ed Snyder/Outdoors
Gilchrist on Bolivar, TX.
In my earlier years I spent my off school times hunting and fishing in the woods and waters of my youth. An avid hunter until 1991, I decided to put down my rifle and bow picking up a camera instead. This decision changed my life forever. Oh, I loved the hunt, the camp, the camaraderie, and especially the taste of wild game I harvested. But my newfound hobby created a whole new world of adventures for me to enjoy and experience.
The camera gave me back the stalk, relearning the stealth and verbal skills of the wild game you were hunting. No longer protected by the box in a tree (Deer Stand) zeroed in on the automatic feeders 50yds away that controlled the feeding habits of the wild game you were hunting. But stalking in the bush among the wildlife can also put you in extreme jeopardy of not only the wildlife, but the hunters as well. Wildlife preserves provided the answer for this, but you still had to hunt the bush at your own risk.
In one not to long ago incident a herd of Javelina (Peccary) chased me up a mesquite tree for a couple of hours, while another scary moment had me escaping the enraged charge of a full rut buck, or backing off from a 10ft alligator you walked up on only feet away.
But my scariest incident caught me laying belly down on the ground trying get a shot of a baby Javelina suckling its mother. The Herd Boar spotted me moving in on my right, clacking its jaw tusks in a challenge. The only thing I had to protect myself was a 5ft long walking stick. So I grabbed it to keep the Boar off its charge and quickly got out of its security zone. I managed to get the image but I was lucky, VERY LUCKY!
I’ve seen two Javelina Boar in battle, where, within seconds, one had ripped the throat of the other with its tusks leaving it bleeding and dying on the ground. But my enjoyments of being alone in the field with just my camera and wildlife was well worth these dangers.
I’ve supplied a few of my favorite outdoor photos from my outdoor collection of experiences over these past few years for you to enjoy, and sincerely hope you‘ll enjoy viewing them as much as I enjoyed taking them.
Mom Otter giving its pup a ride on her back - Rollover Pass, TX
Female Peacock Bass being released - Miami Florida canal
Bow leaping Dolphin - note the one that's already leaped with another coming up - Galveston Bay, TX
Mexican Eagle (CaraCara) swoops in for the kill - Gilchrist Beach, TX
Mexican Eagle (CaraCara) - Gilchrist Beach, TX
Mexican Eagle (CaraCara) soaring over its feeding are a- Gilchrist Beach, TX
Tri-Color Egret - San Luis Pass, TX
Buck in the Mist - Choke Canyon, TX
Adult Rio Grand Tom - Choke Canyon, TX
Coming out of the field one evening found me facing this Mother Bobcat with her 2 kits - Choke Canyon, TX
Male and female Dolphin mating - Galveston Bay, TX
Great Blue Heron in flight - Lake Sam Rayburn, TX
Female Ruby Throat clashes with a Honey Bee -South East, TX
12 point and 10 point Bucks battle for mating rights - South TX
The Alligator and the Duck - Rollover Pass, TX
Rare sight of Turkey roosting with Toms strutting their colors for the hens in the tree - South TX
Male Ruby Throat in flight - Lake Sam Rayburn, TX
Female Ruby Throat in fligh t- Lake Sam Rayburn, TX
Female Ruby clashes with a wasp
Adult Bald Eagle in flight - Lake Sam Rayburn, TX
12 point Buck - Choke Canyon, TX
Four Rio Grand Tom Turkeys strutting their stuff for the hens - Choke Canyon, TX
10 point Bucks dueling for the does - Choke Canyon, TX
Mature Great Blue Heron guarding its mating territory - Mustang Island, TX
Two Female Ruby Throats fighting over feeder rights - Lake Sam Rayburn, TX
12 point Buck prepares for battle by scraping its antlers on the brush - Choke Canyon, TX
16 Point listens for antlers clashing over doe harems
Buck Charge - This 12 point buck came close - TOO CLOSE - to goring me
Weeks old Javalina is the only survivor of its litter that were killed off by rattle snakes and other predators - Choke Canyon, TX
Full Moon Dawn shows this 12 point Buck smurfing doe scent - Choke Canyon, TX
Two Huge Bucks prepare to battle over this doe - Choke Canyon, TX
Buck protecting his doe harem - Choke Canyon, TX
Adult Boar Javelina that challenged me - Choke Canyon, TX
10 foot Alligator lurking - Anahuac National Wildlife Refuge, TX
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Great Pix! I really enjoyed the Bolivar area ones.
Congrats Ed,super pictures!!!