Tender, petite emerald stems parting the damp soil.
Whistling wings zip past, weaving toward the bony branches of a once-great cottonwood.
A hot breeze, lazy but light, sweeps across the rolling sandhills.
Grasshoppers clack and buzz, an expired salsify plant crunches underfoot.
Clusters of golden petals and rich black cones, set against a sapphire sky in the late afternoon.
Pops of fuschia, bursting like fireworks, pepper the unruly green strips.
A solitary bee quietly works the old flower, fuzzy with pollen and glowing in the sunset.
Rugged sculptures of orange, red, pink and purple tower above the quilt of farmfields.
Faraway silos and homesteads silhouetted, standing sentinel in the quickening light.
The landscape settles.
Dark, whispering and more muted in color.
This is Colorado’s Eastern Plains.
Corners for Conservation (C4C)
Corners for Conservation (C4C) is a native grassland habitat restoration and conservation project operated by Colorado Parks and Wildlife in partnership with the High Plains Land Conservancy and private landowners on Colorado’s Eastern Plains. C4C properties create valuable habitat for pollinating insects, migrating songbirds, ring-necked pheasants, doves, quail and deer. These properties provide benefits for agricultural producers enrolled in the program, restore native grassland habitat, and increase public access for hunters.
Written and photographed by Forrest Czarnecki. Forrest is a Colorado hunter and angler, and he is a Digital Media Specialist for Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
2 Responses
Forrest missed his calling.
We think he found it 🙂