{"id":152404,"date":"2025-08-17T04:30:16","date_gmt":"2025-08-17T09:30:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=152404"},"modified":"2025-08-17T04:30:16","modified_gmt":"2025-08-17T09:30:16","slug":"memories-of-sandhill-cranes-in-the-kamas-valley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/08\/17\/memories-of-sandhill-cranes-in-the-kamas-valley\/","title":{"rendered":"Memories Of Sandhill Cranes In The Kamas Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>On this day two years ago, April Olson rode with me to the Kamas Valley of Utah, where we photographed a flock of Sandhill Cranes getting ready for fall migration.<\/p>\n<p>It was already cooler up in the <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Kamas,_Utah\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">Kamas Valley<\/span><\/a> than it was for us at home in Salt Lake City. The air was clear and we had great birds in our viewfinders.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazyload aligncenter wp-image-152398 size-full\" title=\"Kamas Valley Sandhill Cranes getting ready for migration, Summit County, Utah\" src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053.jpg\" data-orig-src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053.jpg\" alt=\"Kamas Valley Sandhill Cranes getting ready for migration, Summit County, Utah\" width=\"900\" height=\"643\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27643%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20900%20643%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27643%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053-200x143.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053-400x286.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053-600x429.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053.jpg 900w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-orig-sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Kamas Valley Sandhill Cranes getting ready for migration \u2013 Nikon D500, f9, 1\/1250, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n<p>There were at least twenty-seven cranes in one pasture in the Kamas Valley. Some were stained, some were unstained, and some were a mixture of both. As I recall, there were a few hatch year cranes in the pasture, but they were way out from the road.<\/p>\n<p>I had missed out on seeing the cranes displaying that year because I had been back east helping my mom. The cranes April and I saw and photographed two years ago today more than made me happy.<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"lazyload aligncenter wp-image-152399 size-full\" title=\"Kamas Valley Sandhill Cranes foraging in a pasture, Summit County, Utah\" src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088.jpg\" data-orig-src=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088.jpg\" alt=\"Kamas Valley Sandhill Cranes foraging in a pasture, Summit County, Utah\" width=\"900\" height=\"643\" srcset=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns%3D%27http%3A%2F%2Fwww.w3.org%2F2000%2Fsvg%27%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27643%27%20viewBox%3D%270%200%20900%20643%27%3E%3Crect%20width%3D%27900%27%20height%3D%27643%27%20fill-opacity%3D%220%22%2F%3E%3C%2Fsvg%3E\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088-200x143.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088-300x214.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088-400x286.jpg 400w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088-600x429.jpg 600w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088-768x549.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8088.jpg 900w\" data-sizes=\"auto\" data-orig-sizes=\"(max-width: 900px) 100vw, 900px\" \/><span style=\"color: #808080;\">Kamas Valley Sandhill Cranes foraging in a pasture \u2013 Nikon D500, f9, 1\/1250, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light<\/span><\/p>\n<p>Looking back on that day, I&#8217;m glad I took as many photos of the Sandhill Cranes as I did, because I don&#8217;t get to see them often here in Arkansas or Oklahoma. I only need to look at my photos of these living fossils to hear them call in my mind.<\/p>\n<p>After April and I photographed the cranes in Kamas Valley, we headed up into the high country of the Uinta Mountains for more adventures with birds and wildflowers. It was a wonderful day spent with a dear friend, and I cherish those memories.<\/p>\n<p>Life<em> is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n<p>Mia<\/p>\n<p>Click <a href=\"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/sandhill-crane-images\/\"><span style=\"text-decoration: underline;\">here<\/span><\/a> to see more of my Sandhill Crane photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On this day two years ago, April Olson rode with me to the Kamas Valley of Utah, where we photographed a flock of Sandhill Cranes getting ready for fall migration.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":152398,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,14263,450,1731,26],"tags":[4004,4259,3823,3132,11563,4136,14264,3747,4109,11050,530,5691,7561,11852,4518,2315,5434],"class_list":["post-152404","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-avian","category-kamas-valley","category-sandhill-cranes","category-summit-county-utah","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-antigone-canadensis","tag-crane","tag-cranes","tag-farmlands","tag-foraging","tag-gateway-to-the-uintas","tag-grass","tag-grasses","tag-grassy","tag-migration","tag-pasture","tag-pre-migration","tag-ranchlands","tag-sandhill-crane","tag-summer-3","tag-valley"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pre-migration-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8053.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-DE8","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":115246,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/08\/18\/kamas-valley-sandhill-crane-photos\/","url_meta":{"origin":152404,"position":0},"title":"Kamas Valley Sandhill Crane Photos","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 18, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday, on the way to the Uinta Mountains, April Olson and I looked for birds in the Kamas Valley. That's where I took these Sandhill Crane photos.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adult Sandhill Crane in grassy field in Kamas Valley, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/sandhill-crane-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8104.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/sandhill-crane-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8104.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/sandhill-crane-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8104.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/sandhill-crane-kamas-mia-mcpherson-8104.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":115354,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/08\/23\/kamas-valley-killdeer\/","url_meta":{"origin":152404,"position":1},"title":"Kamas Valley Killdeer","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"August 23, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Last week, in the Kamas Valley in Summit County, Utah I was pleased to take Killdeer photos in a wet meadow with pink clovers and piles of cow manure.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Killdeer and clover in the Kamas Valley, Summit County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/killdeer-kamas-valley-wet-meadow-mia-mcpherson-7870.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/killdeer-kamas-valley-wet-meadow-mia-mcpherson-7870.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/killdeer-kamas-valley-wet-meadow-mia-mcpherson-7870.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/killdeer-kamas-valley-wet-meadow-mia-mcpherson-7870.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":81705,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/03\/18\/sandhill-cranes-on-spring-migration\/","url_meta":{"origin":152404,"position":2},"title":"Sandhill Cranes On Spring Migration","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 18, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"I spent a few minutes photographing Sandhill Cranes twice yesterday, once not long after sunrise and then later in the morning.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Birds&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Greater and Lesser Sandhill Cranes in a field, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/sandhill-cranes-in-field-mia-mcpherson-9850.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/sandhill-cranes-in-field-mia-mcpherson-9850.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/sandhill-cranes-in-field-mia-mcpherson-9850.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/sandhill-cranes-in-field-mia-mcpherson-9850.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":51228,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2018\/03\/12\/sandhill-cranes-in-flight-during-spring-migration\/","url_meta":{"origin":152404,"position":3},"title":"Sandhill Cranes In Flight During Spring Migration","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 12, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"The last couple of times I have gone to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge and further north of there I have been so happy to hear and see, even if from a long distance, the return of our Sandhill Cranes.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Bicknell Bottoms Wildlife Management Area&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Bicknell Bottoms Wildlife Management Area","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bicknell-bottoms-wildlife-management-area\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Pair of Sandhill Cranes in flight during spring migration, Bicknell Bottoms Wildlife Management Area, Wayne County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pair-flight-mia-mcpherson-6276.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pair-flight-mia-mcpherson-6276.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pair-flight-mia-mcpherson-6276.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/sandhill-cranes-pair-flight-mia-mcpherson-6276.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":15842,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/09\/16\/a-pair-of-sandhill-cranes-in-the-centennial-valley\/","url_meta":{"origin":152404,"position":4},"title":"Pair of Sandhill Cranes in the Centennial Valley","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"September 16, 2014","format":false,"excerpt":"I was delighted to find quite a few Sandhill Cranes in the Centennial Valley of Montana last week and this pair was close enough to photograph.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Beaverhead County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Mated pair of Sandhill Cranes at Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-pair-mia-mcpherson-6125.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-pair-mia-mcpherson-6125.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-pair-mia-mcpherson-6125.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-pair-mia-mcpherson-6125.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":19197,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2015\/01\/29\/dreaming-of-sandhill-cranes\/","url_meta":{"origin":152404,"position":5},"title":"Dreaming of Sandhill Cranes","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"January 29, 2015","format":false,"excerpt":"Last night I only had dreams about Sandhill Cranes but it won't be long before I will be seeing and hearing them for real. I can barely wait.","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Beaverhead County&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Beaverhead County","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/montana\/beaverhead-county-montana\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Calling male Sandhill Crane, Beaverhead County, Montana","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-calling-mia-mcpherson-6147.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-calling-mia-mcpherson-6147.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-calling-mia-mcpherson-6147.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/sandhill-crane-calling-mia-mcpherson-6147.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152404","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=152404"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/152404\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/152398"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=152404"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=152404"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=152404"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}