A Coulee Thanksgiving

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Happy American Thanksgiving, everyone! I hope you’re having a safe and happy holiday if it’s one you celebrate.

Turkey is a traditional part of proceedings. My family likes their turkey on the dry side. Fortunately for us, there’s plenty of turkeys on the dry side of Washington State.

Image shows a cliff of basalt column in the distance. There is a view of a road, and a gaggle of wild turkeys several yards away at an intersection.

Turkey alert! Credit: Dana Hunter

My friend B and I saw these beauties during a pre-pandemic trip to Grand Coulee. This is one of the most magnificent examples of Channeled Scablands topography anywhere. It’s located within a marvelous and easily accessible large igneous province. Sometime in the near future, we’re going to head over and explore together – this region contains some of the wildest geology in the world!! But today’s about turkeys.

A closeup of two turkeys. They're much more slender and less fluffy than the domesticated ones.

Genuine wild turkeys! Credit: Dana Hunter

This bunch cared not a bit that two weirdos in a car were stalking them with a camera. They’re lean, mean machines, and they knew they’d beat our butts in a fight. They were out to find lunch, not become it.

Three turkeys are looking for lunch in the brush on the side of the gravel road. Another is captured in mid-step heading toward them.

Time for nibbles! Credit: Dana Hunter

Late afternoon light in the coulees is something special. The gold warms the browns and fills the air with a mellow, warm glow. These turkeys are the perfect shades of brown and cream for honey-hued light.

The coulees aren’t precisely lush. Scrubby brush dominates where rocks don’t. But they provide habitat for a delightful range of hardy animals, even some who aren’t typically associated with Thanksgiving.

A bighorn doe grazes amidst sagebrush as a ram looks on, with Lake Wanapum on the Columbia River in the background.

Bighorn sheep at Vantage, WA. Credit: Dana Hunter

I don’t get out much in winter, but my then-housemate had a friend staying with us who was up for a November geoadventure. So we headed for Frenchman Coulee, with a stop at Vantage. An entire herd of bighorn sheep were hanging about the visitor’s center there. I don’t think I’ve ever seen them this close! And with the Columbia River Basalts and Wanapum Lake as their backdrop, they’re extra majestic.

I love those gently-tilted rock layers. And that faaace.

A bighorn doe and a ram gaze at the camera. Many more sheep are barely visible.

Many lots of sheep. Credit: Dana Hunter

I absolutely adore the poses these two are striking!

I’ll leave you with a wee puzzle: how many bighorns can you find in this photo? They fade into the brush surprisingly well for such large critters!

, November 26, 2020. Earth Science , , ,

About Dana Hunter

Confirmed geology aficionado Dana Hunter is a science writer whose work has appeared in Scientific American, the New York Times, and Open Lab. She explores the earth sciences with an emphasis on volcanic processes, regional tectonics, and the intersection of science and society, sometimes illustrated with cats. Join her at unconformity.net for epic adventures in the good science of rock-breaking.
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