I hope you’re not tired of ‘Best of the Year’ photos just yet (especially because I’ve got six episodes in this series and this is only #3). 

Today’s selection is all from The Nature Conservancy’s Niobrara Valley Preserve. I’m also cheating a little by including some photos from the last couple days of 2022. Two things. It’s my blog, so I make the rules. Second, all the included images were shot after the ‘best of’ photos I posted last year, so I’m not really double dipping.

Remember to click on the title of this post if you’re reading this in an email. That’ll allow you to click on individual photos to see bigger, more clear version of each.

All the above photos were taken in late December 2022, but the rest are honest-to-goodness 2023 images. I had some good luck with wildlife photos in 2023, including one really amazing trip during which all the animals seemed to come out to pose for me. As good as those photos were, most of them didn’t make the cut for the ‘best of’ post, though, so you’ll have to revisit my post from last April to see them. Here’s a shot of a sharp-tailed grouse and a few more bison.

The year 2023 was a fantastic wildflower year at the Niobrara Valley Preserve. In fact, it might be the best flower year I’ve seen in the 30 or so years I’ve been familiar with the place. Following a pretty strong drought, we had a winter of repeated heavy blizzards and then strong rains in 2023. The result was an explosion of prairie plants – grasses, sedges, wildflowers, and more – and a really amazing show.

I spent a really magical several hours this fall slipping and sliding along the banks of a couple creeks, finding photographic treasures along the way. You might remember the post the next few photos were first shared in, but if not, you can take a look now. 

The photo below was taken during a guided trip along the public hiking trail at The Niobrara Valley Preserve. That trail is open to the public, so if you happen to be up along the river for a float trip or other purpose, stop by! We built a snazzy new trailhead this year, including a vault toilet and informational signage, so it’s ready for your visit. (The same facilities are now available at the Platte River Prairies as well.)

There are a lot of incredible places in the world, but The Niobrara Valley Preserve competes really strongly in the field. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to get paid to visit and work there. On that note, I’m happy to say that my job duties are shifting in a way that will take me up to NVP even more often. 

Starting in January, I’ll be taking on the supervision of the land stewardship teams that manage the Niobrara Valley Preserve and Platte River Prairies, in addition to my current science and outreach roles. I’m really looking forward to it for lots of reasons. The downside is that, at least for a while, it’ll cut into the time I have to write and do other outreach activities. Don’t fret – the blog isn’t going away. Just don’t be surprised if the frequency of posts decreases a little.