The sky was clear, no clouds.

Our first day back on the road we drove through prairie lands in eastern Colorado.  Mostly flat terrain with sage brush as far as the eye could see. The wind would blow across this barren landscape and I would catch a glimpse of the reddish tones of autumn.

Not a lot of water in these parts; as we rolled along we could see an occasional small pond. In some of these ponds dark, small, blobs were moving around; I am guessing migrating ducks. However, no way to tell what species they were. I would have loved to stop and shoot a few through my camera lens.

Antelope and hawks call this vacant land home. It was enjoyable seeing these skillful hawks flying low over the land, hunting, and small herds of Antelope grazing and occasionally looking up for signs of danger.

We were headed to Lamar, Colorado, our first night destination. We passed a few cattle ranches dotted with doe eyed cows trying to find an editable morsel as they competed with the Antelope. We slowly meandered through small towns with names of Deer Trail, Hugo, Wild Horse, Kit Carson an Willey.

Not a person about in most of these dusty towns. Old rusty cars sitting in yards and vacant lots, boarded up windows on building where once people gathered to eat and enjoy the company of others, were the only remnants of a better life. These, the telltale images of long ago small thriving towns, now mostly abandoned, were sad to see.

As we drove further south the fields became greener, irrigation equipment replaced rusty old cars, and fields of harvested crops replaced sage bushes. Silos were abundant, storing crops perhaps wheat, an indication of a more prosperous area. Businesses were open, people coming and going.

Signs of life seemed normal. Glad!