This Bull Elk has a massive rack of antlers. He is walking right toward me and I do believe they are in rut. These big animals can be deadly for inquisitive tourists and photographers if they are not aware of an animals intentions. Especially an elk that is this big. Sure he may look small at this distance but I am using a 500mm lens to get this shot, don’t let that fool you “Objects in this picture are closer than they appear”!

The Autumn sky at Spruce Knob Mountain Early in the morning on a fall day looking into the valley. This picture was taken with my old Canon rebel 350D. I did not post the full high resolution image at the time that I published this picture. I just happened across this while search through my image library and wanted to give you the full high resolution version. There are a few more like this to come. Hope you enjoy!

Beautiful gray and white lynx bobcat prowling out from under a snow covered spruce tree. This fellow is likely looking for something to eat such as a rabbit or other small forest creature. These cats blend into a snowy forest background very well and use this to their advantage for hunting and stalking their prey.

Interesting to see two large black bears sleeping next to one another. This must be much warmer than sleeping alone. The black bears are certainly not mothers or else they would be in their dens with cubs.

a large bobcat has climbed up this tree in the winter time. A few snow flakes have accumulated on the bobcats back. This beautiful cat is probably 50 feet high in this tree and later climbs even higher after realizing I can see it.

A very large Bison in the winter standing in the snow next to some trees. These animals are massive and one could certainly trample an unwary photographer if he were careless. Imagine that millions of these animals roamed through America only 150 years ago.

A West Virginia Mountain Cougar in the winter snow. This Mountain Lion is from the West Virginia Wildlife center just outside Buckhannon WV at French Creek. I did some touch up on the background to give more realism to this wildlife scene.

This is an otter sliding down a slope in the snow. It looks like he is really having fun. These animals remind me of a seal. It may be that they are related. Despite their playful nature they more related to a weasel.

American Buffalo or also called Bison, feeding on old hay in the snow. The animals are huge and no doubt can consume a lot of grass in a days time. These animals roamed the American open fields in enormous herds. However, because of hunting by European-American hunters they almost became extinct.

Walking in a winter wonderland around the West Virginia wildlife center. My son and I are walking around taking pictures as the snow pours throughout the day. The scenery is so beautiful and peaceful as we look across this foot bridge along the trail at the wildlife center. What a great place to visit and see the animals that are native to West Virginia.