It was more a sanity trip than anything else. A product of too much time indoors, after weeks of practically living out in the cold.

But the truth is... I did need to go out. We're having a delayed spring this year, so the strut has been going on for weeks, yet I've checked only a handful of leks.

Just too much snow and mud.

And dark and early is not the time to be scouting out roads. At best it tends to waste time.

At worst it leads to vehicle extraction problems. All the more difficult if you only have one good hand.

So this evening the heeler sisters and I headed out into the desert. Just to see where we could go, and where we couldn't.

Mostly couldn't.

Yes, most of the basins have opened up.

Three days ago, nay, two days ago, everything you see here was covered with snow.

Goes quick when it starts to go.

But there aren't a lot of strutting grounds down in these saltbush/greasewood flats. They're almost all up in the sagebrush benches and dunes, which are still mostly white.

So yeah, there's a lek or two we can get to. If I don't mind counting grouse from a mile off, or so. But mostly, we gotta wait for more thaw.

I'm not sure if I'll sleep in again tomorrow or not. (Wife says "Sleep in.")

But this evening's outing was good for one thing...

Dragracing.