Dec. 2021 - 23

stark shadows. The light was too harsh for my
lens. But I snapped photos anyway. I figured
I would never be this close to bighorn sheep
again in my life, so why not take some photos
to commemorate the event?
Dominant rams knocked horns. We were
so close you could feel the concussions in your
chest - or so it seemed. Sincavage pointed
out some of the social behaviors among sheep.
There was a sort of dance they did that led
up to the crashing of horns. Sometimes they
merely touched horns, brushed them against
their opponents' flanks or draped their necks
over each other. Sometimes rams that had
been fighting walked off and bedded down
together in the sage.
I kept hearing a whirring, clicking sound.
I spotted another photographer with an
enormous lens and tripod. He was dressed
in camo and was set up on the next ridge.
Sincavage knew him. We were the only ones
out, but given the grandiose spectacle of mature
rams charging each other I was surprised more
people were not around.
The fighting ceased and the sheep bedded
less than 30 yards from us in the dusty and
brilliant afternoon. I felt drowsy. Pretty soon
I realized I was nodding off. Sincavage did the
same. An hour went by. After my nap I stood
up and stretched. The sheep were rousing, too.
After being with the sheep all day I was
beat and only wanted to go to the hotel and
liberate my dog. Sincavage drove us out of
the Torrey Valley. He said he was enjoying the
winter because he had fewer visitors and could
focus on his photography.
" When people ask me how far I live from
an airport, I tell them two hours, unless I see
something interesting along the way, " he said.
We stopped at a few spots to look at
petroglyphs. The ice anglers were long gone.
I saw their vacant tracks on the lid of the lake.
Whiskey Mountain looked blue-black in the
last moments of light. I had to drive back
to Casper the next day. I thought vaguely of
going to the Rustic Inn for a beer. Would
anyone there understand my exuberance? I
had nothing to show for my efforts but a few
photographs. But I felt richer somehow. I tried
to explain this to Sincavage.
" In 10 minutes I can leave the house, and
I'm where the sheep are, " Sincavage said. " If
you look around Dubois everything has to
do with sheep. The high school mascot is the
Rams. There's the Ramshorn Inn. Everything
Photographer Bill Sincavage moved
to the Dubois area for its small-town
charm, stark vistas and abundance of
wildlife. (Photo by David Zoby)
FROM RACE CARS TO WILDLIFE
Bill Sincavage spent most of his career as a mechanical engineer on the East Coast.
After a family vacation to Yellowstone National Park he wanted to spend more time
in the area and pursue photography as a passion.
His family narrowed it down between Cody and Dubois, and decided on Dubois
for its small-town charm, stark vistas and abundance of wildlife. He works remotely
from his home on Jakeys Fork.
Sincavage got his first camera when he was 14, but had no one to show him how it
worked. As an engineer he built high-end engines for drag-racing cars for many years.
" People have this image of racing that it's action, but the reality of it is that when
you're at a race track there are hours and hours of downtime. I started bringing the
camera and started photographing cars, what racing was going on and the drivers.
Then it became a passion, " Sincavage said.
Sincavage said there wasn't a huge leap from photographing race cars to photographing
wildlife, but added Dubois and the wildlife there flipped his photography
and made it possible for him to become more serious about his craft.
Wild sheep had a magical effect on him. He said they changed his life.
- Dave Zoby
in this town is centered around bighorn sheep. "
Sincavage invited me to come back in May
to see the lambing season. He pointed to the
steep, barren cliffs of the Dubois Badlands;
they were purple in the evening light. He said
that's where the lambing happens.
We exchanged phone numbers and made
loose plans to reconnect. His daughter was
expecting a baby in May. I was going to be
fly-fishing and chasing other stories. Who
knows if we'd ever be able to hook up again
and view sheep?
Bill dropped me off at my truck. But he still
had something he wanted to convey:
" You know what? Ten years ago I had never
seen a wild sheep other than on TV. Now,
they're like family, " he said.
- Dave Zoby teaches English at Casper College. He
fishes whenever he can and writes because he has to.
Wyoming Wildlife | 23
Dec. 2021

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