Tales from the Trails

Boulder’s Frosty Crystal Menace

richwolf — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 14:24:10 +0000

Now that fall has faded I’ve been trying to focus on the subtilty of light play on snow. I was hiking at Chautauqua after a recent snowstorm enjoying nature’s snow drift sculptures when I noticed a gem-like sparkle glinting off of the surface of the snow banks…

Gem Covered Snow Sculpture

The snow banks were covered with feathery crystals…

Crystal Covered Snow Banks

Closer inspection revealed that the sparkle was caused by the reflection of light from the crystals…

Snow Gems

When I got really close I discovered a micro-environment of delicate crystalline beauty…

Feather Like Crystals

These beautiful crystals are a type of frost called surface hoar. Here’s the physics: just as frost forms on the outside of a cold glass on a warm humid day, surface hoar forms when a snow bank cools overnight. During a cold clear night, the snow bank radiates heat causing its surface to become colder than the surrounding air. Since warm air holds more water vapor than cold air, the vapor from the warmer air above the snow will condense onto the surface. The surface of the snow bank is also colder than its interior which encourages evaporation and releases additional crystal growing moisture. By morning the snow bank can be covered with a layer of faceted ice crystals. The best conditions for formation of hoarfrost are: cold clear nights and a very light wind to circulate humid ground air around the snow surface. These are also common conditions for Boulder in winter.

As with my earlier discovery of heart warming snow fleas, I’ve discovered that little things can have big consequences. In the case of surface hoar there is a darker side which turns these benign crystals into killers…

This Crystal Has A Dark Side

This miniscule crystal is responsible for over 150 human deaths per year because surface hoar makes a perfect avalanche trigger. When layers of surface hoar are interlaced with subsequent layers of fresh snow, thin sheets of slippery ice crystals form within the snow. This laminated snow is hard to detect and can be very unstable…

Laminated Snow Bank

These sheets tend to slip resulting in the transformation of lots of little independent snowflakes into an angry crystalline flash mob travelling at 80 mph (130 km/h). Physics has consequences…

So Many High Speed Snowflakes (photo:http://uisevereweather.pbworks.com/)

Boulder Fall Color Fades To White

richwolf — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 13:37:15 +0000

Here on the front range of the Colorado Rockies the mountain peaks tower as much as 9,000ft/2743.2m above the Great Plains. The higher you climb the colder it gets. This temperature change, called the lapse rate, is 6.5 degrees Celsius per 1000 meters or 3.57 degrees Fahrenheit per 1000 feet. This represents a 32F/18C temperature gradient from peak to prairie. It is for this reason that the autumn hues start their descent from the high country tundra in early September and work their way down to the prairie by late October. Boulder Colorado is on the boundary (ecotone) between the mountains and the prairie and is located at the base of the foothills. This temperature gradient conveniently provides Boulderites with lots of time to savor the fall color season (and the spring flowers to come).

Our first major snowstorm arrived yesterday so I used this week to take some photos before and after the snowfall. The storm eventually left 10in/25.40cm of snow. The last of fall color, descended from the high country, has completed its journey and is now fading to white.

Before…

Fall Color On The Prairie Before the Storm

After…

Snow Blankets the Prairie

Boulder’s iconic First Flatiron before…

Flatiron Color Captured 23 October 2011 Noon @ 39°59'40.74"N 105°17'14.46"W

After…

Frosted Flatiron

One of my favorite Boulder fall hangouts is the South Mesa Trail. Mandy and I went there to capture the last hues before the snow quenches the color…

Mandy Takes a Colorful Break

The landscape changed the next day…

Mandy Chills Out

South Mesa offers great fall vistas…

Captured 19 Oct 2011 10:15am @ 39°56'25.45"N 105°15'36.88"W

The sumac (Rhus coriaria) was at its peak…

The Fall Sumac are Brilliant

South Mesa Sumac Vista

Today many of the brilliant leaves have fallen onto the snow…

Many of the Sumac Leaves Have Fallen

Even the remaining sumac seeds (drupes) are beautiful…

The Sumac's Fruit (Drupe)

Still many leaves remain forming the foreground for Devil’s Thumb and Boulder’s southern peaks…

Frosty Fall Wonderland

Soon the South Mesa sumac will be bare, its red hues fading to winter brown and white…

South Mesa Wintermoon Vista Captured 23 Feb 2010 9:07 am

Fall Color and Infatuated Elk

richwolf — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 19:31:47 +0000

It is fall and the Colorado High Country beckons. My regular readers will know that this is the time when I like to go to Rocky Mountain National Park to capture the last colorful embers of the growing season. I was especially motivated to go early this year because the long-range weather forecast predicted an approaching snowstorm that would knock off the aspen leaves and cover the landscape in white. Good thing too because as I write this it is pouring outside and I’m sure the skiers are busy waxing.

So I packed up the llama and took off to the west to capture the colors of fall as well as some elk merrymaking before the snow arrived today.

Let's Pack Up and Go To The Mountains!

The aspens had peaked…

Golden Aspen In The High Country

Glacier Basin Vista Captured 4 October 2011 9:45am @ 40°19'2.51"N 105°37'42.93"W

Spent Aspen Embers

This brook trout offered some submerged color…

Even the Brook Trout Are Colorful

Here’s a trout tale from the trail:

The Greenback cutthroat (Oncorhynchus clarki stomias) native trout was considered extinct by the 1930s. In 1957 a population was discovered in Rocky Mountain National Park! Additional populations were found in 1965 and 1970 in Colorado making possible the listing of the subspecies as endangered under the 1973 Endangered Species Act. A 2007 study led by the University of Colorado at Boulder indicates that biologists trying to save Colorado’s native Greenback cutthroat trout from extinction have, in most cases, inadvertently restored the wrong (but closely related) fish, the Colorado River cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki pleuriticus).

This real Greenback cutthroat’s trout range is now restricted to just 11 miles of streams in Colorado. This beleaguered fish was adopted in 1994 as the state fish of Colorado…

The state fish of Colorado

Here’s an elk tale from the trail:

After being hunted to extinction, 49 elk were brought to this area in 1913 and 1914. These elk (Cervus canadensis) were reintroduced from Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming. As with native moose, this is another tale of pioneer destruction and eventual species redemption. These imported elk prospered thanks to the short-sighted elimination of most natural elk predators such as the gray wolf and the grizzly bear. Since hunting is prohibited in the National Park, except for Chronic Wasting Disease, our elk are living large…too large. They were over-populating their habitat and depleting Park resources.

In response to this issue, Rocky Mountain National Park has implemented an Elk and Vegetation Management Plan to reduce the overpopulation and protect the Park. Scientists from the Colorado State University Department of Biomedical Sciences, the National Park Service, as well as other agencies are studying elk and trying to solve their overpopulation and disease problems. Meanwhile the elk naturally modified their migration patterns and broke into three distinct groups. This has mitigated much of the overpopulation problem.

Thanks to many dedicated advocates, Rocky Mountain National Park has become a research laboratory for the study of elk (since they clearly have so much to teach research scientists).

A few wolves would help to bring some golfer/elk balance here…

Elk Don't Read (photo:http://estespark-colorado.com/)

As you can see, our elk don’t give a hoot about people (or golfers). This provides a rare photographic opportunity during the rut when the elk come out of the woods to play out their ritual of natural selection in the open. This is the only time that the bulls, cows and calves will co-mingle and allow us to observe them up close and very personal. This is the time of the year that the elk cows and bulls party. Next month the party’s over and the bull will go his own way leaving the pregnant cow and her calves to fend for themselves.

Elk Groups Are Temporary

The sound of elk bugling starts in the evening and their nocturnal revelry lasts until dawn…

Here I Am Girls!

They Caught Each Others Glance from Across The Field

Cud This Be Love?

My Place or Yours?

Two Wild and Crazy Guys Looking For Action

Boys Will Be Boys

A Quiet Moment Before The Impending Storm

Early Snowflakes Approach Longs Peak

I’m so glad I’m not out there now…

Current Weather (webcam: http://www.estesparkweather.net/webcam.php)

Caribou Ranch Gold and Silver

richwolf — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 21:26:43 +0000

There’s gold and silver in them thar hills and it’s time to head out to stake my claim. I went in search for golden and silver pixels in the Caribou Ranch Open Space near Nederland Colorado. Regrets to Mandy the Dog as canines are not welcome there.

Heading north on the Peak to Peak highway (State Highway 72) from the town of Nederland you will go past the sign for Caribou (the ghost town) and make a left at this sign…

A short dusty ride leads to the parking lot and trailhead…

After about 1 mi/1.6 km the trail continues on the old Switzerland Trail roadbed toward the DeLonde Homestead…

Switzerland Trail Interpretative Sign

Where we soon discover gold…

A few minutes later we approach the motherload on the left of the trail…

The Motherload

More Gold In The Grove

Follow the Blue Bird Loop Trail to find the silver mine…

Follow The Blue Bird Loop Trail

…go past the old DeLonde Ranch where film and music (gold records) were made…

DeLonde Homestead

DeLonde Interpretative Sign

Soon the trail parallels the North Boulder Creek…

Steps to North Boulder Creek

View of North Boulder Creek

A little further the Blue Bird Mine Complex signpost appears….

Blue Bird Mine Signpost

Blue Bird Miner's Bunkhouse

Blue Bird Mine Interpretative Sign

It’s a short walk to the place where the silver came from…

Blue Bird Silver Mine Shaft

There may not be much silver left but there is still lots of gold to collect on the way back…

Aspen Gold Shelters The Trail

More Aspen Gold

Still More Aspen Gold

The Hills Are Alive With Gold

Gold In The Forest

Be sure to collect your gold before the season ends…

Soon The Show Will Be Over

Rocky Mountain Mighty Moose

richwolf — Fri, 05 Aug 2011 11:45:03 +0000

It was 4:30 am, an hour before dawn, and I was on my way to 8,200 ft/2500m Sprague Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. I was drawn by the vision of a sunrise on the Continental Divide reflected in the placid lake. An hour later I was rewarded for the abbreviated snooze. The backdrop (left to right) consists of Taylor Peak, Andrews Glacier, Hallett Peak, Tyndall Glacier, Flattop Mountain and Notchtop Mountain…

Dawn at Sprague Lake

Clearly I was not alone. Those folks in the canoe were looking at a young bull moose grazing on the other side of the lakebed (look to the left of the canoe at the edge of the shadow in the above photo…look closely…it’s small). So there I went to capture this magnificent sight. I found a suitable hideout in the closest thicket and got this shot…

This was not my first face-to-face with a bull moose (Alces alces) and I’m smitten. There is something exceptionally compelling about this big, solitary, mostly peaceful, vegetarian giant of the deer species. This ungainly product of evolution has survived despite human behaviour at its worst and because of the recent benevolence of humankind. This is is a story of our redemption.

Since being hunted out of Colorado by 1900 their number has recently recovered thanks to a reintroduction program in 1978 and 1979 by the Colorado Division of Wildlife. Two groups of moose (12 each year) from the Uintah Mountains and Grand Teton herds were transferred to an area just west of the Never Summer Range near Rand, Colorado. The Colorado herd (estimated to have expanded from the original 24 to nearly 700 in 1994) is scattered over a range that now extends to Winter Park in the south, and Steamboat Springs to the west. In 1980, visitors to Rocky Mountain National Park saw the first members of the herd that had migrated into the Kawuneeche Valley on the Western side of the Divide. Two thrill seeking cow moose were sighted by rangers on the Continental Divide at the Boulder-Grand Pass just a year later. Since then their numbers are increasing on both sides of the Park. Who knows, this mighty moose might have left the Valley to strike out on his own crossing a 14,000ft/4267m mountain range to do so. Moose are like super deer.

Here are some moose facts…
-Here in Colorado we have a subspecies called Shiras moose (Alces alces shirasi) which are the smallest of the subspecies of moose. They are also known as Yellowstone or Wyoming moose.

-Shiras Moose are the largest mammals of the Rocky Mountains.

-The moose has a very thick, strong neck from which hangs a long, round flap of skin and hair called a dewlap, or bell. This varies in appearance from moose to moose and occurs in both the male and female of the species. Some dewlaps are fat and up to 20 inches long; some are short and thin; and some others may just be a tuft a hair. Bull moose have been observed contorting their bodies in order to urinate on their dewlap, thereby soaking it in their pheromone-rich urine. It drives the cows mad!

-The moose has a top speed of 35 miles (55 kilometers) per hour. Those long spindly legs work well in snow and water too.

-Moose are loners by nature and these largest members of the deer family rarely travel with more than one or two other moose companions.

-Over a 20-year life span in the wild, bulls may reach a height of 6½ to 7½ feet (2-2.3 m) at the shoulder, and weigh from 800 – 1,600 pounds (360-725 kg). Cow moose are only slightly less imposing at 5 to 6½ feet (1.5-2 m) tall and 600 – 1,000 pounds (270-450 kg).

-Both mature males and females can be extremely unpredictable. Rutting bull moose have charged horses, cars, and locomotives. The female is particularly protective of her calf.

-The moose is a herbivore and is capable of consuming many types of plants and fruits. The average adult moose needs to consume almost 10 thousand calories per day to maintain its body weight.

-Much of a moose’s energy is derived from terrestrial vegetation, mainly consisting of non-grasses, and fresh shoots from trees such as willow and birch. These plants are rather low in sodium, and moose generally need to consume a good quantity of aquatic plants. While much lower in energy, these plants provide the moose with its sodium requirements, and as much as half of their diet usually consists of aquatic plant life.

Here are some more photos from my lakeside hideout…

That’s All Folks! ©Bullwinkle Studios

Tenderpaw No More

richwolf — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 14:51:34 +0000

March 30, 2011 Mandy the Dog Update: I wag my tail in gratitude to the Boulder City Council for rejecting the recommendation to close this loop trail to dogs. As reported in The Daily Camera:

“The Boulder City Council voted unanimously Wednesday night to continue to allow dogs on the Tenderfoot Chapman Loop Trail and the Saddle Rock Trail despite a recommendation from a community advisory group to ban dogs in those areas.”

________________________________________________________________________

“The best thing about man is the dog.” -Pierre-Laurent Buirette de Belloy

Howdy Folks, this is Mountain Mandy and I am a Boulder dog. I borrowed my guardian’s blog to report on the loss of one of my favorite Boulder Trails, The 2.5 mile/4023m Tenderfoot (a.k.a. Tenderpaw) Loop Trail. A pack of Boulder volunteer humans called the Community Collaborative Group (CCG) are about to recommend that this and other Boulder trails become off-limits to my dog buddies and I. This is not for conservation reasons. While I’m no naturalist, the flora and fauna seem perfectly happy with us pooches. The draft plan also includes a recommendation to acquire private property that will allow mountain bikes on a part of this loop called Chapman Drive. Hey, I’m a golden retriever, I love mountain bikers too! The reason I am to become a canine non-gratis is so that some trails can provide “No Dog Opportunities” for humans. So how come bikes are ok but dogs aren’t?. Even here in Boulder some people just don’t like to share the trails with us lovable dogs. Go figure.

I took my guardian to enjoy the Tenderpaw/Chapman Loop on this beautiful day for what the for what may be our last time. Please join me but let’s hurry before it’s too late…

Let's Go!

Drive up Flagstaff Road to Realization Point…

Have Your Guardian Park Here

Head this way (if you live outside of Boulder have your guardian fetch the $5 parking fee)…

The Tenderpaw/Chapman Loop Starts Near this Sign

Follow the Tenderfoot (sic) sign…

Take the Lower Trail

The trail starts on a forest path…

Singletrack In the Forest

and soon opens to sweeping views of the snow-capped Continental Divide in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area…

Nice Views of The Continential Divide

I Will Miss this Place

Great Sticks Too!

These guys look happy…

Happy Dogs and Humans Can Co-Exist

Pretty soon the trail drops down to Chapman Drive…

Take a Left at The Sign

A Short Trot Down to Chapman Drive

and make another left at the next sign…

Follow the Loop Left Up Chapman Drive

Where the 500ft/152m ascent back to Flagstaff Road begins with a series of spectacular switchbacks…

Chapman Drive Switchbacks

Another Spectacular View from Chapman Drive

Soon we approach the stone bridge built by The Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930′s…

Stone Bridge

A View From The Bridge

We continue up into a dense pine forest with lot’s of shade and snow…

Dashing Through Snowy Woods

Here's a Great Place to Chill Out

Snowy Chapman Drive

There is a lot to explore under the snow in the subnivian…

Exploring the Subnivian

Too soon we are back to Flagstaff Road…

On Leash Back to Flagstaff Road

I will miss the Tenderfoot when it’s kaput!

Do you have comments about Boulder’s West TSA Trail Study? You can send them via a public comment form.

Boulder’s Uplifting Lennies

richwolf — Thu, 09 Dec 2010 14:08:56 +0000

Here in Boulder we enjoy many remarkable acts of nature. Looking skyward often offers fantastic aerial phenomena including these striking cloud formations…

Dawn Skyshow Over The Boulder Flatirons 12 Dec. 2010 @ 39°59'18.00"N 105°17'36.00"W

Some could provide cover for UFO‘s…

Extraterrestrial Visitors on 7 November 2009?

Since moving to the eastern slope of The Rocky Mountains I have enjoyed frequent sightings of these spectacular altocumulus standing lenticularis or lenticular cloud formations. Where stable moist air flows over a mountain or a range of mountains, a series of large-scale standing waves are formed on the downwind side. If the temperature at the crest of the wave drops to the dew point moisture in the air may condense to form lenticular clouds also sometimes known as “lee clouds”, “wave clouds”, “Clouds of Heaven” or “Angelships”. As the moist air moves back down into the trough of the wave, the cloud may evaporate back into vapor…

Diagram Courtesy Hunter College CCNY

Lenticular clouds are most common in areas with high winds and tall mountains. They are scientifically referred to as orographic formations from the Greek “oros,” meaning “mountain.” Lenticular clouds may also appear near elevated plateaus or high hills and occasionally near tall thunderclouds making our skies ideal for viewing their moist air magnificence. They have been photographed on every continent in the world, including Antarctica.

This phenomenon results in some amazing skyshows…

Waves in The Sky on 26 Jan 2010

These wild mountain waves can occur for over 100 miles past the mountain range and can exist up into the troposphere and down into the lower stratosphere. Pilots of powered aircraft tend to avoid flying near lenticular clouds because of the turbulence that accompany them but glider pilots actively seek out these “lennies“. The precise location of the rising air mass is fairly easy to predict from the orientation of the clouds. “Wave lift” of this kind is often very smooth and strong, and enables gliders to soar to remarkable altitudes and great distances. The current gliding world records for both distance (over 3,000 km; 1,864 mi) and altitude (15,460 m; 50,721 ft) were set using such lift. The strong lift of a lennie was first discovered by a glider pilot, Wolf Hirth in 1933. Gliding in a wave wind causes the aircraft to soar dramatically, and glider pilots often need to use pressure suits and have oxygen masks to help them breathe.

Mile High Gliding (http://www.milehighgliding.com) Pilot Searching for Lennies at 39°58'45.79"N 105°18'5.93"W on 7 July 2007

There are three types of lenticular cloud formations depending on height:

-Stratocumulus Standing Lenticularis (SSL) are low-level clouds found at about 8,000 feet and have the lowest altitude of the three types. They are typically faster moving and less well-defined.

-Altocumulus Standing Lenticularis (ASL) are mid-level clouds that are the most common type of lenticularis, found between 8,000 and 20,000 feet. They appear very smooth and flat, often in multiple layers. In contrast to the other types, ASL tend to be stationary, despite the comparatively fast-moving wind at the same altitude. This is due to the wave nature of the wind, in which the wave peak remains stationary relative to the ground.

-Cirrocumulus Standing Lenticularis (CSL) are the rarest type of lenticularis, appearing at over 24,000 feet. They are so rare because there are very few geological structures at that altitude, which are required for lenticularis to form.

There have even been lenticular sightings on the down slopes of volcanoes on Mars!

Martian Lenticulars

Whether you are in Boulder or on Mars, keep your eyes on the skies. I’ll be posting new photos of Lennies as I capture them. Please send your pictures to richwolf@wolfgallery.com and I’ll post them here with attribution…

Sunset Lenticular on 4 Jan 2010

South Mesa Lenticular on 2 April 2009

Rocky Mountain Golden Groves

richwolf — Tue, 19 Oct 2010 14:01:54 +0000

Golden sentinels standing tall
up to the sky trembling limbs reach.
Graceful harbingers of the fall
shimmering leaves whisper on each.

Marching along all clothed in white
watching o’er mountain meadows high.
Bathed in heaven’s soft morning light
framed against a bright cobalt sky.

Colorado, a place so free
between the mountains, trees and streams.
I close my eyes and I can see
October Aspen in my dreams.

From the subtle notes of Spring’s early flowers to the bright hues of late fall the symphony of color has almost played out here in the Rocky Mountains. It is fitting that the final crescendo is left to the largest organism on earth, the ancient aspen.

The Season's Finale is Underway

I went chasing aspen color these past few weeks and the venue was Rocky Mountain National Park.

The Place for Aspens @ 40°22'1.40"N 105°34'42.90"W

I tracked these golden trees from high on the Bierstadt Moraine (named for western landscape painter Albert Bierstadt) where the vista is sweeping…

Bierstadt Moraine Fall Vista Captured 1 October 2010 9:30am @ 40°19'19.47"N 105°37'24.40"W

More of Bierstadt's Gold

to a solitary aspen growing next to Alberta Falls…

The View at Alberta Falls Captured 20 September 1:10pm @ 40°18'12.88"N 105°38'16.03"W

Some form golden aspen atriums…

Aspen Atrium Captured 14 October 2010 9:27am @ 40°21'25.55"N 105°36'7.20"W

some reach for the sky…

Bierstadt Skyward Aspens Captured 1 october 2010 @ 40°19'14.49"N 105°37'26.02"W

some hide in the pines…

Behind the Pines

while others reach for the peaks….

: Moraine Park Tree Stand Captured 14 October 2010 9:15am @ 40°21’33.52″N 105°35’53.94″W

Some groves form ”golden sentinels” blazing with color on the outside…

: Beaver Meadow Grove Captured 14 October 2010 11:15am @ 40°21’32.82″N 105°35’42.48″W

while offering more intimate light play on the inside…

: Inside the Grove Captured 14 October 2010 9:30am @ 40°21’25.55″N 105°36’7.20″W

Light Plays in the Grove

Soon the season’s glorious finalé will end and the aspens will be completely ”all clothed in white” leaving me with only my memories (and photos) until the first subtle notes of spring return.

Waiting for Spring's Return on the Continental Divide 13 October 6:30pm @ 40°21'27.37"N 105°36'33.24"W

Looking For Fall In All The High Places

richwolf — Sun, 19 Sep 2010 14:54:07 +0000

Autumn comes early to the Colorado high country. The late bloomers can no longer compete with the crescendo of leaf color that is the finale of this season of plant life. Soon the colors will fade to brown, blue and white as a deep snowy tarp preserves the genetic potential of spring. The cycle will repeat and thanks to natural selection each iteration will reveal minute increments of evolutionary progress.

I went to check for fall color in the Brainard Lake Recreation Area ($8 fee/5 days) and capture some large panoramic photos. Here above 10,000 feet/3048 meters the finale is well under way. To get there I took County Road 102 west from the Peak-to-Peak Highway (SR 72).

Brainard Lake Sign on Peak to Peak Highway

On the way up to the recreation area the road is flanked with turning aspens heralding the arrival of autumn…

Aspens Herald the Arrival of Autumn

At the end of CR 102, I circled Brainard Lake to the junction for the Long and Mitchell Lake parking areas. I continued to the Long Lake turnoff (to the left) and the parking area where a .25 mile hike leads to the junction of the Jean Lunning trail and the trails heading toward Lake Isabelle and Pawnee Pass. First I headed left (south) to the Jean Lunning Trail…

Jean Lunning Goes South while Isabelle Glacier Is North

After a few steps I crossed the bridge over the outlet of Long Lake and found a spot for a panorama of the lake with the Indian Peaks to the west at GPS 40.075313,-105.587325…

Indian Peaks from Long Lake

Our next photo stop will be higher up on the Niwot Ridge Trail for an overview of the area. The Niwot Ridge Trail heads south from the Jean Lunning Trail after a few hundred yards beyond this boardwalk. This area was filled with wildflowers in late July…

The Jean Lunning Trail Boardwalk with Niwot Ridge in Background

Here you will find the Niwot Ridge Trailhead. This way up…

The Unmarked Niwot Ridge Trail

The trail enters a dense spruce forest at the base of Niwot Ridge and climbs up a series of switchbacks…

The Trail Winds Through Lush Forest

Here’s where the last of the late-blooming arnica are attracting nectar-starved bees…

Bees on Last Heartleaf Arnica (Arnica cordifolia) Need Air Traffic Control

The pitch gradually steepens and the forest thins with rapidly improving views of the Long Lake basin and upper South St Vrain Creek valley. The trail clears the tortured pines of treeline before it eases through spacious tundra. As I approach treeline, tree growth becomes stunted, with trees growing on one side. If it is caused by wind, it is known as krummholz formation, from the German for ‘twisted wood’.

Approaching Treeline

Here’s a remarkable tale from this trail. Our own Niwot Ridge is a U. N. International Biosphere Reserve for arctic and alpine research. The University of Colorado maintains a Mountain Research Station at this site. The Preserve has been selected by the National Science Foundation as the alpine tundra component of the national Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program, which consists of 26 sites. The Niwot Ridge LTER is operated by the University of Colorado’s Mountain Research Station, part of the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research. Be sure to check out their live TundraCam.

Fall Color Comes to World Class Niwot Ridge Tundra

I cleared the trees to take this fall panorama of the Indian Peaks and Long Lake below…

A View from the Ridge

Here’s a long telephoto image of Isabelle Glacier from this vantage point reveling an avalanche…

Isabelle Glacier

The quest for my next photo took me back down to the other (north) side of Long Lake and west on the Pawnee Pass/Isabelle Glacier Trails to Lake Isabelle. The trail skirts the north shore of the lake and heads up the basin towards the Indian Peaks and Pawnee Pass over the Continental Divide. The basin is filled with fall color…

A Reflecting Pool On the Way To Lake Isabelle at GPS 40.071329,-105.604349

Further west of Long Lake the South St. Vrain Creek affords another panoramic vision of the Indian Peaks at GPS 40.068581,-105.609598…

Indian Peaks from South St. Vrain Creek

After a short climb I approach the lake’s eastern crest…

Approaching Lake Isabelle

…to arrive at my final photo destination at Lake Isabelle. Here the Indian Peaks are just a few miles west. Although the lake is drained for agricultural irrigation in late August (where’s the drain?) this imposing backdrop makes a sweeping panoramic view at GPS 40.070551,-105.616829…

Somewhat Drained Isabelle is Still A Beautiful Destination

For reference, here’s what the Lake looked like from this same point when filled…

Captured with H2O on 05 August 2009 1:40pm

On my way back to the trail head I suddenly ran into an old friend with big antlers…

Bullwinkle J. Moose (Alces alces) Returns

…who briefly posed for a photo before going on to an appointment at the lake…

On to a Business Meeting at the Lake

Smoke Gets In Our Skies

richwolf — Wed, 08 Sep 2010 13:13:54 +0000

I was out on a pretty hike on the Shanahan Ridge Trail on Labor Day (6 Sept 2010). It was a breezy bright blue Colorado morning which made this dark cloud seem ominously out-of-place…

My First View of Fourmile Canyon Fire 6 September 2010 @ 11:30am

It was the beginning of the Fourmile Canyon wildfire. The weather was ideal for the birth of a monster wildfire; a dry wind had been gusting since early morning through the dry forests. The fire spread quickly west of the City.

The Fire Quickly Spread West of the City of Boulder

According to the Daily Camera, as of Sunday 12 September 166 homes were destroyed and 6,427 acres/2,600 hectares were scorched in the foothills west of Boulder making this the most destructive in terms of property damage in Boulder County history. Fortunately it appears that no one was hurt. We don’t suffer earthquakes and hurricanes but we do get dangerous fires; this is the risk we take to live in or on the forest’s edge. Boulder County has one of most developed wildland-urban interfaces in the West.

Soon the heroic efforts of the firefighters (some of whom lost their own homes) and the rains will begin the recovery. In the years to come the habitat will recover for the humans as well as the wildlife and we will scurry back into our beloved forest. This is just too attractive a place to abandon for long. Perhaps we will learn more about promoting sound forest management practices from this event.

The sun was an eerie red color all day long making it’s setting look like a science fiction scene…

Smoky Sunset Over Boulder Foothills

The iconic flatirons were softened by the smoke this morning…

Boulder's Smoky Mountains

The fire is west of the City of Boulder threatening mountain towns. Here’s a view looking north from the Lost Gulch Overlook (39.990573,-105.320617) on Flagstaff Road. Note that the north end of the City of Boulder is uncharacteristically on the right (east) in this shot…

8 September 2010 @ 2:45pm Lost Gulch Overlook

Here many anxious homeowners are overseeing their properties. Note the Continental Divide in the background…

Anxious Homeowners and Fire Watchers

This outcropping made an ideal perch to observe the the scope of the fire…

Rugged Country and Vulnerable Habitat

…and the efforts to put out the blaze…

Putting Out A Fire

We were joined on our perch by this little spectator…

Rock Wren (Salpinctes obsoletus) Joins The Spectators