This isn't Colorado, but we are close enough to get some big mountains. Lee and I drove about 90 minutes to the Santa Fe ski area which clocks in at nearly 10,300 feet. For reference, Mt. Hood is 11239 feet high and Timberline lodge is 7,000 feet. We went for a (very) short hike. At this elevation the air feels thin. It takes only a few steps up the hill to feel winded and dizzy. It's deceiving because at this latitude, 10,000 feet is not above timberline. The path is lined with firs and aspen groves. It's beautiful! Aspens look a lot like our alders, but their heart shaped leaves dance in the sun and wind like thousands of tethered emerald green butterflies. The aspens grow together because they are one family. Each tree is a sprout from the root system of it's kin.
Despite the thin air and lack of rain, the flowers and shrubs we saw along the trail reminded us of home. Can you name the flowers below? You can find them as the new tenants in Oregon forests around road cuts, just as we see them here.
Lee and I needed some tree time. The relentless 95 degree weather every day was taking it's toll on our tempers, and getting into that green growing ecosystem was more cleansing than an afternoon thunderstorm (of which there aren't many) in the valley.
Now, time for your quiz. Can you name these roadside wildflowers?
Did you get them? Fireweed, The common Fleabane daisy, Indian paintbrush, and columbine.
Here is a common painted lady butterfly that followed us down the road, sipping nectar on its way.
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