The Little Nuthatch — colorado

Paint Mines Interpretive Park is way out there down dirt roads (thankfully well-kept) through farm country and a couple cute little towns. As a birder I found the drive to be AWESOME, with opportunities to see raptors, grouse, and an abundance of Western Meadowlarks. After the drive, it's kind of amazing when seemingly out of nowhere you come upon the colorful rock formations of the Paint Mines. The photos don't do it justice. There's much to explore and the rocks are towering over you. They are colorful and have different textures. Small flowers are found growing out from the rocks....

After a couple days of rocky mountains in Colorado, I was all about getting to some flat easy terrain! Rocky Mountain Arsenal NWR is near the Denver airport, it is a wildlife drive with walking trails throughout and with lovely grasslands that are known for their Bison and Burrowing Owls. I really wanted to see the Burrowing Owls, and was thrilled to find a pair posing on some flowers, their burrow below in the grass.   Besides the owls, here are some more photos of this beautiful place near the city.    

In addition to my previous post about Mt. Evans, there is a nice stop on Mt. Evans called Mount Goliath Natural Area that offers a walk through  sub-alpine gardens and weathered bristlecone pines that are hundreds of years old. Pretty cool.     After Mt. Evans we went to St. Mary's Glacier, where you can sled, snowboard, or just slide yourself down the glacier. There were many people there sliding down in garbage bags. I tried going down on a "magic carpet" sled and totally lost my sled halfway down- still fun! Then, down in the lake, you could see...

Second day of my Colorado trip was up to Mt. Evans, the highest paved road in America. The mountain is 14265'. Besides an amazing view from the top, there are Mountain Goats and Bighorn Sheep, and lovely alpine plants. Bighorn Sheep... Mountain Goats... with KIDS... The alpine plants reminds me of the Florida scrub plants that are so tiny and delicate but hardy at the same time, thriving in sand and living through fires, while the alpine plants grow in rocks and put up with cold and snow. I quite love the plants of both ecosystems. The view from the...

So I went to Denver, Colorado the last week of June and it was OF COURSE SUPER AMAZING. What a beautiful place and a nice change from Florida at this time of year. The first day we went to Hanging Lake.   It is a rocky 1 mile trek up to the lake. There's a trail in that pile of rocks above, gotta watch your step! View from the almost-top...   The Hanging Lake... Hanging Lake has gorgeous clear water, and then it appears to just hang on the edge of the mountain, or in some spots gently roll over...