This thread is for all of us to keep eachother informed of the wildflower conditions out there in our region. Let us know the good/bad and ugly out there. Anybody been up to poprhy or ybb yet? How about the flowers near Vail?
As Todd and Bob reported last week, the flowers around Westcliffe have been looking good. Here was one of the patches outside of town looking toward the east at sunrise last Thursday.
Hayman burn area last Thursday evening before a massive thunderstorm. This was taken from near the road less than five miles southwest of the Goose Creek Trail Head into the Lost Creek Wilderness.
Park County is also getting in on the wildflower action right now. Paintbrush near the reservoir at Eleven Mile State Park. Taken on Thursday afternoon as well.
Has anyone been to Crested Butte lately? I'm curious how Kebler and Ohio Pass car coming along? I'll bee up there this weekend and will post a report when I get back. If anyone is interested in getting together, I'll be driving a white Nissan Frontier with a shell and "Grand Canyon" plate on the front.
I was relatively nearby at Breckenridge and Windsor Lake between Leadville and Aspen on Saturday. The flowers are great up to 9500 feet. From 9500-10500 there are some flowers starting to show. From 10500 to 12000 there are a few marsh marigolds, but most everything else is brown (or covered in snow).
Kebler should be pretty much at peak in terms of lupines this weekend. These shots were taken a week ago. From MM10-13 or so, the mules ears are doing well. The area around Horse Ranch Park was just really getting started last week, and should be screamin' this weekend.
BTW, if you want flowers on the Shrine Pass road, get there NOW! (But only if you like marsh marigolds, because that is ALL that's happening. In other words, give it 2-3 weeks.)
Also, unlike the burgeoning flowers around the Hayman burn area, nothin' doin' around Trappers Lake in the Flat Tops. A few yellow arnicas here and there, but that's it.
Posted by Jack Garrett on July 3, 2009 at 12:15 AM
Crested Butte update...7/01/09. I just got back and having been on the go for over 30 hours, I'm too tired to post any images. Washington Gulch was OK down low. Gothic Road was great down low to about Gothic. Rustlers Gulch wasn't worth the effort...nothing at all. Slate Rive Road was very good with lots of varieties (columbine, Mules ear, lupine, etc). Having never been there before I would say conditions for now are very good but I would think they will get better in the next week. Locals up there say Brush road area is about prime but I can't verify.
For those who can't get away, there are plenty of wildflowers on some of the trails on the lower end of Pikes Peak Highway (before Crystal Reservoir) especially in the Crow Gulch area.
I was there yesterday indulging in another hobby of mine, so I don't have any pictures, but I hope to get back up there this weekend. And don't forget, if you're not planning on going past Crystal Reservoir, tell the toll taker, and you'll save a lot on the toll...
I went up Camp Bird 5-6 miles last Sunday--not all the way to YBB, but past Sneffels townsite and mines. It was nicely lush and green, but not too many flowers yet. There was a bank completely covered with white flowering plants (no idea what they are) by the Angel Creek campground day use area in the lower section of Camp Bird. It wasn't a good spot for broad scenics with peaks in the bg, but for closeup or pattern-type shots, I suspect a better photographer than I am could make a lot of it--I thought they were pretty cool, anyway. I haven't put any photos on my computer yet, so can't post, but I'll try to update in a couple days when I get back home.
I was up on the Flat Tops above Glenwood Canyon and the flowers still have a little ways to go yet, I would say a week or two. No flower covered fields but still some photos to be had.
I drove Shrine Pass Road today. The Paintbrush are starting to bloom on the E. side of the road just North of the Rest Area. They are also starting to bloom on the W. side just past the Holy Cross Overlook parking area. There are also lots of Marsh Marigold, Trollius (Globeflower), several large patches of Elephant Heads, shooting stars, Colorado Columbine, Western Red Columbine, Lupine, Scarlet Gilia, Larkspur, Common Harebell, Jacob's Ladder, Chiming Bells, Corn Lily, Bittercress, Buttercups, Arnicas, Cow Parsnip, Tall Penstemon, White Bog Orchids, and Calypso Orchids. After next weekend the Paintbrush will probably be in full bloom.
I took this photo on July 4th along the Boulder Flatirons. I can't believe this level of green, and flower diversity is still extant this late in the year. I love it!
I just got back from Crested Butte, late Sunday night. I don't have much to ad to what Jack Garrett said above, but I did find nice columbines on Ohio Pass approx 1.5 miles north of the National Forest boundary.
For those who can make a quick trip to Monument: I climbed up to Raspberry Mountain and then up to Mt Herman today, and the wildflowers are very plentiful. The north summit of Mt. Herman looks very good, but if you don't want to climb up to the top, you really don't have to go more than a few hundred feet on the Mt Herman trail from the trailhead. There are a large quantities of wildlfowers along the trail, especially Columbine.
If you go up from Monument, the road is in very poor condition. The area where the road gave way last week causing a truck to roll down the hill is now very narrow. Stay tight to the mountainside when going up or down.
Certain areas north of Woodland Park and into the Hayman burn area have some of the best displays I've seen in years. There must be 30+ varieties observed during our scouting trip this afternoon in preparation for our upcoming workshop. Parts of Manchester Gulch have literally hundreds of Columbine - more than I've seen in YBB or CB!
Jack: I think we'll be basecamping in and/or around Silverton most of the time. Don't have a real agenda yet though it's likely we'll do YBB, Clear Lake, Ice Lakes Basin, etc. I'm trying to find some less popular spots to visit, too.
Todd: I knew I could count on you to help a brutha out! When I'm not on shift I don't really care what happens on the mean streets of Moab. Come on out and raise hell!
Moved my trip up 2 weeks so I'm headed for CB tomorrow after work. Anybody out there been up around Lake Irwin and have a report?
Posted by Sarah Marino on July 10, 2009 at 12:22 AM
I just returned from a work trip to Crested Butte. I squeezed in a bit of time for photography and can pass on a few basic updates. Gothic Road and Kebler Pass Road are the places to be. There is a beautiful grouping of lupine right before the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory along Gothic Road – one of the prettier I have seen this year (all different shades of purple, with Gothic Mountain looming behind them). The area around Rustler’s Gulch looks like it is still not at peak bloom.
The private land around Washington Gulch Road has some nice spots of color, but the public land further down the road is less impressive. I drove only about two miles past the forest service boundary and there are some patches of flowers, but nothing spectacular. I drove up to the Lake Irwin turnoff on Kebler Pass Road and there were lots of flowers along the way – yellow arnica, cow parsnips, lupine and larkspur (I think). I didn’t make it past Lake Irwin, but imagine that the more scenic areas of the Kebler Pass area are looking great. I did not have time for any hiking, so these are just updates on the conditions along the road.
Visited Porphyry Basin in the San Juans and the flowers are still about two weeks away from full bloom. Some small ones of many varieties, but still in infancy.
I just got back from a morning at Shrine Ridge. Todd's report from a couple of weeks ago isn't too far off - if you like Marsh Marigolds and Globe Flower, this is the place to be!
Having said that, things have developed a bit since then. There is a good supply of Old Man of the Mountain, and the Alpine Forget-me-not is looking nice (along with Sky Pilot and other Alpine flowers). I found the abundance of OMotM odd, since it was also pretty good last year. The Lupines and Paintbrush are just coming out, with no sign of Arnica or Penstemon yet up on the ridge.
Lower down, most of the flowers are not quite out yet - the "bog" area with the Bog Orchids, Death Camas, and Little Pink Elephant Heads is still almost entirely Marsh Marigold, and only the smaller DYCs are out on the lower slopes.
I saw a Ptarmigan and some Snowshoe Hares while I was up there and took lots of what I think will be good pictures of the bloom. I'll try and get some posted later.
I think next weekend will be ideal up there, and if the weather holds out I think the flowers will continue to be good for a couple of weeks.
Posted by Joshua Hardin on July 11, 2009 at 11:18 PM
RMNP has a few impressive displays right now. Hidden Valley, just under and near the parking lot, has a field full of lupine, mostly white in color with some interspersed lavender and purple ones. Horseshoe Park has some asters and nice pink flowers, not sure what type they are. I'll post some images of these in a separate thread in a couple of days. For those wondering about higher altitudes, the alpine sunflowers that sometimes appear at Forest Canyon Overlook are almost non-existent so far, not really worth the trip up there if you are looking for them.
Butler Gulch near Jones Pass/Henderson Mine seems to be sparse so far. Did the hike today, and the usuals are up but very thin. Some great columbines in the scree field above treeline and the rivers look great!
I was up at Crested Butte this past weekend and here is my report.
Here is a breakdown from the areas I went to.
Gothic: By far the best location. Decent weather on Saturday morning but then a storm came in and was cloudy the rest of the time. Many and most different types of flowers in this area. The area with the stream right after the last grove of Aspen trees and before you get to Gothic was really good. This is the area right in front of Gothic peak. There is a turn off past Gothic right next to the restrooms and the forest sign. This loop had a lot of different types of flowers as well. Most of this area is not trampled and is isolated. I saw White and traditional columbine, shooting star (columbine), lupine, Elephant Head, Marsh Marigold, Bluebell and Fireweed. I was hoping to see some flowers along the stream but there were not any. The higher up areas were not very good based on several I spoke to so I did not go up to Rustler and beyond.
Washington Gulch: When I started here there were primarily Sun flowers. As I drove the afternoon rain came so I did not do any shooting but scoped it out for the next time I go to CB. One person I talked to took a morning photo class and they took them to Sneezeweed trail head and they saw a lot of variety in very good conditions up to 1/2 mile into the hike.
Slate River: Did not go here and from what I heard, it was not very much activity.
Kebler Pass: A lot of activity with a lot around Apsen trees. I went there Saturday evening and Sunday morning and it was amazing see the light on the Aspens. This was with diffused lighting which made for some interesting shots. There were open areas of Columbine, Bluebell, Sneezeweed, Lupine as well as rare pink Lupine.
Lake Irwin: Not a lot around the lake but what a neat place. I did drive up to the top and found standalone Columbine which was nice. Did see paintbrush, Cow Parsnip, Lupine, etc. along the road to Lake Irwin. Approximately 1.1 to 1.7 miles into the 2 mile drive to the lake.
I spoke to a couple of pro's while there and they said that this week was good but with the rain that they are predicting this week it should open up a lot more for this coming up weekend. They said the higher elevations it has been too cold so they are late and may not be as good this year.
Wildflower jackpot near Vail!!! I've never gone flower hunting before, and I think I might now be spoiled for life. Any flora people that can call in sick this week might want to head right up there.
I was on the Grouse Creek and Meadow Mountain trails outside of Minturn, where I took this picture. Several long-time locals I spoke to on the trail all said the same thing. They had never seen this many species all blooming at once and in such abundance. I'm a flower ignoramus, but I'm fairly certain about reporting Penstemon, Paintbrush, Thistle, Wild Geranium (????), those tall yellow daisy-lookin' things, Clover, a few wild Roses (by the creek on Meadow Mtn only), and lots and lots more that I couldn't begin to identify. In fact, the only species that I did not see there was Columbine.
There are plenty of those, however, along the roadside and trails a few miles up in Sylvan Lake State Park near Eagle. My first visit there, and what an amazing place. I was in the Yeoman Park (I think it's called) campground area. The Columbine were fairly abundant in that area, as well as paintbrush, and more stuff that I can't identify. Tip: do NOT forget to put on insect repellent if you go up there!
I wish I could make a more knowledgeable report--feel free to email me if there are any questions.
Chicago Creek by Idaho Springs has several different flowers blooming right now. Columbines, paintbrush, wild rose, golden banner, cow parsnip, geranium, and monkshood. Plenty to shoot and it's not that far from Denver.
What Heather said! Both that the flowers on the trails out of Minturn looked excellent, and that the one thing in full bloom out there - including at Shrine Ridge - was the insect population
Posted by Doug Andrews on July 14, 2009 at 4:47 PM
Drove up the west side of Rollinsville Pass this morning. Not a lot of wildflowers below tree line, just some small pockets here and there. However once above treeline, the tundra is in full bloom. If you like to photograph wildflowers real low and real tight this is a great place for it. I'm not familiar with many tundra flowers but Moss Campion was one of them. Heading north along the CDT I found some small patches of Old Man of the Mountain. I think thats what its called, maybe its the same thing as alpine sunflower?????? Where the tundra isn't blooming its a rich luxuriant green.
I was in Crested Butte Friday afternoon and Saturday and pretty much echo what Tim said. I wasn't too impressed with the area around Gothic but that's probably because I was concentrating pretty hard on driving and not turning the plethora of bikers into polyester speed bumps.
Lake Irwin-I was pretty disappointed here. I usually like to shoot the meadows and creek downstream from the dam near the 2 waterfalls and there just wasn't much going on. Lots of green buds so it could be good in a week or so.
Kebler-I did most of my shooting in this area and found lots of lupines. Also had a lot of fun with the ferns and cow parsnips in the aspen groves west of horse park. I was lucky enough to see a bear and 2 cubs on the second big curve coming down the west side of Kebler but they were pretty much on the move by the time I switched lenses so mostly what I got were fuzzygraphs. Note to self: When driving between locations keep the tele on the camera, not the wide angle.
Ohio Pass road-Some nice groupings of columbines along the road about 2 miles south of Kebler.
Mostly I was amazed by how the prairies have EXPLODED with wildflowers. Hwy 24 between C-Springs and Buena Vista is freakin incredible. By far the largest groupings of flowers I saw. Check out the area around mm 258. It's worth the trip.
John, can I get up into Porphyry Basin with a stock 4x4 truck? Looks like an awesome area
You sure can, Steve.
There's one section of the road that hugs the hillside with a steep dropoff on the other side.
Wide wheelbases are not encouraged!
Sorry it took so long to reply.
Posted by Steve Stuller on July 14, 2009 at 10:44 PM
Thanks John. I'm gonna hit Crested Butte this weekend, then the San Juans early next week. Yankee Boy and American basin for sure. I've read on the web that Stoney Pass has some excellent wildflowers as well. So many great photo ops; so little time
Posted by Kalin Wilson on July 15, 2009 at 6:04 PM
Went over Shrine pass last Sunday. The meadows are still nice with lupine, marsh marigold, etc. I spent most of my time on the west side of the pass along the creek that parallels the road. Nice paintbrush and others. I found one nice patch of columbine but that was in one spot, not very prevalent.
Grand Mesa is bustin' at the seams with all species. Lot's of lupine right along the Hwy. on top. Tons of columbine etc. just about everywhere else (Mesa Lakes to Trickle Park anyway.)
Toop a last min cruise on my motorcycle on sunday up to Snowy Range and flowers are coming up very nicely. Lots of snow still up there. Here's a quick shot, nothing special as it's hand held.
http://rockymountaincichlids.com/webpics/snowy-range.jpg
Any word on American Basin? I will try to shoot there b/w art shows since I will be down there anyways. Wondering if the columbines are ready?
Posted by Jack Garrett on July 16, 2009 at 3:48 PM
Tim, I was there On Tuesday and there are some Columbine but not huge numbers. If you pick your location carefully you can still come away with some good images..see my post on American Basin which still needs a little work.
Shrine Pass is peaking at this time. I was up on Saturday to the top; Lupine and Paintbrush are at peak, Old Man is still going strong; Whipple's Penstemon is now out, along with lots of other varieties. I'm guessing conditions will hold through the week barring bad weather, with the Lupine beginning to die down a bit.
Lower down, the "wetlands" flowers are coming along nicely; lots of future still left in the lower meadows.
Emerald Lake/Schofield Park/ West Maroon Pass (Trail) are outrageous right now with just about any species of mountain wildflower you want to throw in.
Hiked the trail up to diamond lake today. Lots of flowers along the way and around the lake and in the neighboring meadow. Good time to head up to the Indian Peaks area if you were thinking about it.
Camped at Ice Lake for the past two nights and the condition was great. Lots of white paintbrushes and columbines around the lake and they all looked very healthy. Should last a while I'd say.
Just got back from a quick trip to the South San Juan's area. The wet meadows around Elwood pass are thick with elephant head!
Posted by Bryan Maltais on July 29, 2009 at 10:26 PM
As of 26 July, Crested Butte (Gothic Rd and Wash Gulch Rd) is way past peak. Lupines and Mule's Ears no longer flood fields with color, but are restricted to a few small patches. At higher elevations (Green Lake) things were still vibrant with fairy trumpets, harebells, and chiming bells in peak blume.
Yankee Boy at peak, but probably diminishing within a week.
Posted by CarlGandolfo on July 30, 2009 at 1:47 PM
Just drove past a huge field of Sunflowers. Maybe 1/4 to 1/2 mile North of the Mead exit off I 25N on the East side of the frontage road. Get off at the Mead exit and take the frontage road north and you can't miss them.
Lately I've been slammed at work, been busy with family issues, and overall just unable to get out and shoot much during the wildflower peak. I was finally able to get out on Thurs and Friday. Here is a recap of conditions.
Brainard area / Isabella Lake - decent pockets of flowers on the trail once you get past Long Lake. Some a bit past prime down lower. Once you get to Isabella Lake, the flowers are still pretty good near the streams. There is about to be a massive bloom of those tall, yellow flowers that have a smaller bloom, but are clustered together. Some type of Yellow Arnica maybe? Here is a pic of what's to come. Lots of these getting ready to pop around the lake.
Here is a shot from the stream that flows down from Pawnee Pass - flowers are pretty good here. Unfortunately my time to explore this area was limited - I got chased down from the lake from some lightning, rain and hail! (I shot this with the new 24mm TS-E II Lens from Canon. This was my first trip out with it. Let me just say that this baby is SHARP from corner to corner. Very happy with it so far!!)
On Friday afternoon I went up to the Shrine Pass area, unfortunately the storms were starting to roll in, so I didn't get to hike the ridge. The areas along the road were ok in places, but some of the flowers were past peak, or had been beaten up by the storms. The paintbrush seemed to be in the best shape.
Once the rain started, I went over to the Mayflower Gulch road and drove up to the mine ruins. The open meadows near the mining structures are past prime for the most part, but there are some pockets of paintbrush. Also some decent pockets of flowers on the surrounding hillsides close to the road.
Here is one of the better areas (after the first band of rain had cleared out) but when you get really close to the flowers, you can see they are starting to lose petals, etc. Not too bad overall though.
Posted by Bryan Maltais on August 1, 2009 at 5:55 PM
Thank you Carl! I love living in paradise.
Posted by Joshua Hardin on August 2, 2009 at 2:37 AM
I'm just getting home from a few days in the San Juans, here's a report of the flower conditions I saw:
Monday/Tuesday - Owl Creek/Wetterhorn Basin - Some nice fields of mostly paintbrush and arnica in the basin. That place is huge so there were lots of comp opportunities until the rain/lightning chases you away! I also saw some corn lilies and larkspur that were starting to get past their prime along the Owl Creek Road.
Wednesday/Thursday - Porphyry Basin - A few parry primrose in the wet areas, starting to go past peak. Some kings crown, paintbrush several other varieties along the edge of Bullion King Lake.
Friday - Clear Lake - By FAR the best location I went to for flowers. Some nice concentrations of white paintbrush, alpine sunflower and bistort on the hillsides above the lake. Red paintbrush, chiming bells & some other types along the outlet below the lake. The road below the lake was the best place to find healthy-looking columbine and tons of other varieties right along the roadside. They are best above the lookout toward Ice Lake Basin.
Friday/Saturday - Stony Pass - Some of the usual paintbrush concentrations on the east side, not the best I've seen but not bad either. After waiting for an almost endless string of storms to pass, I climbed the side of Green Mountain on the west side of the pass looking for columbine. There were a few there but they are starting to look pretty tattered by the elements.
Posted by Bob Falcone on August 2, 2009 at 4:40 PM
Been super busy planning and hosting a party at the house, and now some of the visiting family wants to visit RMNP, and I'll be playing tour guide (sort of).
Are there any wildflower opportunities up there, or is it too late?
Posted by Joshua Hardin on August 2, 2009 at 11:00 PM
Bob: although I haven't been to RMNP for a couple of weeks, for the most part, at this time of year the flowers are usually well past peak in most areas of the park. I would maybe try the Wild Basin area though, there may be some remaining flowers in the wet areas from Calypso Cascades to Ouzel Falls or even Bluebird Lake. The lakes in the Indian Peaks Wilderness might be an option too. I've had good luck finding flowers at Lake Isabelle or Blue Lake in the first week of August. However, these areas all require a bit of hiking and I'm not sure what your guests are willing to do.
Posted by Bob Falcone on August 2, 2009 at 11:15 PM
Thanks Joshua!
Posted by Sarah Marino on August 4, 2009 at 4:36 PM
I just returned from a four day backpacking trip to the Ice Lakes Basin area. I will second what Joshua said about Clear Lake. The pink paintbrushes are in perfect condition right now all around the lake (plus a lot of other flowers that I cannot identify be name). If you are facing the peaks, the area on the right side of the lake (right over the spot where there is a "no vehicles" sign) is full of flowers, too (which I discovered about 5 minutes before we were leaving). A light coating of frost greeted us in the morning, which added an interesting element for some macro shots.
The Lower Ice Lakes Basin area is past prime overall. I was still able to find some nice spots around the stream coming down from the waterfalls on the left side of the basin. The orange paintbrush and chiming bells (? - again, I am not good at wildflower ID) were prolific and in good condition. The corn lilies are way past prime, as are the cow parsnips. The Upper Ice Lake Basin was amazing. It was stormy, so we decided not to camp in the upper basin but I did get in one full morning of photography and had more than enough to fill the time. The area around the smaller lake right above Upper Ice Lake was full of flowers, too. Overall, the upper basin will probably be in great condition for at least another week.
Posted by Doug Andrews on August 5, 2009 at 5:56 PM
While most of us figure that wildflower season has either passed or is really winding down, I found that to not necessarily be the case this morning. I hiked up to Diamond Lake in the Indian Peaks Wilderness from the Fourth of July TH. Most of the flowers along this hike were past peak as I expected. However, when I reached Diamond Lake, I found the flowers to be at peak. Lots of Paintbrush, Elephants Head, Alpine Sunflower, Mountain Aster, etc. around the lake. I suspect they'll still be good through this weekend. Just goes to show how cool and wet this summer has been.
Posted by Sarah Marino on August 11, 2009 at 1:17 PM
The flowers are looking great around Summit Lake on Mount Evans. Elephants Head, some white Paintbrush, and lots of little yellow flowers. They will still probably look good this coming weekend.
Posted by John Williams on August 15, 2009 at 10:55 AM
Thanks to all of you who have been updating this thread. We need to do a sticky like this in the PNWNP Forum.
My in-laws live south of Durango, and we've been visiting this week. I wanted to head to the mountains at least once, so yesterday afternoon I drove up to Clear Lake to see if anything remained of what Joshua and Sarah noted.
The blooms are definitely past peak, although there are still a lot of them. There were opportunities to wiggle into spots that still looked good, but it takes some effort to find them. I'll have to get back home before I can see if I'm happy with anything I took (unfortunately it was rainy and windy while I was there).
Posted by Bob Falcone on August 15, 2009 at 10:39 PM
There are still lots of purple aster, black-eyed susan, snapdragon and other assorted wildflowers on the lower end of Crowe Gulch at mile-marker 3 of the Pikes Peak Highway. My guess is that there is probably another week left of them unless we get some rain...
Discussion
84 repliesRichieV
#1: Horse Ranch Park
Also, unlike the burgeoning flowers around the Hayman burn area, nothin' doin' around Trappers Lake in the Flat Tops. A few yellow arnicas here and there, but that's it.
Thanks
I was there yesterday indulging in another hobby of mine, so I don't have any pictures, but I hope to get back up there this weekend. And don't forget, if you're not planning on going past Crystal Reservoir, tell the toll taker, and you'll save a lot on the toll...
If you go up from Monument, the road is in very poor condition. The area where the road gave way last week causing a truck to roll down the hill is now very narrow. Stay tight to the mountainside when going up or down.
Ken
Jack
BTW, who's gonna be prowling the seedy streets of Moab if you're here all that time? Might we suspect it's anything goes beginning Friday?
Todd: I knew I could count on you to help a brutha out! When I'm not on shift I don't really care what happens on the mean streets of Moab. Come on out and raise hell!
The private land around Washington Gulch Road has some nice spots of color, but the public land further down the road is less impressive. I drove only about two miles past the forest service boundary and there are some patches of flowers, but nothing spectacular. I drove up to the Lake Irwin turnoff on Kebler Pass Road and there were lots of flowers along the way – yellow arnica, cow parsnips, lupine and larkspur (I think). I didn’t make it past Lake Irwin, but imagine that the more scenic areas of the Kebler Pass area are looking great. I did not have time for any hiking, so these are just updates on the conditions along the road.
Having said that, things have developed a bit since then. There is a good supply of Old Man of the Mountain, and the Alpine Forget-me-not is looking nice (along with Sky Pilot and other Alpine flowers). I found the abundance of OMotM odd, since it was also pretty good last year. The Lupines and Paintbrush are just coming out, with no sign of Arnica or Penstemon yet up on the ridge.
Lower down, most of the flowers are not quite out yet - the "bog" area with the Bog Orchids, Death Camas, and Little Pink Elephant Heads is still almost entirely Marsh Marigold, and only the smaller DYCs are out on the lower slopes.
I saw a Ptarmigan and some Snowshoe Hares while I was up there and took lots of what I think will be good pictures of the bloom. I'll try and get some posted later.
I think next weekend will be ideal up there, and if the weather holds out I think the flowers will continue to be good for a couple of weeks.
Here is a breakdown from the areas I went to.
Gothic: By far the best location. Decent weather on Saturday morning but then a storm came in and was cloudy the rest of the time. Many and most different types of flowers in this area. The area with the stream right after the last grove of Aspen trees and before you get to Gothic was really good. This is the area right in front of Gothic peak. There is a turn off past Gothic right next to the restrooms and the forest sign. This loop had a lot of different types of flowers as well. Most of this area is not trampled and is isolated. I saw White and traditional columbine, shooting star (columbine), lupine, Elephant Head, Marsh Marigold, Bluebell and Fireweed. I was hoping to see some flowers along the stream but there were not any. The higher up areas were not very good based on several I spoke to so I did not go up to Rustler and beyond.
Washington Gulch: When I started here there were primarily Sun flowers. As I drove the afternoon rain came so I did not do any shooting but scoped it out for the next time I go to CB. One person I talked to took a morning photo class and they took them to Sneezeweed trail head and they saw a lot of variety in very good conditions up to 1/2 mile into the hike.
Slate River: Did not go here and from what I heard, it was not very much activity.
Kebler Pass: A lot of activity with a lot around Apsen trees. I went there Saturday evening and Sunday morning and it was amazing see the light on the Aspens. This was with diffused lighting which made for some interesting shots. There were open areas of Columbine, Bluebell, Sneezeweed, Lupine as well as rare pink Lupine.
Lake Irwin: Not a lot around the lake but what a neat place. I did drive up to the top and found standalone Columbine which was nice. Did see paintbrush, Cow Parsnip, Lupine, etc. along the road to Lake Irwin. Approximately 1.1 to 1.7 miles into the 2 mile drive to the lake.
I spoke to a couple of pro's while there and they said that this week was good but with the rain that they are predicting this week it should open up a lot more for this coming up weekend. They said the higher elevations it has been too cold so they are late and may not be as good this year.
I was on the Grouse Creek and Meadow Mountain trails outside of Minturn, where I took this picture. Several long-time locals I spoke to on the trail all said the same thing. They had never seen this many species all blooming at once and in such abundance. I'm a flower ignoramus, but I'm fairly certain about reporting Penstemon, Paintbrush, Thistle, Wild Geranium (????), those tall yellow daisy-lookin' things, Clover, a few wild Roses (by the creek on Meadow Mtn only), and lots and lots more that I couldn't begin to identify. In fact, the only species that I did not see there was Columbine.
There are plenty of those, however, along the roadside and trails a few miles up in Sylvan Lake State Park near Eagle. My first visit there, and what an amazing place. I was in the Yeoman Park (I think it's called) campground area. The Columbine were fairly abundant in that area, as well as paintbrush, and more stuff that I can't identify. Tip: do NOT forget to put on insect repellent if you go up there!
I wish I could make a more knowledgeable report--feel free to email me if there are any questions.
Lake Irwin-I was pretty disappointed here. I usually like to shoot the meadows and creek downstream from the dam near the 2 waterfalls and there just wasn't much going on. Lots of green buds so it could be good in a week or so.
Kebler-I did most of my shooting in this area and found lots of lupines. Also had a lot of fun with the ferns and cow parsnips in the aspen groves west of horse park. I was lucky enough to see a bear and 2 cubs on the second big curve coming down the west side of Kebler but they were pretty much on the move by the time I switched lenses so mostly what I got were fuzzygraphs. Note to self: When driving between locations keep the tele on the camera, not the wide angle.
Ohio Pass road-Some nice groupings of columbines along the road about 2 miles south of Kebler.
Mostly I was amazed by how the prairies have EXPLODED with wildflowers. Hwy 24 between C-Springs and Buena Vista is freakin incredible. By far the largest groupings of flowers I saw. Check out the area around mm 258. It's worth the trip.
You sure can, Steve.
There's one section of the road that hugs the hillside with a steep dropoff on the other side.
Wide wheelbases are not encouraged!
Sorry it took so long to reply.
http://rockymountaincichlids.com/webpics/snowy-range.jpg
Jack
Lower down, the "wetlands" flowers are coming along nicely; lots of future still left in the lower meadows.
Yankee Boy at peak, but probably diminishing within a week.
Great stuff, Bryan!! Thanks for posting!!!
Brainard area / Isabella Lake - decent pockets of flowers on the trail once you get past Long Lake. Some a bit past prime down lower. Once you get to Isabella Lake, the flowers are still pretty good near the streams. There is about to be a massive bloom of those tall, yellow flowers that have a smaller bloom, but are clustered together. Some type of Yellow Arnica maybe? Here is a pic of what's to come. Lots of these getting ready to pop around the lake.
Once the rain started, I went over to the Mayflower Gulch road and drove up to the mine ruins. The open meadows near the mining structures are past prime for the most part, but there are some pockets of paintbrush. Also some decent pockets of flowers on the surrounding hillsides close to the road.
Here is one of the better areas (after the first band of rain had cleared out) but when you get really close to the flowers, you can see they are starting to lose petals, etc. Not too bad overall though.
Monday/Tuesday - Owl Creek/Wetterhorn Basin - Some nice fields of mostly paintbrush and arnica in the basin. That place is huge so there were lots of comp opportunities until the rain/lightning chases you away!
Wednesday/Thursday - Porphyry Basin - A few parry primrose in the wet areas, starting to go past peak. Some kings crown, paintbrush several other varieties along the edge of Bullion King Lake.
Friday - Clear Lake - By FAR the best location I went to for flowers. Some nice concentrations of white paintbrush, alpine sunflower and bistort on the hillsides above the lake. Red paintbrush, chiming bells & some other types along the outlet below the lake. The road below the lake was the best place to find healthy-looking columbine and tons of other varieties right along the roadside. They are best above the lookout toward Ice Lake Basin.
Friday/Saturday - Stony Pass - Some of the usual paintbrush concentrations on the east side, not the best I've seen but not bad either. After waiting for an almost endless string of storms to pass, I climbed the side of Green Mountain on the west side of the pass looking for columbine. There were a few there but they are starting to look pretty tattered by the elements.
Are there any wildflower opportunities up there, or is it too late?
The Lower Ice Lakes Basin area is past prime overall. I was still able to find some nice spots around the stream coming down from the waterfalls on the left side of the basin. The orange paintbrush and chiming bells (? - again, I am not good at wildflower ID) were prolific and in good condition. The corn lilies are way past prime, as are the cow parsnips. The Upper Ice Lake Basin was amazing. It was stormy, so we decided not to camp in the upper basin but I did get in one full morning of photography and had more than enough to fill the time. The area around the smaller lake right above Upper Ice Lake was full of flowers, too. Overall, the upper basin will probably be in great condition for at least another week.
My in-laws live south of Durango, and we've been visiting this week. I wanted to head to the mountains at least once, so yesterday afternoon I drove up to Clear Lake to see if anything remained of what Joshua and Sarah noted.
The blooms are definitely past peak, although there are still a lot of them. There were opportunities to wiggle into spots that still looked good, but it takes some effort to find them. I'll have to get back home before I can see if I'm happy with anything I took (unfortunately it was rainy and windy while I was there).