Hiking to Fern Lake



Albert the Squirrel - He introduced himself after I incorrectly identified him
as an Albert's Squirrel. I chat with animals often when hiking alone...



Me, halfway up the mountain at Fern Falls.



At Fern Lake elevation 9,500 ';  finally recovering from the Texas heat. I am standing on a bridge over the
lake's outlet stream, you can't see the actual lake very well, but it was still totally frozen! I really was
looking forward to rest and maybe a little painting at the lake, but then I heard thunder, clouds gathered,
the temperature dropped and I remembered that I was four miles and 1,500' above my car - and that I
had seen cougar poop on my way up.




Ptarmigan #1 - I saw her on the way up. The ptarmigan is the smallest
member of the grouse family. These guys were on my "must see" list for
RMNP, so I was estatic to see one, let alone two!



Ptarmigan #2: This guy desperately wanted to have his picture taken. When I saw him, he jumped
onto the boulder, fanned his tail and inflated his balloons. Ptarmigans are white in the winter and
are the only bird that does not migrate away from the Alpine Zone to avoid the cold. They have
feather-lined nostrils to warm the air they breathe.

Mysterious Phenomena: I found this flower shaped hole in a boulder
on my way down. It was 3-4" across and at least 4" deep. I think the
stone was granite. Please comment with your theories on its origin.

Wild Clematis? found on vines growing trailside, please comment if you can identify...

After yesterday's unrully crowds, I was ready to get off the pavement and away from humanity. I liked the looks of the Fern Lake area on the map, several little lakes on streams dotted with waterfalls. The lower part of the trail, up to a place called The Pool was a little crowded but from then on it was just traveled enough to feel alone but not Alone. Apparently plastic bottle wielding foreigners and stone chucking little girls don't hike above 8,500 feet!

To the Top of the World



Crossing a snowpack on the Tundra Communities trail




This ridge was incredibly windy - a sign said hurricane force winds are not uncommon here.




I wasn't expecting this much snow in June!




Beetle on ice.




Marmot (at lower left) in his dizzying home.

 I've never been to Rocky Mountain National Park, but I was really excited to see the tundra. So my first goal was to drive as high as I could until I had to stop.

Rocky Mountain National Park - 2011 Summer Kickoff!

Lunch stop on a rocky overlook.

Three pines growing from the craig.

A friendly chipmunk panhandling at a scenic overlook.

A handsome Clark's Nutcracker gives me a thoughtful glance.

Jeff is taking a photography course in Boulder, CO so I am entertaining myself with a week of exploration in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Rocky Times in RMNP

After the drive down from 12,000 feet, I decided to go to Horseshoe Park to see the waterfall at the Alluvial Fan. I stopped at a valley overlook. As I enjoyed the view a large (foreign) family swarmed over the rocks with shrieking children. As I watched, one of the mothers, chatting with another mom, casually tossed her empty water bottle to the ground. So I casually returned it to her saying, "Please don't litter in our National Parks - it is RUDE!"
I'm not sure which ticked me off more, the litterbug or the episode that followed at the waterfall. I continue on to the Alluvial Fan and walk the trail up to the fall. As I'm lining up a nice shot through the catkins on the willow, a baseball-sized rock hits my hand - hard. Before I can process what happened, another stone whizzes past my head. At that point, I snap out of it, "S%@#! STOP! WHO THREW THAT!" I look up above just in time to see a wide-eyed dad whisking his little girl away while stammering an appology.


That's the Litterbug with back turned on the left. If you
see her again be sure to point out the nearest recycle bin.



A forest of mini daisies growing on the Alluvial Fan. 

A sure sign of Spring!



Amber in the making, a jewel of sap rolls down one of the many beetle-killed trees in the park.



The waterfall where I was "stoned."

National Parks can be dangerous places, and it's not the wild animals I'm talking about.

The Summer Cut

Here is Gohan's cool summer cut. Lots of laughs! Duke did not
recognize him when he saw him and there was a lot of barking and
growling coming from Duke. Gohan ignored him.

Foyer to the Catio

I'm posting this so you can see how the cats come and go through the
fireplace clean out. The fireplace clean out door is used on the side
of the box and there are also two cat flap doors to keep bugs and
draft out.

A Catio Post for Lexi

I finished everything on the catio so far except for staining it. This
post is for you Lexi, hope you enjoy it!

Catio Under Construction

Here are Aaron and Jennifer-my indispensable Cat Coop construction crew. Aaron manned the circular saw and Jennifer provided logistics and quality control. By the end of Saturday we had the structure built and the hardware cloth stapled on. On Sunday I made the two doors on my own which involved conquering my fear of the circular saw. It really wasn't that bad. Yesterday I added sand over a bed of lava rock for drainage on the left side and today I added sod so the kitties will have some grass to chomp on and frolic in. Now I just have to build the 'hallway' to the fireplace cleanout, build perches and stain the whole thing.

The Cat Garden

This is the future site of the "Catio" (cat patio or cat garden). The cats will enter and exit through the fireplace cleanout. It is the little door at the right. I had to remove hydrangia, oleander and nandina bushes - all are poisonous to cats.

DUET: Illustration Friday