The Silent Screams of Dying Trees

Aug 17, 2007

Of course there is still great beauty in the park, and always will be. Some areas are relatively untouched for now.

^ But reminders of tree death are everywhere.

Apparently the increased sunlight to the forest floor improves the forage for elk, who certainly seem to be thriving - and completely unafraid of all the humans stopping to take pictures of them.

^ This was taken back on Trail Ridge Road, above the tree line, as we returned home in the evening. Very reminiscent of the high Alpine terrain in many parts of Italy - but this is higher.

As for our hike... it took us three and a half hours to cover six and a half miles - not "easy" by any definition of mine! My knees and hips were screaming, although, fortunately, the steeper path was on the way up.

On the way home we stopped in Estes Park for dinner. I had buffalo burger - bison is ranched for meat in this area, and widely available, even in the Sun cafeteria. It's a flavorful meat, and supposedly healthier than cow beef. We also had a couple of excellent local wheat beer micro-brews.

Rocky Mountain National Park 1, 2, 3