Summer speeding up as water flows from snow above.
Thunderstorms loom and the sun shines bright as July is ushered in.
Tag: mountains
Without a sound
As silently as the sun comes up it goes down.
Mr Freeze
We saw this guy while out walking on cold foggy morning. He looks charming enough but a gut feeling told me to not get so close that he could wrap his frosty arms around you. I kept him at camera length and admired his beauty and thanked him for allowing us to take a photo.
Grand Teton National Park, WY.
Cracked
I think there is a geology lesson, or three, to be learned here. Looking out towards the Absaroka mountains along the backbone of earth cracked open from the forces within.
On the talus slope
I never get disappointed when I hear the little chirp of a Pika moving about on the talus slopes. Always spotting us before we spot them. usually sitting still and looking out into their environment then scurrying off to collect plants for winter larder. The Pika is yet another species threaten by climate change and the focus of this short video in Smithsonian Magazine.
It is encouraging that some Pika may be showing behavior adaptation to a loss of habitat resulting from climate change but as the authors of a recent study concludes “while many species have a clear capacity to modulate behavior in relation to variations in climate parameters,much remains to be learned about the trade-offs, fitness implications, and limitations of behavioral flexibility in the context of novel climate dynamics.”
I sure hope these little guys are able to adapt to the new reality imposed upon them by our species. A walk on the talus slopes without them would be a lonely walk indeed.
Layers
Layers of color in a layered land. Northern Colorado near the Wyoming Border.
West Elks
Looking out into the West Elk WIlderness in central Colorado.
Dip a toe in
Go ahead…dip a toe in it’s summer.
Layered Lands
From marsh shrubs to sagebrush to pine forest to snow-covered peaks. A wide open landscape sure helps bring peace and quiet to a busy brain. Looking out from the marshlands at Red Rocks National Wildlife Refuge in Montana.
Peeking Out
Snow on the ground but sun in the sky. A little Pika peeking out from behind the rocks and surveying his domain as the seasons start to change.
