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Mount Evans - Alpine Flowers

Tundra . . . it elicits images of barren landscapes, inhospitable to life . . . not so much.
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More Alpine Springbeauty in a rocky and grassy setting.
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More Alpine Springbeauty in a rocky and grassy setting.

Mount EvansColorado SceneryMountain SceneryAlpine flowersAlpine Springbeauty PlantClaytonia megarhiza

  • More Alpine Springbeauty in a rocky and grassy setting.
  • Springbeauty is a name that fits. <br /> <br /> I do like the combination of rocks, lichen, and alpine flowers . . . it's like a miniature magical world of colors and textures.
  • You would think I'd get tired of it, but each one presents its own unique interpretation of setting, colors, and textures.
  • My scenery album showed a lot of rocks . . . what perhaps was not evident is what's between those rocks.
  • The tundra is very fragile . . . I took great care to walk only on the rocks, and even then, those without much lichen on them.
  • I could wonder around these places for hours . . .
  • . . . mostly because every few feet I would stop and snap a picture.
  • By far the most surprising and striking are the Alpine Forget-Me-Not Flowers, Eritrichium nanum. Your eyes are drawn to them both for their delicate beauty, and because the vivid blue seems out of place in this harsh environment.
  • Whether the center of attention, or as an accent for the lichen and rocks, the Forget-Me-Not Flowers are welcome additions to any photo.
  • Dwarf clover, Springbeauty, Forget-Me-Nots, and more, all in a very small and visually pleasing area.
  • Eventually one just runs out of words, and is stuck admiring in silence.
  • And yes, the rocks and lichen are also an interesting visual treat.
  • Every so often I would look up . . . I wanted to tell someone "Look at this!!" . . . but people seemed oblivious to what was underfoot.
  • Hence the pictures, you see . . . you see?
  • A rare unpolished Alpine Diamond. Now, that's a rock!!
  • Many of these shots were taken while I had ventured far from the car. I had seen a line of photographers, tripods all set up, taking pictures of something. It took me a bit to get there and discover they were photographing Mountain Goats (the subjects of a future post).<br /> <br /> I was gone for a lengthy while, and it speaks to the patience my wife has to indulge my hobby and propensity for getting distracted by damn near anything I see.
  • Like I said, one could get lost even when only 40-50 feet from the car . . .
  • These are either Red Stonecrop flowers, or King's Crown flowers. Depending which reference site I use, I could make the case for either name.
  • One of the difficulties with identifying some of these flowers is that the places I used all have slightly different photos of them. I don't know if that is the result of catching the flowers at different flowering stages, or if it's the lighting, or what . . . whatever the reason, if any reader catches a mistake, please let me know.
  • But whatever they are, even if identified incorrectly, one can still enjoy what they look like.
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