At the end of a paved trail was a rocky hill that we were apparently allowed to climb. So we did.
A marker at the top...
... listed all the surrounding peaks.
Looking back at the Tundra Communities Trail
We slowly made our way back the way we had come.
A harsh environment...
... and yet life finds a way.
Many alpine plants contain anthocyanin, a chemical 'antifreeze' that converts sunlight into heat. Plant hairs also reduce the loss of heat and moister and help protect from the intense ultraviolet radiation that is twice what it is as sea level.
Alpine Avens
Pinnateleaf Daisy
Bistort
The very tiny Moss Campion. Staying small and low to the ground helps the plants survive. Winds may be 30 miles per hour at eye level but only 3 miles per hour near your feet.
These tiny plants have roots that penetrate 4 - 5 feet down!
Heartbreaking... someone picked all these flowers and then just discarded them.
Marmot
A pika and a marmot
Mom and baby have lots to say to each other!
Baby wins!
Two more babies emerge from the rocks to snuggle with their mom.
Back at the car, we took a quick look at the bighorn sheep again. They had all settled down for a rest in front of the stellar mountain backdrop.
Alpine lakes
Next stop... the Alpine Visitor Center!
We first wandered around the many interesting exhibits, then headed outside for a short (gasping) hike up the hill.
At 11,796 feet, the reduced oxygen level is QUITE noticeable.
Construction on Trail Ridge Road began in 1926. Crews could only work 4 months of the year. It was completed in 1932. The road is closed in the fall and reopened in the spring. It takes crews 6 weeks to reopen it, plowing through drifts that are sometimes as high as 35 feet! Since snow can fall all year (even in summer), the road can be temporarily closed at any time. (visitor center photo)
A sample plant root
A coyote tries to make a lunch of an unsuspecting pika.
Outside was a viewpoint overlooking the valley.
This is actually a glacial cirque. Cirques are the birthplace of glaciers. Several times during the last 2 million years, snow accumulated to hundreds of feet deep at the top of this valley. The tremendous weight caused the mass to move slowly down the valley, thereby giving birth to a glacier. As it crept down the mountain, it carved out this bowl-shaped cirque, leaving steep headwalls and a broad U-shaped valley.
The start of a cirque
The Old Fall River Road was built by convicts and hired laborers in the 1920's. Until 1932, it was the only motor route across Rocky Mountain National Park. It was filled with steep grades, narrow lanes, hairpin curves and an ascent of over 3,000 feet.
Circa 1928. Wow, that's a lot of folks in that car!
We began the steep (albeit relatively short) hike to the top of the neighboring hill. There were lots of informative plant signs to help us identify the various flora.
Note the steep slope of the terrain!
Looking back, the cirque was much more obvious now.
Fendler Sandwort
Alpine Thistle
Stonecrop
Rocky Mountain Sagewort
Such thick roots for such a tiny little plant!
Again, an example of the callous disregard for the delicate life up here
Eskers are trail castings. When the ground is frozen in winter, animals (such as voles and pocket gophers) make tunnels through the snow and line them with dirt. When the snow melts, the dirt drops and forms an above-ground network of odd trails.... or eskers, as the official name is apparently. Esker is a geological term, referring to the ridge of coarse gravel dropped by glacial rivers. Apparently old gopher eskers look very similar to glacier eskers (as seen from very high up).
Heading back down
