Welcome to this week’s edition of Nature Friday where we join our hosts, Rosy and Sunny from Adventures of the LLB Gang. Don’t forget to click on the link to see what others have shared. Elsa here with the latest scenes from around the Ranch. I’ll be joined by the House Pony who, as it turned out, had a successful batch of visits at the hospital. There may be hope for that lummox yet.
Wilson: {ignoring the snark} Hello, mates. Like my sister said, we’re here to share slices of nature we’ve seen. As Mum mentioned in our last Nature Friday post, the plan was to take in some leaf peeping over last weekend. Along with 87,000 of our closest city friends {sarcasm}. You probably saw the photo Mum posted earlier this week. In Mum’s voice, “what. a. cluster.” It was a good thing she was with good friends otherwise she may not have survived without making a fuss. After days of all the local TV stations telling everyone to get out and see the glorious colors on what was billed as prime leaf viewing, guess everyone heeded the advice because there were thousands of them lined up for miles and miles. Mum had never seen as many Teslas and trucks, some of whom got their side mirrors ripped off when they stupidly carelessly parked on the road to the summit of Guanella Pass. Bloody fools!
As you can see, it was quite the line heading back toward Denver. They were told there were hundreds of cars ahead of them and it took 3 hours to drive a mere 3 miles. But it was a gorgeous day and all they could do was sit in queue and ooh and aww at the beautiful changing colors.
Elsa: So tell me more about this Guanella Pass. I know Mom knew a bit about it but I’m not familiar.
Wilson: As it happens, I have some interesting info about Guanella Pass which is located about 56 miles west of Denver in the Front Range in southwestern Clear Creek County, near Georgetown. It was named after long-time road supervisor and commissioner, Byron Guanella.
The pass provides a route between Georgetown in the valley of Clear Creek to the north and Grant in the valley of Geneva Creek, a tributary of the North Fork South Platte River, to the south. The pass is traversed by the Guanella Pass Scenic Byway. The road provides a link between Interstate 70 to the north and U.S. Highway 285 to the south. [source: Wikipedia]
Elsa: Hmm…learn something new every day. What’s the scoop on the trees and why are they so special?
Wilson: Glad you asked. Colorado is known for its Aspen trees (also known as quaking aspens). They are native to colder climates which is one reason they do well in this state. Did you know that Colorado averages the highest number of peaks in the lower 48 states and has more thicker concentrations of these trees than anywhere else in the U.S. They do well in Colorado because of their ability to sprout new growth after large wildfires – of which there have been many in recent years. It is usually the first tree species to re-colonize a burn area. Aspens however are more fire resistant than other native trees such as the various kinds of evergreen trees. Aspens have a unique ability to the photosynthesis process in the white bark, while most trees carry out this process in their leaves. That means in winter once the leaves have fallen and snow begins to fall, the tree continues to produce sugar for energy which helps provide a food source for deer, elk and other animals. And finally, aspen trees cluster closely together because they clone themselves as roots sprout new trees and share an identical genetic makeup, making them extremely large organisms. Even though there may be multiple clones in an aspen grove, the grove’s leaves turn at the same time.
Elsa: Hmmm, you don’t say? I knew they were one of the largest organisms in nature but didn’t know the part about genetic makeup turning the leaves at the same time. So what else you got?
Wilson: What I got is some great photos while everyone waited to get through the gridlock. While Colorado is known for its bright ribbons of gold, Mum and her friends managed to see some spots of orange and red. Check out this gallery of pics:
Elsa: Gosh, no wonder there were so many people catching glimpses of those trees and shrubs. You gotta love the humor of the locals with that sign. Mom initially laughed but after waiting 3 hours to reach US 285 to head back to Denver, she kinda lost her humor. She said she’s never seen it that congested before.
Wilson: Can you blame her? Everyone was jonesing for their ‘Instagram’ moment and not really appreciating the beauty of nature. She was irritated that too many people were looking down at their devices rather than enjoying the scenery. How is it that people watch TikTok instead of enjoying being in Nature? I just don’t get it.
Elsa: There are so many reasons to not be able to understand humans and what they seem to value. I mean you and I would be running around sniffing up a storm and enjoying it all.
Wilson: Seems like a wasted opportunity. I do have one more local image to share…some mutant squash Mum and I encountered on our walk the other day. I thought it was a starfish at first.
Elsa: You’re right, that is weird. For the record, I’m not eating that.
Wilson: Oh no…me neither. Can you believe it? Me not wanting to eat something. That has to be a first.
Elsa: Egad, Mooommm, Wilson must be sick, he didn’t want to eat that squash!!
Wilson: Oh come on…it’s not that unusual.
Elsa: Ha! Don’t make me laugh. So…anything else you want to share?
Wilson: Well no more beautiful changing leaves but I did want to let everyone know that even though it was delayed a bit following a deathmatch between a couple of contestants which messed up the bracket, it’s Fat Bear Week. You can vote here.
Elsa: Oh for crying out loud…you’re promoting Fat Bear Week {paw smacks forehead}? This is not some sleazy tabloid, dude.
Wilson: I’m quite serious. Don’t forget to vote for your favorite Alaskan bear. I’m rooting that 128 Grazer will repeat.
Elsa: Oh jeez. Forget voting for a fat bear. Instead, enjoy this week’s Halloween scene from just around the corner from the Ranch. A skellie watchdog is better than some old fat bear. Have a great weekend and enjoy walking about in nature. Get out there and really savor it.
Wilson: Savor? Is there food somewhere I don’t know about?
Elsa: Oh for heaven’s sake…I just can’t. Have a great weekend enjoying nature.
Live, love bark! 🐾
Autumm iss speck-taculur where youss are Wilson an Elsa!!! That sure was sum line-up!!!! Mee-yow wow!
~~head rubss~~BellaDharma~~ an (((hugss))) BellaSita Mum
Thanks…glad you liked it!
*Giggles* you two just crease me up! Those Trees were very pretty though xoxo Little Miss Titch
Many thanks. It’s always interesting around the Ranch with these two.
The Halloween decorations are just starting to appear around here. We haven’t had rain in several weeks so it is very dry and lots of trees are dropping their green leaves because of it, rather sad. It’s going to be an odd fall we think.
We share your thoughts about fall. The city is quite dry and this morning’s walk had a breeze that was blowing leaves to the ground. There’s no moisture in the forecast for the next week either which is starting to become concerning. Guess we just have to ride it out. Today will be a toasty day and likely another record-setter. Sigh. Have a good weekend. Scritches to Madison-hope she’s feeling better.
Like us, you live in a beautiful part of the world. But I agree, the view is definitely not worth the line of waiting cars.
Xena: Do you think those squash are alive and little monsters? Do you think they will come after you when you least suspect it? *shiver*
Chia: Bears fighting to the death? Mom! Click that link!
Tee hee…Chia…you’re a girl after my own heart. Never fear sweet Xena…those squash won’t harm you.
Yeah, the view was truly something but the traffic was just like the city. I go to the mountains to get away from that. Oy. But I did learn a valuable lesson…never go to the mountains on the weekend! 😉 Have a great weekend.
The colors are indeed gorgeous. We don’t get much of that here in Texas. Most trees stay green and some get brownish leaves but it is not very colorful. Three hours to go three miles is terrible. However, today it took me 50 minutes to go 100 yards. I was dropping off my daughter at DFW (Dallas Fort Worth) airport and the traffic at terminal C was stuck. We moved 2 yards per minute, much slower than a turtle. I never found out what the problem was, but it is not an intelliegently organized airport. Maybe that’s all it was and a bad day.
Thank you. Oh gosh, that airport run sounds perfectly awful. It’s so frustrating when you’re stuck like that and can’t escape the bad spot. Hope the weekend gets better.
Thank you for sharing such a lovely landscaoe
Our pleasure-thanks for swinging by. Hope you have a lovely weekend.
Java Bean: “Ayyy, three hours to go three miles?! Are you sure that wasn’t the 5 here in California?”
You’re right, now that you mentioned it, it does kind of sound a bit like the 5! Awk…
Beautiful photos. I like the ghourds. We grew some white ones one year shaped like that we called ghost ghourds.
Thanks. Those gourds were just to fascinating. We’d never seen anything quite like them before. Have a good weekend.
Three hours to go three miles? Ugh, what a nightmare. At least you had good company. 😉
Yup. It was completely miserable only made tolerable by the friends.
Another great walkabout/talkabout by the dynamic duo.
You guys are right about humans. Why is it they miss the great ‘moments’ they’re capturing on a camera? Don’t they realize how much gets lost in the translation when you snap and scoot? Now if you take a picture, nothing wrong with that, but a lot of peeps just want the pic and don’t even bother standing around. What’s up with that?!
That IS a funky looking squash and yes, I thought it was a starfish too.
Have a most excellent weekend kids
Thanks, Marc-you’re too kind. It’s a daily occurrence in the city to see people looking down at their device, but in that beautiful scenery, you just have to shake your head. It’s all kinds of wrong. Here’s hoping your weekend is most splendid.
And here’s hoping the traffic gets less crazy, but I guess that’s gonna depend on the weather, LOL.
Yeah, it’s why I run in an empty parking lot at a local college. Because I refuse to run ANYWHERE near moving vehicles these days. People are doing everything BUT driving.
You have a great one as well mama
Between everyone and their crazy driving habits and their addiction to their devices, I see the fiber of humanity slowly unravel. It’s troubling for sure. Sheesh, I feel like the old geezer on the front porch, clenched fist, screaming “get off my lawn!” anymore. Sigh. I’d like to be gracious and kind but people make me crazy with their lack of consideration. The rules are meant for everyone, not just the privileged. Stay safe on the road, good sir.
It creeps me out so I try never to go too close to moving vehicles because nope.
I rather like the idea of telling people to get off my lawn, LOL. Man, I would be a mean old bastid!
Thank you mama
Sorry Marco…beat you to it. I already AM a mean ole bastid or the female version of it. LOL
I don’t think so. You’re a perfect combination of smarts and snark. And to anyone who doesn’t like it? Tough!
You’re so kind. Thank you!
🙂
The trees are sure beautiful! None of ours have changed color yet, but then again most of the trees got knocked down recently. Hey, it looks like you found an Octopus Squash! Have a fun weekend!!!
Thanks, Terry. Aspens are really something special. All that gold against a bluebird colored sky seems like paradise. That squash was totally weird. LOur Mom walked around it for several moments, trying to figure it out. She just kept saying “no, nada, nope.” LOL Have a good weekend.
I enjoyed hearing about the Aspens. I was totally impressed by them on a visit to (Duh) Aspen. We were in the mountains on horse back and they were beautiful. Sad about all the tourists showing up with phones in hand. Would be wonderful just to get out and inhale the beauty. Thanks for the tour.
As always, thanks for joining us, John. In our humble opinion, it’s hard to find anything as heavenly as a ride in the aspens, enjoying clear air, sunshine and the astonishing beauty of the mountains.
I felt the same when I did it. There were some pretty narrow passages but it was certainly fun.
Gorgeous photos……Teddy wants to enter the FAT BEAR contest – I’ve tried to explain that he doesn’t qualify (in the bear department….the fat department he’s got covered). Love those squash from Mars. They kinda look like yellow octopi (or whatever the plural of octopus is) with their long arms whacked off. Gee – that sounds gross! OOPS. Around here this time of year everybody goes up to Skyline Drive and the Blue Ridge Parkway. Gorgeous views, pretty leaves, crowds galore. Fall is definitely falling!
Hugs, Pam
Bwahahahaha! Remember, Teddy’s not fat, he’s fluffy and we’d definitely vote for him. Have a beautiful autumn weekend.
WOW! Such beautiful fall color!!!
Thanks. Aspens are showy this time of year. Have a terrific weekend.
Cute skellies!! I had to smile at the line of cars, reminded me of Acadia last October. It was nice though.
thanks. Having lived here for over 40 years (gulp-where did the time go?), I’ve never seen more traffic and gridlock as last weekend. It was downright depressing. Have a skellie filled, fun weekend!
Great pictures! I remember those long lines of cars and motorcycles during fall foliage season. Might have contributed to that congestion ourselves, taking the sporty car out for a jaunt, LOL.
Thank you. Last weekend’s lines were worse than anything I’ve ever seen. Even locals were complaining and that’s bet they realized how much of their beautiful community got trashed by thoughtless tourists.
Elsa, I wonder what is wrong with humans every day! Its the million dollar question.
LOL Wilson about your appetite. 🙂
Love the color of leaves! Thanks for the photos and hope you all have a Pawsome weekend!
Thanks, Carolyn-it was pretty but oh my, the traffic was unreal. Hope you have a terrific weekend. And you’re so right…humans are strange-they make no sense to us doggos. And there is no explanation to explain Wilson’s appetite.
Have you ever thought of running for President Elsa? 😊
Now that’s a scary thought!
😂
So glad to hear all went well with Wilson’s hospital visits….but those traffic jams! And why can’t people just enjoy the scenery with their eyes!
Thanks. He was much better this go-round, thankfully. Most of the people who went up there could care less about the scenery-we think they just wanted something to post to social media. 😬 The newspaper had stories about how pitted out things were-trash and dog poop bags everywhere. I can’t imagine the locals like those visitors much. I honestly think it was so crowded they’ll institute a reservation system like they have for other areas in the state. The beauty of Colorado is going to be its downfall with only a finite number of people being able to enjoy it. Too many people here now!
I like the big spider web! I live near the Pocono Mountains in PA which is also known for foliage change. Columbus weekend is “the weekend” for that here (at least usually). I won’t go near it because of all the crazies. Loved the pumpkins? squash? Whatevers?
Thanks, Kate. Talk about unusual looking squash-we’d never seen anything like it before. Mom vowed to just walk the neighborhood to see the leaves change rather than deal with all the traffic and chaos again. There have been loads of stories on the news saying how bad it has been. Even some of the locals are over the excess amount of visitors trashing their beautiful area. People can be such jerks. Enjoy the autumn foliage.
Three hours for three miles? Oh. Em. Gee…. That said, the photos you captured are gasp-worthy.
Yay! The Skellies are back!
Have a marvellous weekend to you all!
Thanks. You got that right-it was a real cluster. Mom said she’s never going to the high country on the weekend again! Have a fabulous weekend!
Clusterf…. 😉 No kidding. Especially since you don’t HAVE to go on the weekend. What was she thinking?
It was their wedding anniversary and they always go celebrate checking out the colors. We managed to live through it but we all learned a valuable lesson. 😉
Ahhh… That’s a different story. And yes, lesson learned!
My goodness, your bloggie was full of beauty and facts that mom here in TN enjoyed. She knows she’ll never get there.
Bloggie is what I meant to type. Katie is trying to get on the keyboard again..
Giggle…go Katie, go! No worries, Mom fixed it.
Thank you, Carole. Never say never 😉 But glad you enjoyed a spot of our autumn colors.
Beautiful fall leaf photos, but I love that Skellie dog especially! I’d love one of those on our front porch for Halloween. With our three lunatics barking inside and a dog skeleton on the front porch it would be nice and confusing to folks.
It’s a new scene this year and made our Mom smile when she saw it. She wondered what the UPS guy thought of it. 😆 It’s clever but not overdone like some displays (you’ll see them later in the month-oh my goodness-way too much going on!) You’d need a separate storage shed for the rest of the year just to house them! Have a great weekend.
I have pet sitting clients who go all out decorating for each holiday…way too much work, and can’t imagine where some store everything. Simple, understated is perfect for me.
Us too. There’s one house that has 20 life sized skellies but dozens of critter skellies and 2 of the giant colossus ones. They dress and repose them weekly too. Way too much trouble and this year it seems way too cluttered. Have a great weekend!