Golden, Grey and Beautiful...

Early in the morning, we left home and after a while reached our destination - Golden Gate Canyon Park... The colors were changing in Denver, and we hoped to find some gold nuggets in the mountains too...

 

When time flows slowly...

Well, believe it or not, fall is here. At the end of September, we finally have some cooler nights and mornings and... unbelievable... more and more dried leaves cover the ground and crunch under your feet...

 

Labor Day Lift Off

Sometimes you have to wake up really early if you want to see something interesting. Like 3 AM early :) And then you need to drive for over an hour to get there... And all you can see at this point is complete darkness... And, surprisingly, you will be surrounded by hundreds of people waiting for something to take off. What am I talking about? Colorado Springs Hot Air Balloon Festival - Labor Day Lift Off!

 

I Never Promised You A Rose Garden

But what if I find one and go there? Should I expect to find some blooms in the middle of September? Actually, I would expect to find a lot of blooming roses there...

 

Saturday in the mountains

This is one of my favorite routes when I want to go to the mountains without driving too far. Taking Squaw Pass Road all the way from Evergreen to Echo Lake will refresh you and recharge your batteries.

 

La Vie en rose

Des yeux qui font baisser les miens
Un rire qui se perd sur sa bouche
Voilà le portrait sans retouche
De l'homme auquel j'appartiens

 

Time to admire...

Just imagine something... You wake up in the morning and go for a walk... just around the block, or perhaps to see what flowers are blooming in the Denver Botanic Garden. Now you move slowly along the trail, looking for flowers and thinking...

 

Burning Bear Trail

This hike had been on my list to do for quite a while. So that morning I woke up and knew I wanted to do it now. I didn't think twice, grabbed my backpack, threw it in the trunk, and headed toward Grant. It was a beautiful morning with almost no traffic, so after an hour or so I turned onto Guanella Pass Road and soon pulled into the parking lot near the trailhead. Well... 8 a.m. in the mountains meant 49°F and... it was chilly! But the views of the distant ridges were simply outstanding! So I didn't think about the temperature for long, grabbed my gear, and headed toward the trail.

 

In Yellow Light...

I believe every season has its favorite flower color. And the closer we get to fall, the more yellow flowers seem to pop up everywhere. Starting around midsummer, yellow becomes one of the dominant colors in the gardens. Or maybe I'm simply imagining it... Maybe it's just my eyes becoming more sensitive to yellow.

 

Walking in circles...

I had this strange dream the other night...
I was wandering around the Denver Botanic Garden looking for the perfect flower.
The problem was...
I had absolutely no idea what the perfect flower was.
I mean, what flower should I call "perfect" and finally end my search?
I had no idea.
So I kept walking in circles, with this strange feeling that I would simply know when I found it. I would see it... and somehow understand.

Well, this one wasn't it. And don't ask me why.

 

Easy morning

The heat dome that brought us days of toasty temperatures finally gave us a break this Tuesday. The morning temperature was just below 60°F, and the forecast promised a pleasant, even cool, day ahead. In fact, the overnight low was well below average and even set a record low for the date. It was a welcome change, even if it would last only a couple of days. And I knew the perfect place to spend a few hours outdoors - wandering along the creek at Lair O' the Bear Park.

 

Once upon a time...

Once upon a time... 

...the queen bee woke up one morning and decided that today was the day. The day she had been dreaming about for a long, long time. The day she would finally leave the hive and see this beautiful world beyond it.

 

In the air... on the ground... in the water...

Whoosh... This cormorant flew way too low over my head and made my jump! On the other hand - it was quite an encounter, and I decided to stay a little longer and watch the birds maneuvering through the sky...

 

Water blooms...

The Monet Pond in the Denver Botanic Garden has never looked more beautiful than it does this summer. Water lilies and lotuses are in full bloom, and they look absolutely stunning. So... let's take a slow walk around the pond and simply admire the blooms, shall we?

 

Misty flowers...

Last Sunday I entered the Denver Botanic Garden and headed straight for the Monet Pond, ignoring all the flowers along the way. I wanted to check on lotus... I was hoping it would be in bloom. And I wasn't disappointed. Not at all! Because the lotus was wide open, basking in the bright morning sunshine...

 

Wild flowers... wild birds...

I really enjoy visiting the Denver Botanic Gardens and watching the flowers change from week to week. It's always such a peaceful and relaxing way to spend a morning, and it's close to home, too :) What many people don't realize is that the Denver Botanic Gardens actually has two locations. As much as I love the York Street gardens, once or twice a year I make a trip to the Chatfield Farms location. It's a little farther away and the experience is completely different (it has nothing to do with a distance though). While the York Street gardens feature one of North America's largest collections of plants from cold temperate climates around the world, Chatfield Farms is known for showcasing plants native to Colorado.

 

One gem. Many facets.

You know, I've done it many times before - dedicating an entire post to just one flower... For some reason (and I honestly have no idea why), it usually ended up being about yellow flowers. You can check them out here - One flower show..., or here - Sunny day... Sunflower day..., or here - One flower show. Code yellow.. So, if I'm going to do it again, maybe it's time to choose a flower that comes in a whole palette of colors. What do you think? And..well... I know I've already showcased water lilies quite a bit over the past few weeks, but they have been absolutely spectacular in the Denver Botanic Garden this year. They're simply impossible to walk past without stopping. So let's begin early in the morning, when the flowers are just beginning to open...

Blooming Pond

The Monet Pond in the Denver Botanic Garden has definitely become one of my favorite places this year. There are so many water lilies! Just look at these leaves... they're almost as colorful as the flowers themselves.

 

What do we do...

What do we do with the drunken sailor?
What do we do with the drunken sailor?
What do we do with the drunken sailor?

Early in the morning!

Way hay and up she rises, 

Way hay and up she rises, 

Way hay and up she rises, 

Early in the morning!

Oops, wrong start! Let's try it again... 

What do we do when we have a day off and it happens to be a Tuesday? Obviously... we wake up early, have a quick breakfast, and drive forty minutes through the morning traffic to reach a trailhead. Not just any trailhead, but the Morrison trailhead of Mount Falcon Park. I hiked this trail a couple of years ago and decided it was time to do it again. Right from the start, the views were stunning, and I had a really good feeling about the day ahead.

 

Water Lilies' Kingdom

I'm not sure I've ever seen so many water lilies in the ponds of the Denver Botanic Garden. There are always plenty of them, but this year feels truly special. And I know, I know... this yellow columbine isn't exactly a water lily :) But let's be honest, there are plenty of other flowers around, and it's hard to walk past them without stopping to snap a photo or two...

 

Bright morning on Barr Lake

What happens when you arrive somewhere before sunrise? Well... you wait... because without light, there is no photography :) But sometimes you can find something else to do while waiting. Perhaps have a bite to eat and fuel yourself for the hike ahead...

 

Sunday morning in Hudson Gardens

Hudson Gardens & Event Center is one of those places where you immediately feel at home. Flowers, ponds, and winding paths give it a cozy and welcoming atmosphere.

 

Quiet morning...

Well, there is nothing better than wandering through the Denver Botanic Garden before it is open to the general public...

 

Columbines in the gardens...

By the end of May, the Denver Botanic Garden is finally in full bloom. Everywhere you look there are bright colors, fresh foliage, and flowers competing for attention. It feels as if the entire garden suddenly woke up and decided to put on a show.

 

Blackbird day

The last time I visited Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge, I didn't see many birds (click here to refresh your memory - Water, trees, birds... animals too ;)). But there were plenty of blackbirds, and last Sunday I fully expected to find them there too ;) So, I started the morning with a walk around Lake Ladora…

 

All the different colors...

Sometimes I am not even sure why I do it again - getting up early and going to Denver Botanic Garden to take another dozen photographs of flowers. The same flowers. Again. But then I remember how beautiful they are in the morning light and... well... I know exactly why I want to do it again :)

 

Mostly irises...

One nice, sunny morning... I was walking along the paths of Denver Botanic Garden, taking pictures of everything bright and beautiful... like these California poppies...

 

It feels like May now

After a crazy February, an even more bizarre March, and a somewhat ordinary April, this spring hasn’t quite felt right. And the snowfall a couple of weeks ago certainly didn’t help. But now… it finally does. Even though many flowers seem to be blooming a little ahead of schedule, everything finally feels as if it’s happening at the right time.

 

Blackbirds... steel birds… all kind of birds...

Cherry Creek State Park is a great place to spend a couple of hours on a Sunday (click here to see a previous hike there from a couple of years ago - Mountains and trees). And it’s an even better place for birdwatching… or simply admiring the mountains :)

 

Sunny morning

Well... not much story to tell. Just a peaceful morning in the Denver Botanic Garden.

 

Water, trees, birds... animals too ;)

That morning, a week ago, turned out to be cold and cloudy. An interesting combination for late April... But by 9am the clouds had parted and blue sky lured me to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge, where I hoped to find something interesting...

 

Cloudy day and an old friend...

It was another cloudy Saturday morning, and we were wandering through the Denver Botanic Garden really enjoying the rare day with almost no sun. The tulips were still in bloom and it was a nice thing to see..

 

Surprise, surprise...

Mid-April is a perfectly normal time for snow. It’s Colorado, after all, and I honestly can’t remember a spring when a sudden snowfall didn’t take a toll on the flowers. Still, we always hope this year will be different. The forecast did mention a hard frost, but who really trusts the meteorologists, right? So we were genuinely surprised when snow started falling last Friday with great enthusiasm and didn’t stop until the afternoon. The accumulation was just under an inch, but it was enough to affect the flowers at Denver Botanic Gardens.

 

Cloudy morning

The morning turned out to be chilly and cloudy. Usually, on a Saturday morning, everyone craves sunshine, but we didn't complain, on the contrary, we were actually glad for the clouds - photographing flowers is much easier in soft light.

 

Daffodils, tulips and...

...other flowers :) Let's just wander around and look at the flowers that can be found at the Denver Botanic Garden...

 

Chilly Morning…

Mornings in April can be chilly. Not truly cold, but just enough to make you pause for a second before stepping outside. Still, nothing could stop one from heading to the Denver Botanic Garden in search of spring blooms. And, oh boy, it didn’t take long to find the first subject to capture ;)

 

Denver in Blue

I was in Denver with a couple of hours to spare… and it suddenly occurred to me that I hadn’t walked downtown in years. There were plenty of reasons, first COVID-19, then the 16th Street Mall renovation project, not to mention parking headaches and crowds. Well, I decided it was time to change that. I grabbed my camera and headed out, wandering the streets and looking for what had changed.

 

Twist of weather...

Living here in Colorado for so long, you’d think we wouldn’t be surprised by its sudden mood swings. Just two weeks ago, the weather shifted dramatically - from warm and pleasant to full-on snow (click here to see that story - Two Days, Two Weathers…), ending with feet of snow covering the ground and flowers (click here to refresh your memory - Beauty of Snow...)... So why were we surprised again last weekend, when everything changed overnight? A beautiful, warm Saturday turned into a bitterly cold Sunday.

 

From flowers to wilderness

I left Denver Botanic Gardens, where I had spent a couple of hours looking at plants buried in snow (click here if you’ve forgotten what I found there - Beauty of Snow...), but decided against heading straight home. I was curious to see how much snow the plains had received, so I drove to Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge to follow the Wildlife Drive. My first stop was right at the beginning, where I took a picture of my favorite trees just uphill :)

 

Beauty of Snow...

Last time I wrote about the crazy Colorado weather - when one day the sun shines brightly and the next day snow covers everything (you can find that post here - Two Days, Two Weathers…). On Friday, roughly a foot of snow fell across most of the area, and on Saturday I simply couldn’t stay home. So… you guessed it - I drove to the Denver Botanic Garden to see how much damage the snow had caused. Everything was covered with a thick blanket of snow. Everything. Leaves were poking through the snow here and there and, surprisingly, they actually looked pretty cool - bright patches of color breaking through the endless white.

 

Two Days, Two Weathers…

It was a surprisingly warm Thursday, so I drove up to the mountains to spend some time in the woods. Before starting my hike, I stopped at the Buffalo Overlook to see if the bison were around. And they were :)

 

Blooms in February...

Yes… it still feels a bit crazy that flowers are blooming even though it’s only the end of February. I had been watching them for two weeks (click here to refresh your memory - Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs), but back then they were small and hesitant, as if unsure whether it was really their time to appear. But last Saturday the flowers had no doubts anymore. They were growing confidently, looking as if it were already the end of March rather than the last days of February.

 

Birds, Mountains, Lake...

Early Sunday morning, I left my car in the parking lot and walked toward the lake. Just a few yards down the trail, I was greeted by a small group of house sparrows wandering about. The tiny birds were perched in the middle of a large bush, chatting to one another. It was such a pleasant encounter, they instantly lifted my mood.

 

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

The weather in Denver has changed lately. Instead of warm and mild, it turned harsh and bitterly cold. Not much snow, though. Actually we only had about a quarter of an inch a couple of nights ago but the temperature dropped into the low 20s overnight. Still, even that thin layer of snow promised something, so I headed to the Denver Botanic Garden hoping to capture these Snow White beauties dusted with white. To my disappointment, not only was there no snow left on the ground, but all the snowdrops were frostbitten and lying flat. It was heartbreaking to see those delicate white flowers seemingly destroyed.

 

Beautiful morning and some unexpected finds :)

I know - it's the middle of February, and it’s supposed to feel like winter, right? But it feels like... just kidding, I have no idea what it feels like, but definitely not like any winter I remember :) Last Saturday morning I woke up with the strange feeling that something interesting was waiting for me. I didn’t know what it would be, but the feeling was there. So I drove to City Park, hoping to find some cormorants. Unfortunately, I was disappointed, they haven’t arrived yet. The lake was iceless, and geese were everywhere. Just ordinary geese, not even snow geese. That was a bummer for sure.

 

With just a splash of color...

Last time I did something I usually don't do - I converted my photos to black and white (click here to refresh your memory - Beauties in monochrome). Don't get me wrong, I love black and white images... but I chose the wrong subject that time :) Actually, I knew that flowers in general and orchids in particular are better in color. And it seems like you agreed with me (I always listen to your feedback). So let's look at the same photos again, but this time with some color added :)

 

Beauties in monochrome

What do we like most about flowers? I think it is color.. Or at least color attracts our attention and makes us turn our heads towards these stunning flowers. And today we are lucky because we have a small (but amazing) device in our pocket that allows us to capture this beauty instantly and have it on our screen any time we want to see it again... But not so long ago we did not have this luxury. Photography meant black-and-white film... and the world of images was monochrome. Yet people still loved taking photographs and printing them.

 

Slow morning, snow morning...

Sometimes you wake up in the morning, open the curtains, and are surprised to see that everything around you is covered in fresh snow... And you quickly get dressed and go outside to take a walk, breathe in the frosty air, and enjoy the untouched white snow before it's spoiled by the footprints of people and animals...

 

Face to face...

Last Saturday I had a late start… I didn’t get out of bed until eight-something and decided to allow myself a lazy morning. And when I finally left the house, I realized that the weather wasn’t nice either… It was windy and really chilly. You know, the kind of chill you can feel in your bones, when it doesn’t matter how many clothes you put on… you just don’t want to stay outside. So I decided to hide inside the covered (and nicely warmed) gallery at the Denver Botanic Garden. Orchids were calling, and I couldn’t find a better way to start a late and lazy day…

 

Around the lake...

That morning I was driving past Washington Park when something made me slow down, pull over, and step out of the car. No plan. Just a walk around the lake. Just to look. Just to breathe the cool December air.