Uploads from Rich'sPics, tagged rockymountainnationalpark, with geodata

The Mountains Are Calling...

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sat, 14 Jul 2012 14:18:01 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

John Muir echoed the sentiments of my own heart when he said, "The mountains are calling and I must go."

Twin Sisters Summit

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 15:38:47 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a video:

I finally broke down and got an iPhone, so I decided to take it with me on this hike and do a short video on the western summit of the Twin Sisters in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Bighorn

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 14:12:36 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

A majestic bighorn ram seen just below the summits of the Twin Sisters in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Trail Ridge Road

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 21 May 2012 19:28:50 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Trail Ridge Road opened early this year. The extremely low snowpack meant they completed the plowing well ahead of schedule.

Chasm Falls

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sat, 05 Nov 2011 08:23:39 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

I visited Chasm Falls twice this past summer, but wasn't terribly happy with any of the shots I came away with. Guess that means I'll have to go back next year! Anyway, this is the least offensive image from those visits, so I thought I'd go ahead and share it with y'all.

Alluvial Fan & Lawn Lake Flood

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 13:03:14 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

In Rocky Mountain National Park on July 15, 1982 at 5:30am, Lawn Lake's earthen dam (built in 1903) failed due to deteriorated caulking at a discharge pipe. 29 million gallons of water were released and rushed downstream in a massive flood. The surging wall of water rumbled down the mountain for four miles to this spot where it burst out onto the tranquil meadows of Horseshoe Park. The weakening flood waters left behind a 42-acre alluvial fan of boulders, rocks, and sand. Sadly, three people were killed in the flood.

a walk in the woods

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 03 Oct 2011 15:43:30 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

I went for a hike this morning in Rocky Mountain National Park and thought a lot about my grandpa, who passed on two years ago yesterday. I have many wonderful memories of tromping through the deep, dark forests of north-central PA with him. He taught me that very few things in life are as enjoyable as a walk in the woods.

Aspen trees & trail. Glacier Gorge, RMNP.

Alberta Falls

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Fri, 16 Sep 2011 19:39:24 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

I've passed Alberta Falls tons of times while hiking to and from other spots, and while passing through, I've stopped to take pics of it a few times... but I was never really happy with any of those shots. So a couple of weeks ago, I set out for The Park with only one goal: Get a decent pic of the falls! Plus, I just wanted to do a short hike to break-in my new boots. Anyway, I arrived at the falls a bit before sunrise and spent a good while shooting long exposure shots from two or three different vantage points. This image is my favorite.

quiet morning at bierstadt

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sun, 11 Sep 2011 16:12:06 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Except for some mule deer that came to the shore for a drink, a few elk grazing through the trees behind me, and two ducks swimming through the reeds, I had Bierstadt Lake in RMNP all to myself yesterday morning. The air was quite chilly, but the lake water was obviously a bit warmer since you can see that some fog formed over the far lakeshore at sunrise. I was happy to get the great reflection (my whole purpose for going back up to Bierstadt yesterday), but I enjoyed the solitude & tranquility even more. It was another stellar morning in my favorite place on earth.

Welcome to RMNP

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 05 Sep 2011 08:39:11 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

The last couple of times I've been up to The Park, I've wanted to stop here on my way out and take a picture with the Retro Camera app on my phone... but I've always forgotten to do it. Until this morning.

Anyway, passing this sign (usually in the dark before sunrise) always puts a smile on my face since it means I'm heading into my most favorite place what I ever did know.

Frozen Lake

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 29 Aug 2011 19:33:57 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Frozen Lake lies at an elevation of 11,580 ft at the head of Glacier Gorge in RMNP. It is a 6.1 mile hike to reach this beautiful high-altitude tarn. After the well-defined trail above Black Lake ends, some cross-country route finding and bushwhacking is necessary to reach Frozen Lake. As you can just see above, there was actually still some snow and ice along the lake's rugged eastern shore since the sheer north face of Chiefs Head Peak and the northwest flank of the Spearhead block direct sunlight for much of the summer. The image above is looking north toward the Mummy Range in the far far distance. To the west, McHenrys Peak (13,327 ft) and Arrowhead (12,640+ ft) rise above the lake's shore. I waited around the lake for quite a while to see if any interesting clouds would pop up (and because I was beat), but none did. Wouldn't you know it, but after I got back down below Black Lake, big puffy white clouds started to appear (see the clouds in the "eventually" pic from this hike). Oh, well.

wildflowers

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 17:12:23 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Wildflowers growing alongside the trail below Black Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado.

above black lake

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 13:18:53 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Stream and wildfowers beside the trail above Black Lake. The stream, which flows from Green Lake at the head of Glacier Gorge, cascades down the steep hillside alongside the trail. Across the way, McHenry's Peak and the Arrowhead tower above Black Lake.

the flower & the spires

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 19:03:16 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

I spotted this lone columbine growing amidst the rocks at Sky Pond in RMNP. The majestic Cathedral Spires loom over the pond's rugged western shoreline.

Sky Pond

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 17:58:32 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

I have to admit there was a slight inaccuracy in my "breakfast with a view" shot... I didn't quite actually make it to Sky Pond for sunrise! You see, I left the trailhead at 3:45am on Sunday morning, but about fifteen minutes up the trail, I realized I'd left my water bottles in the Mini. I stood in the middle of the trail for about thirty seconds, debating whether to press on or go back to the car... but I knew it'd be foolish to try to do the hike without water, so I turned around and hustled back down to the trailhead. Once I was on my way again, I tried my darndest to make up the lost time over the course of the 4.4-mile hike, but I couldn't quite pull it off. By the time I got up to the pond and hopped my way over to the eastern shore, the small bit of alpenglow that had lit up the tops of the Cathedral Spires (above) had worn off and all that was left was regular, old morning sunlight. I think my exact words at that point were, "Well, stink."

patch o' columbine

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:20:16 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

A patch of lovely columbine just above the shoreline of Sky Pond in Rocky Mountain National Park.

not sunflowers!

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 04:20:50 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Everyone has been shooting so many sunflower pics lately (including me!), you'd think those big yellow things were the Colorado state flower... but, no, the state flower is actually the pretty columbine. Photographed at Sky Pond in RMNP.

Bighorn Sheep

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sun, 01 Jul 2012 14:12:37 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

While hiking this morning, I came across a small herd of bighorn sheep just below the summits of the Twin Sisters in Rocky Mountain National Park. This encounter made my day since- as hard as it is to believe considering how many times I've been to The Park- these were the first bighorns I'd ever seen in RMNP!

Alberta Falls

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 19:34:44 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

Brrrrrr!

nobody@flickr.com (Rich'sPics) — Sat, 10 Sep 2011 12:45:44 -0700

Rich'sPics posted a photo:

When I arrived at the Bear Lake Trailhead in Rocky Mtn Nat'l Park this morning about an hour-and-a-half before sunrise, the outside temp readout in the Mini said it was thirty-six degrees out. Thirty-six! I'm not sure how cold it was when I got up to Bierstadt Lake (I need to start carrying a little thermometer in my pack!), but it was definitely on the frigid-side of chilly. I went back up to Bierstadt this morning in search of a reflection (I was there earlier this summer- on July 10th- and caught some nice alpenglow, but it was pretty windy that morning, so no reflection).