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| A view from the Lodge dining room! |
The North Rim of the Grand Canyon had always been my dream..so it's a good thing I started my trip there..as the government shutdown kept me from proceeding to the South Rim..Thus, there will be no blog, the sequel..Grand Canyon South Rim. Can't say it wasn't exciting to be a part of government incompetence..
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| Of course there were magnificent views, it's the Grand Canyon! |
But I am always seeking ecosystems..After driving through the desert and reaching the higher elevations of North Rim, the Boreal and Ponderosa forests were a cool surprise.. The Ponderosa Forest is found at an elevation of 8,000-7,200 ft, about the elevation of the Lodge..
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A brave Ponderosa Pine..they
can live to be 500 years old
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| I bark but don't bite.. |
Wildflowers thrive beneath the Ponderosa Pines..The visitor center listed the wildflowers in bloom in October, and I tried to find an example of each.. However, the visitor center listed only the generic names, so I have done my best to discover their proper scientific names, but I disclaim responsibility for strict accuracy :-) Please let me know if I have goofed.
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| Wooly Aster, Corethrogyne filagnifolia |
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| Sky Rocket, Gilia Aggreegata, var. Arizonica |
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| Quoth the Raven.."I am not a wildflower" |
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Lupinus argentus
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| Did I mention beautiful views? |
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| Indian Paintbrush, Castilleja integra |
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Bitter Weed, Helenium amarum
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Wildflower break time!
Dark Eyed Junco, Junco hyemalis..
Western variation |
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Bitter Weed and Penstemon cyanocaulis,
Bluestem Beardtongue |
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Golden Rod..I am a complete failure at further ID..
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| That view again.. plants cling to life in the most awkward places.. |
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| A Yucca case in point.. |
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| The trunk of a living tree |
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| Forest fire on the South Rim. |
The highest elevation on the North Rim is at Point Imperial..8, 803 ft. As you climb to this elevation..you pass through the Boreal Forest, 8,200-9,200 ft. The dominant trees in this forest are the Quaking Aspen and tall pines such as the Engleman Spruce, and Douglas fir..
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| Quaking Aspens recovering from a forest fire. |
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Colors of recovery.
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| Aspen trunks at dusk, at a lower elevation. |
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Views from Point Imperial
The day I left the North Rim, on my way I had hoped, to the South Rim, a Steller's Jay finally posed..in the parking lot. The forest Jays had been uncooperative. Steller's Jays and a Red Headed Woodpecker were life-birds on the North Rim.
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| The best birds are in the parking lot.. Cyanocitta stelleri |
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| Venus over the Grand Canyon. |
One touch of nature makes the whole world kin~ John Muir Our National Parks
