In Search of Goats (LOCALISM FEATURED)

We set out today to find and photograph the famous Rocky Mountain Goats of Mt. Evans. It was a beautiful, warm sunny day down in Denver, so off we went to the high country in search of adventure of a pleasant Sunday.

Mt. Evans was our destination. Denver residents can easy point Mt. Evans out from the city. It's an easy mountain to spot, it's the biggest one. Typically it is the mountain with the snow on top, towering above all others.

Despite the fact Mt. Evans is the highest paved road in North America and it is an hour drive from Downtown Denver many Colorado residents have never taken to the time to drive to the top! I find this a very sad fact and one I'd like to encourage people to rectify!

Getting there is easy, just go west on I-70, exit at the 2nd Idaho Springs ramp and follow the signs 14 miles to the Entrance Gate. The is a park fee of $10 to enter, this fee is good for 3 days.

Driving the road is not for the weak of heart. Today we made the drive up just after a hail storm. The mountain was shrouded in clouds and lightening clapped around us from time to time. The weather was certainly not wonderful for all the cyclists scattering for shelter, but for us safe in the warm car, the scenery was as always, spectacular!

Visitors can expect to see wildlife, including Yellow Bellied Marmots (not beavers as some tourist call them), Peregrine, Pikas, Big Horn Sheep and Mountain Goats. Today most of these wise animals were playing it cool and keeping out of the weather. We did see a marmot, but he was the only wildlife we viewed.

On a nice normal day it is not uncommon for the goats and sheep to come up to the summit and pose for photographers. All one has to do is wait quietly and the animals will approach. They love to feed off the dirt on the summit, apparently it contains minerals needed in their diet. Not today of course!

Today was the day of the clouds! At the summit the wind blew and temperature was cold enough not to be comfortable without winter clothing. Knowing this I came prepared, but the dark dreary clouds were not very inspiring for photos, so we packed back in the car and went down a few hundred feet in elevation.

The wildflowers are blooming. They make up the ground cover of this delicate alpine tundra. Yellow fields of tiny little flowers brave the cold changing weather, wind, snow, sleet and whatever else nature throws at them. Amazing, inspiring and beautiful they are.

Just above the tree line there is a tree I call "My Tree." It isn't really mine of course, but a few weeks ago I discovered it on another photo shoot. I had the driver of my car stop so I could capture an image of it. Well within minutes a dozen photographers stopped to do the same thing...photograph MY TREE!

Oh well, as they say, great minds think alike!

This particular tree stands alone against the elements, at least 50 feet above the "tree line." Now I don't know who determined how high the tree line should be, but most trees obey the rule. They all cluster close and stop at almost exactly the same spot, except for this tree.

This tree, defies the tree line law. It stands as an individual, unique & strong. Guess that's what attracted me to it initially. If you plan to drive to the summit, you will undoubtably see My Tree, please stop and say hello.

No, there were no goats for me today. Instead we were amazed at the beauty of inclimate weather and the power of nature. Next time I hope to get my goat!

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