Summer in Colorado is glorious, but then every season is.
My favorite season here is typically the one I'm in,
My favorite season here is typically the one I'm in,
and right now summer is in full bloom, so favorite it is!
Aurora, Colorado USA
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
I can't remember the last time I did that, probably just before we cruised the South Pacific.
What a difference eight months can make!
The last time I strolled along my beloved creek,
I was having trouble walking and seeing.
Now I'm back to my old self.
Well, I still have to build up my muscles again in the gym,
but I'm working on it.
Saturday was lovely with puffy clouds in a vibrant blue sky,
the deep blue sky that occurs at 6,000 feet in our arid climate.
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
My only concern was that some of the cottonwood trees are getting really huge,
and they're lurking over the path, hulking with danger.
Some have fallen in recent years, and one fell over the path into the park last year.
Its jutting limbs have been trimmed back,
but its massive trunk lies half hidden in the grass as a warning.
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
This cottonwood tree is one of my favorites, and it worries me the most.
Its enormous trunk leans toward the path,
and its weighty limbs hang above me as I scamper to safety.
It is easily as wide as it is tall.
I still can't resist a quick look inside the cavity marking the spot of a lost limb.
In the past it has housed birds or squirrels, but it is empty this year.
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
The trees following Piney Creek are plains cottonwoods (Populus deltoides monilifera),
a subspecies of the Eastern Cottonwood (Populus deltoides).
They are native to Colorado in elevations between 3,500 and 6,500 feet.
I missed cottonwood sex in the park this year.
The trees are dioecious, bearing male and female catkins on separate trees.
The reddish-purple male catkins release pollen into the wind
which carries it to the light green flowers of the female catkins.
This occurs before the cottonwood leaves open so the pollen can spread unhindered.
Showy Male Catkins
Along Piney Creek
April 30, 2022
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
Opening Female Catkins
Along Piney Creek
April 30, 2022
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
After pollination the female catkins develop small green capsules
that burst open and release cottony seeds far and wide.
A single female tree can disperse tens of millions of seeds,
a seed event that can look like snow flurries in the wind
and cause cottony drifts scattered on the ground.
Bursting Capsules
Along Piney Creek
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
Cottonwood Seeds Waiting to Fly
Along Piney Creek
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
Cottonwood Seeds Floating in the Air
Along Piney Creek
June 25, 2018
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
Drifting Cottonwood Seeds
Along Piney Creek
June 25, 2018
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
Over the years I have been watching the milkweed plants expand their territory.
This is a good thing, because milkweed a vital resource
for migrating monarch butterflies and many other insects.
Blossoming Milkweed
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
I reached my turnaround point, the upper pond in our stretch of Piney Creek.
I've walked to this spot hundreds of times over the years, and I never tire of seeing it.
Serene Beauty
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
As summer progresses all the lush greenery will age and brown.
The scenery is ever-changing, but remains captivating.
Flourishing Grasses
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
Lush and Vibrant
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
I'm so grateful that I can walk much better and see clearly again.
I will make the most of this new lease on life.
Almost Home, a Half Mile to Go
June 29, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, Gillena's Lunch Break. and Nicole's Friday Face Off.
For Rain: Herbs ~
Roll'd, a Vietnamese restaurant in St. Leonards Forum Plaza,
serves great food like this soup.
Roll'd was a lifesaver when Terry and I had white pneumonia.
It's located in St. Leonards, a suburb on the lower North Shore of Sydney, Australia.
Food for the Soul
Roll'd, the Forum Plaza
November 6, 2023
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
For Tom: Aloha ~ I just want you to know, Tom,
that your Aloha theme has me very homesick for Waikiki!
Beautiful Kūhiō Beach Park
Waikīkī, Honolulu, Hawai'i, USA
February 24, 2024
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue All Rights Reserved
For Gillena: Family ~ I don't have a beautiful granddaughter like you,
but I have many wonderful nieces and nephews.
This is my niece Natalie who has overcome more obstacles than anyone I know.
Here she is getting her doctorate! A veterinarian!
She proves that grit and determination can overcome anything!
Have a great weekend!
OOPS! If you read this and saw baby pictures from last week's post,
then you know I forgot to do my final edit,
and you know I write new posts by using the previous post as a template.
And I forgot a face for Nicole. I'm just going to let it go.
It was a lovely July 4th for Terry and me. What can I say?
Till next time ~
Fundy Blue
Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com
Copyright ©2024 – All rights reserved.
My next post will be
Friday, July, 12th 🤞
On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved
The trees look fabulous in this post. Love good old trees. The soup looks yummy too
ReplyDeleteThanks, Roentare. I am very fond of cottonwood trees which I had rarely seen until I moved to Colorado. Some people don't like them because of all the cottony seeds they give off and the mess they can make. Also some people are suffer from allergies to the pollen and seeds. But I find them fascinating, and I think of these trees that I have been observing since 2005 as friends. That soup was so delicious and soothing when Terry and I were under the weather in Sydney. Have a good weekend, my friend!
Delete...I am homesick for the beach too. Cottonwoods on the other hand I'm not. It's good that our June snowstorms are over. Louise, I wish you a Jolly July week.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Tom! I know there are lots of people who consider cottonwoods a pain, but I love them ~ even the June snowstorms. We're planning on 10 weeks in Waikiki next year. 🤞 that life cooperates. I'm at the age where I can't take anything for granted. I hope you and your wife had a great Independence Day. We had a quiet and enjoyable one, but I was a little sad wondering what the next July 4th will bring. Enjoy your weekend!
DeleteI'm glad your health is so much better now, Louise -- enjoy summer along Piney Creek!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Debra. I do love my Piney Creek and all its plants and animals. Happy summer to you!
DeleteBeautiful pictures! Got good summer vibes on a rain(It’s rainy season at my place). Love the cumulus clouds floating across the azure sky. The world is such a beautiful place! Happy Summer to you<3!
ReplyDeleteHappy summer to you too, Señorida Anastasia! Rain is good for the earth, but I do love sunny summer days. We are in our monsoon season in Colorado, but our downpours and thunderstorms are not as strong as usual. I hope that you have a great weekend, and keep writing Girl! Hugs to you!
DeleteWhat a beautiful area you live in! Interesting post about the cottonwood trees. They aren't among my favorites but I've got to respect their longevity.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that you liked my post, Karen. Cottonwoods are an icon of the west, even if they aren't the favorite tree of many. I find them fascinating since I come from Nova Scotia. No cottonwoods there, but coyotes arrived in the mid-1970s and made it across the ice to Newfoundland a few years later. Have a great weekend!
DeleteI'm so glad you are back to your old self and I'm loving what you are seeing and sharing. It's all absolutely lovely! I've only been to CO once or twice but I'd go back in a heartbeat!
ReplyDeleteColorado is a wonderful place, Jeanie. It never entered my head when I was growing up that I would live in the United States. When I was studying geology, a professor from the Colorado School of Mines came to Acadia University in Nova Scotia and talked to my Geology 100 class about Colorado's geology. I thought at the time what an amazing place Colorado was, never suspecting that I'd emigrate to the US in four years and spend most of my adult life in this beautiful state. You never know what twist fate may throw your way. Have a lovely weekend!
DeleteCongrats to your Niece! What great photos. Fundy, thank you for co-hosting! Have a wonderful summer.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Anonymous! I'm very proud of my niece. She has enjoyed her first year as a vet in a very busy clinic in Nova Scotia. She calls it her dream job. All the best to you. Have a wonderful summer!
DeletePleasant Greetings to your good-self. I'm glad you are enjoying the fruits of our Mother Nature, and what fruits to pluck. The trees look amazing, and really old. If only we could live as long! Glad you are back on track with your trekking abilities, good on you. Enjoy your Weekend, Louise, and I hope you have many more plentiful days out amongst nature. Blessings to you. Andrew.
ReplyDeleteI'm so behind, Andrew! Thanks for your kind wishes and blessings. Right back at you, my friend! ❤️
DeleteI've only been to Colorado in the summer, and it is indeed very beautiful. Your pictures are beautiful. And congrats to your niece. That is very exciting. I just read your comment above this box and I hope this continues to be her dream job because all the animals need great doctors too. Happy weekend. hugs-Erika
ReplyDeleteYes, our animals deserve great care, too, Erika! They are sentient beings and wonderful companions. I'm sorry that I am so late replying. I'm trying really hard to spread things out so I have more control (Ha!) over my time. I fell way behind. Hugs to you!
DeleteMost people I know don't like Cottonwood trees because of the wonderful spring "snow" event (and the clean up it requires). But, I love every tree I know about and those I have yet to learn about ... they are the lifeblood of our planet and are misused, mistreated and destroyed by those who don't bother to learn their role in our existence. The hole in your Cottonwood (which I am sure provides home to many a critter and insects) looks like a big eye, staring at us and warning us not to mess with the tree :) Your creek walk (and I am happy for you that you can walk it and see it again)is nourishment for the soul. We both are lovers of nature and spend our lives trying to save what we can of it.
ReplyDeleteBy the way, when I click on your name on TADD, I am sent to my queue not to your post ... I don't know if other's are having that problem (I hope not), but I went to a previous post to get to your blog.
My Granddaughter and her fiance just moved to Denver ... not too far from you. They are already enjoying the beauty around them. You are blessed to live in such surroundings ...
Andrea @ From the Sol
Hi, Andrea! I'm sorry that I'm so late replying to your wonderful comment. Things continue to get away from me, but I'm working on improving. I dearly love nature like you. I absolutely agree with you about trees. People would be wise to learn more about them. One of Canada's most talented singers, Lennie Gallant, sings a beautiful song about sequoias. I'm planning to write a post on his song. The weirdest things happen on blogger and links. I often have to go to older posts to get to someone's new one. Thanks for persisting. I hope you've had a good week and an even better weekend! Hugs to you!
DeleteI can't unsee the eye now ~ lol!
DeleteI'm definitely with you on being happy in the season I'm in. Be here now :) You have beautiful scenery there. I love your cloudy sky photo. Around here cottonwoods sometimes make it look like it's snowing in the summertime lol
ReplyDelete(I'm here from Nicole's Friday Face Off.)
Hi, Divers and Sundry! Thanks for visiting. I'm very behind in replying to comments, but I really appreciate you stopping by. Take care!
DeletePicturing you scampering under the trees is rather amusing lol
ReplyDeleteSure a great place for a stroll with lots of scenery indeed. Guess trees enjoy hanky panky too, huh?
Hopefully your niece is still enjoying and thriving at her vet clinic too. I remember where you told me it was.
Natalie loves her job, Pat! She really cares about animal welfare. I do scamper ~ lol! There is a lot of squirrel in me. Although I know my spirit animal is a red-tailed hawk.
DeleteI'm really looking forward to seeing you soon! Take care!
when the cotton seeds started flying, it could appear as snow out west. And the tree was a sign of water, at least in the arid canyons of Utah. And that looks like a delicious bowl of Pho!
ReplyDeleteThe soup was delicious, Jeff. Terry and I appreciated it so much when we were sick in our hotel room. It was just three or four minute walk to get it. I love our snows in June, although lots of other don't appreciate the seeds flying around. I'm sure many travelers were happy to spot cottonwoods in the Old West, even today. I hope that you've had a good week! Take care!
DeleteLovely pictures. I love our cottonwoods here! I don't see a ton of milkweed in Colorado Springs, though.
ReplyDeleteHi, Shannon! It' great to see you. Cottonwoods are my favorite "western" tree. Alive or dead, they provide shelter and resources for many living creatures. Happy summer!
DeleteHi Louise, these pics and the information regarding them are absolutely beautiful, and it reminds me even more of how God's creation is amazing. The healing quality of many of the world's plants are tremendous, and when we lived in Australia the indigenous people ate a grass which healed what we call 'gastro enteritis' in a few days. God bless you for sharing this lovely post.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Brenda! I'm so sorry that I'm just replying now. I keep trying to get on top of things ~ lol! We can't control much. I'm glad that you enjoyed my post. It's in nature that I see God most of all. Hugs and love to you!
DeleteI am so happy you are feeling better and able to enjoy your walk again. I can understand why you love it. It's a beautiful place!
ReplyDeleteCongrats to your niece. That's a tough degree to get!!
Thanks, Elizabeth! I have found that beauty exists everywhere. Life is complex and fascinating. It's a privilege to be alive and to experience things. I'm so proud of my niece Natalie. She overcame many obstacles to ear her degree. he has a special talent for surgery. She claims the sewing lessons her mother made her take have been a big help. Enjoy your summer. Take care!
DeleteColorado is such a beautiful state. The cavity in the tree makes for a perfect shelter. The catkins are so are pretty. Lovely photos!
ReplyDelete-Soma