Red Rocks and Bear Creek Canyon (March 2012)

Written by ceddammit

Ladies and gentlemen, harlots and scoundrels (just wanna make sure I’m covering ALL my readers), welcome to another edition of ThrowBack Thursday (TBT). This one is special. That’s because today is not just TBT, it’s also Leap Day. I will observe this day the same way I always observe Leap Day: after I upload this post, I’m going to take a flying leap! (No, I did not say “flying lemur.”) But first, I have to write the damn thing. And here I go…

For this week’s TBT, we leap back to March 2012. On a single weekend during that month, I went on two day trips, both of which begin at Morrison, Colorado. We’ll start at Red Rocks Park. On this day, I took most of my photos from the roads that meander through the park. Thirteen months later, I returned and took pictures from the main hiking trail, but you’ve already seen those. So let’s begin our drive through Red Rocks Park…

Someone jogging thru the giant rocks
Mullein stalks among the yucca
I wonder what these two talk about.
Note the little hole in the rock.
Overlooking the south end of Morrison, Colorado
Southwest face of Park Cave Rock
I dub this rock, Little Nubbo.
Peek-a-boo!
Park Cave Rock
Northwest face of Park Cave Rock
Northwest face of Park Cave Rock
Southwest face of Picnic Rock
I dub this rock, Big Nubbo.
Dry waterfall on the east side of Nine Parks Rock
Frog Rock on the right, Park Cave Rock on the left
I dub this rock Little Nubbo. Why not?
I told you kids to stop horsin’ around! Now ya done broke my giant rock!
East side of Picnic Rock
Looking down the gap between Picnic Rock and Nine Parks Rock
Funky rock formation on west side of Picnic Rock
Looking down the gap between Picnic Rock & Nine Parks Rock
Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado (Photographed March 25, 2012)

Whew! That was one of the longest uninterrupted sets of pictures I have ever posted. I feel the need to interrupt it, and so I shall. But this is actually a good dividing point. All the pictures above were taken in the southern portion of the park, which is also the lower portion in terms of altitude. The next set of pics are from the higher, northern portion of the park, which includes the world famous concert venue: Red Rocks Amphitheater. But you can’t see much of the amphitheater from the road. If you want to see it, check out my aforementioned April 2013 visit to Red Rocks. But remember to come back here when you’re through. There’s plenty of goodness left in this post, too…

This pedestrian bridge is one of the entrances to Red Rocks Amphitheater.
I dub this rock, Stubby Nubbo.
100+ years old; scar from an incline railway up Mount Morrison.
This rock reminds me of the glove from Yellow Submarine.
I dub this, The Gardener’s Ear Lobe
Many varieties of lichen are VERY slowly eating the rocks.
What the Hell is this sculpture supposed to be?
Inside Looking Out (my favorite Grand Funk Railroad song)
The beast in the back is Creation Rock, north wall of the amphitheater.
Variety of lichens
A hanging garden of sorts
Looking south at the Dakota hogback
Lizard Head Rock
The tunnel through Lizard Head Rock
Lizard Head Rock
Look at the size of those ant people!
Red Rocks Park, Morrison, Colorado (Photographed March 25, 2012)

The day before the above Red Rocks visit, I drove up Bear Creek Canyon. To put it another way, I took state highway 74 from Morrison to Evergreen. And was it ever green! Was it ever green? OK, now I’ve confused myself. Just look at the pictures while I straighten out my noggin…

It’s an arch!
From this angle, it appears there’s a rock dangling over the arch hole.
The native flora of the “low altitude” parts of Colorado
Bear Creek Canyon, near Morrison, Colorado (Photographed March 24, 2012)

So, yeah. That’s Bear Creek Canyon for you. Nothing too exciting. When I got to the town of Evergreen, I went to Evergreen Lake, where I took these last few photos…

That is one Rocky Mountain.
Evergreen Lake, Evergreen, Colorado (Photographed March 24, 2012)

That appears to be it for this week’s TBT. Next week, we’ll stay right on the western fringe of the Denver metro area, with hikes up Green Mountain and North Table Mountain. ‘Til we meet again…

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