mistressofmuses (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
mistressofmuses) wrote2026-05-15 10:18 pm
mistressofmuses) wrote2026-05-15 10:18 pm
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Monday, May 11: Red Rocks
On Monday we went on a hike to Red Rocks! It is a park, but because it's also a concert venue, they often close around early afternoon. We'd wanted to maybe go on a hike there a couple weeks ago, but were sunk by the early close. Monday was also an early close, but because we were up so early for my doctor's appointment, we still had plenty of time, haha.
This time we went on one of the easier trails, since our usual favorite has a few pretty steep and exhausting parts. This one was much nicer in terms of less elevation change, but it was pretty warm with nearly zero available shade, so we did end up turning around before too long. We don't want to overdo it for Bella.
A view of the amphitheater from the trail.
Some nice flowers!
Extra prickly prickly pear.
A little barrel cactus!
Some more nice flowers, and little fern fronds.
Yet different white wildflowers!
Some little blue flowers under the yucca.
Sir not appearing in the above picture: a snake! When I leaned down to look at the blue flowers, I discovered there was a snake curled around the base of the yucca under all the leaves and grass! From the bits of the tail and coil that I briefly glimpsed, I think it was a yellow bellied racer. The color was a very smooth grey-green with no visible pattern. I've seen them before, but not terribly often! It looked like it was probably a fairly respectable size, though it was hard to tell exactly how long.
A nice paintbrush!
And finally, this magpie! It landed on the fence in the parking lot as we were getting ready to leave. I set a dog treat down on the fence, which it was perfectly happy to grab before flying away.
This time we went on one of the easier trails, since our usual favorite has a few pretty steep and exhausting parts. This one was much nicer in terms of less elevation change, but it was pretty warm with nearly zero available shade, so we did end up turning around before too long. We don't want to overdo it for Bella.
A view of the amphitheater from the trail.
Some nice flowers!
Six more pictures, all plants:
Extra prickly prickly pear.
A little barrel cactus!
Some more nice flowers, and little fern fronds.
Yet different white wildflowers!
Some little blue flowers under the yucca.
Sir not appearing in the above picture: a snake! When I leaned down to look at the blue flowers, I discovered there was a snake curled around the base of the yucca under all the leaves and grass! From the bits of the tail and coil that I briefly glimpsed, I think it was a yellow bellied racer. The color was a very smooth grey-green with no visible pattern. I've seen them before, but not terribly often! It looked like it was probably a fairly respectable size, though it was hard to tell exactly how long.
A nice paintbrush!
And finally, this magpie! It landed on the fence in the parking lot as we were getting ready to leave. I set a dog treat down on the fence, which it was perfectly happy to grab before flying away.
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Those rocks certainly are red! It reminds me a bit of Ayres rock in Australia. I also did not know that magpies ate dog treats. That must have been an amazing encounter :)
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Love the paintbrush. Cute magpie!