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FrontRangeLiving.com -> Outdoors -> Foothills Flowers
 FLOWERS
IN THE FOOTHILLS
Although Crested Butte attracts wildflower lovers in July, a quieter
profusion of flowers just as remarkable blankets the Front Range--home to a
wider diversity of species than anywhere else in Colorado. The blooms begin
earlier and last longer.
Altitude, from the dry plains to alpine tundra, provides a unique laboratory.
Microclimates abound. A warming Chinook wind creates pockets of small meadows. A
single mountain may generate clouds. Springs bubble up among ancient relics of
woodland plants a stone’s throw from drought loving desert blooms. "We
are only 20 miles from the Continental Divide," plant ecologist Ann
Armstrong says, "We also are on the edge of the Great Plains and the
southern Rocky Mountains. The edge of our system is spanning two geographical
provinces. These are huge landmasses. So two different kinds of habitats come
together. We have a mountain backdrop with a range from 5200 to 8600 feet in
elevation within a mile and a half."
 The
rest of this story is now contained in "Colorado
Outdoor Lover's Guide" by
Front Range Living and Fulcrum Publishing. It can be purchased through www.fulcrum-books.com
or at bookstores, such as: www.tatteredcover.com,
www.barnesandnoble.com,
www.borders.com
or www.amazon.com.
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