Tue Dec 20 00:50:09 MST 2005
Photo - Winter: snow shelf
This little hill of snow had really cool layers, almost like shelves. I like to pretend that the shelves were hundreds of feet tall, and I'm walking along the edge, looking up at how gigantic this wall of snow is... then I climb on my tauntaun, and ride away.
Taken: January, 2005 - Brainard Lake, Colorado
Tue Dec 6 09:46:55 MST 2005
Photo - Summer: Coral Root
Coral Root, or Corallorhiza, is a saprophytic orchid. Saprophytic means that it doesn't use chlorophyll to get its energy. Instead, it relies on decaying material in the soil. This is why there is no green in the plant. When I first saw it from a distance, I thought they must be new shoots for some kind of shrub or larger plant. If you've ever sprouted a bean in a dark area, you probably noticed that the plant didn't create chlorophyll and turn green until it had spent time in the light. I thought it strange that there was no green on these shoots, and upon closer inspection, it was clearly flowering. The man and woman that showed us the Fairy Slipper Orchid informed us that this was an orchid as well, Coral Root. I think this is my favorite plant discovery of 2005.
Coral Root (Corallorhiza maculata)
Taken: June, 2005 - Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado