Wilderness in Focus: gc53

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How beautifully the Leaves grow old. How full of light and color are their last days. –John Burroughs

(Horizontal only)

(Card # gc53)

Aspen (Populus tremuloides), or also known as quaking aspen, are found from Alaska to southern California, to southern Arizona and throughout the Rockies, from the Atlantic to the Pacific. A widespread tree to say the least. This autumn golden beauty has strikingly smooth whitish bark turning nearly black at the base with age. In elk country one may observe that the bark is nearly entirely consumed, taking on a blackish apprearance, to the hieght at which elk can no longer reach. A food source for elk during lean times. The "quaking" part comes from the leaves being attached by long stalks and flattened at a ninety degree angle from the stalk. Thus, the slightest breeze sends the leaves of the aspen a quakin'. This soft rustling of the leaves is an unforgettable experience on an indian summer day as the golden leaves fall from silvery white trees like a magical golden rain. Ahhh, the Rockies in fall...I fully expect to hear elk buggling in the distance and grizzlies wandering the golden grasses in search of food.