Incredibly Interesting Rocks and Views at Ute Valley Park

Archive for the Nature Category

Incredibly Interesting Rocks and Views at Ute Valley Park

By Manitou Julia on Saturday, May 10th, 2014 | No Comments

I love interesting rocks almost as much as I love driftwood to take photographs of and find faces and creatures within them. This trail had many more interesting rocks and rock formations than driftwood. Not sure why, but it did. There were just a few interesting tree stumps with green accents on this trail in […]

Vibrant Water Colors in Williams Canyon Above Manitou Springs

By Manitou Julia on Friday, April 25th, 2014 | No Comments

The water in the creek seemed to be more colorful than I remembered. And so did the rocks. The colors must be created by new minerals unearthed and carried down from above. I need to go back and look at some of my past photos from hiking in Williams Canyon, but that is probably something […]

Rusty and Wooden Items Along the Trail at Fountain Creek Nature Trail

By Manitou Julia on Tuesday, April 22nd, 2014 | No Comments

I am always intrigued by rusty items I find on trails. This trail had some very wonderful rusty things, including some that were still in use. There were many valve wheels that were related to what I believe was an irrigation ditch that was on one side of the trail. I have no idea what […]

Geese at the Fountain Creek Nature Center Wetlands

By Manitou Julia on Monday, April 21st, 2014 | No Comments

There were geese and other water fowl engaged in many activities on both of my hikes at the Fountain Creek Nature Center Trails. On the first stroll they kept flying over us. I was able to get one good picture of them flying. I am still learning this camera and should have had it on […]

Winter Flora Along Trails at Calhan Paint Mines in Colorado

By Manitou Julia on Tuesday, April 1st, 2014 | No Comments

We walked among a very dry landscape at the close of winter and the beginning of Spring. Its stark beauty is quite different from what we would have seen in the summer at the Calhan Paint Mines. Some trails led off onto the prairie, others took us above the formations and the final part of […]

White Chalk Formations with their Yucca Companions

By Manitou Julia on Wednesday, March 26th, 2014 | No Comments

It was hard to fathom how beautiful pure white formations could be unless you are walking among or above them. We hiked for a long stretch of Prairie, then looked down to see these are views that resembled looking into White Sands in New Mexico, but much harder lines and more colors intermingled in the […]

Calhan Paint Mines Offers Wonderful Formations

By Manitou Julia on Tuesday, March 25th, 2014 | 2 Comments

There is a rich diversity of life out on the Colorado prairie that is rarely seen by visitors, as the mountains are the biggest draw. The Calhan Paint Mines is an archeological district on the plains of Colorado that has a very diverse ecological system that includes prairie, wetlands and badlands filled with fantastic formations. […]

Hiking in the Colorful Paint Mines in Calhan Colorado

By Manitou Julia on Sunday, March 23rd, 2014 | No Comments

Now for a completely different type of hike out on the Colorado Prairie. One has to drive about an 45 minutes out from the edge of Colorado Springs to get to Calhan where the Paint Mines Interpretive Park is located. This is one of the most spirit renewing hikes I have ever taken. I was […]

Brave Birds Among the Ancient Cedars in Garden of the Gods

By Manitou Julia on Thursday, March 20th, 2014 | No Comments

This hike had many interesting facets to it, not an ordinary Garden of the Gods hike. When we stopped for a lunch break on the way back down, there were some very brave birds. I often leave some nuts or dried fruit for creatures to find when we are gone. I placed a few pistachios […]

Cloud Faces in the Garden of the Gods

By Manitou Julia on Sunday, March 16th, 2014 | No Comments

Everywhere I looked on this hike, I saw faces in the sky. Some were in groups, others just singular and very obvious. Every time I looked at this cloud formation above me while waiting for my hiking partner, I saw more and different cloud faces and creatures . Some seemed downright spooky, others were laughing […]

Spirit Renewing Hikes

Archive for the Nature Category