Fall in the Rockies

Since we're about to be buried by the first major snowstorm of the season, I thought it would be good to look back on our first fall in Boulder.  To me, there are two things that define fall in the Rockies: aspens and the rut!!  My friend Larry from Brooklyn visited us at the beginning of the month, and got a little taste of both.  On our Tour de Colorado we passed this spectacular view of Lime Creek in the San Juan Mountains:

Aspens are basically the only deciduous tree at higher elevations here.  There are others trees that shed their leaves in Colorado, but once you get into the mountains, it's pretty much just aspens and conifers (evergreens).  Earlier that same day, we stopped to photograph this view of Engineer Mountain:

A few days later, I went to Caribou Ranch outside Nederland to photograph more aspens:

Aspens mostly turn a yellow/orange color, though you do see red ones occasionally.

Which brings me to the rut!!!  I think the elk rut is the most impressive of all the charismatic megafauna.  I'd also like to see bighorn sheep ramming (which would likewise be quite impressive), but so far have had no luck (and probably won't).  Male elk gather in the fall and compete to establish harems for breeding.  Only mature bulls (6-point or larger antlers) have a chance at snagging ladies.

Larry and I saw this bull in RMNP as he herded his harem across Trail Ridge Road.  I was surprised to see him this high (almost 12,000 ft), as elk usually retreat to the lower elevations for the rut.

One of the most exciting aspects is when males bugle to attract females and challenge other bulls.  It is one of the most distinct sounds in nature, and not what you'd expect from such a large animal.  "Get at me!"

Bulls also engage in antler wrestling to establish dominance.  These bulls below must have been practicing for next year:

They were only 5-point bulls, and didn't have any harem game.  At one point a similarly sized bull came over and seemed to be refereeing.

Elk behavior is fascinating.  This bull watched intently as the cow in the background chewed on what appeared to be a bone:

More commonly, a bull will go sniff the butt of a cow:

I believe this is to see if the female is in estrus.  Despite seeing some bulls with gigantic harems, I've yet to see any bull 'get lucky.'

Fall also brings one more change: substantial fresh snow at higher elevations.  This is Mt. Ypsilon in the Mummy Range:

There will be a lot more snow real soon!