Hiking Red Rocks

Aptly named Red Rocks is 6.6 miles from my house.

Its amphitheater is touted by Denver's tourist bureau as being "6,450 feet above sea level" and "the only naturally occurring, acoustically perfect amphitheatre in the world." Concerts began in 1906 and have included performers from opera to rock and roll. The Beatles played there in 1964. Jethro Tull caused a stir and a riot in 1971 which led to a five-year ban on rock concerts.  Jethro Tull was back at Red Rocks again in 2008 and 2011. And there's no lack of rock and roll during the summer season or country and western or symphony or genres of music I'm too old to know about.

It is also home to an annual 9/11 Memorial Stair Climb when first responders from around the country come to climb the bleachers in full gear to equal the 110 stories of New York City's World Trade Towers.

But there's much more to Red Rocks than an amphitheatre and rock and roll. The park has 868 acres of geologic wonders, wildlife, and more sky than you can imagine. When we have company Red Rocks is one of the area sites we show off. We hiked there last Sunday.

  
                                                and hiking trails.

This time of year, patches of snow still blanket north facing hillsides and shaded hollows. Grass greens quickly under Colorado's sun. And snow melt feeds tiny rivulets throughout the park.

         

                                                                These are water sparkles not flowers.

But there are flowers, even here where snow is possible in May and no one sets out annuals until after Mother's Day.

The Dandelion, disdained in lawns

is welcome in the wild

       Hollygrape flowers          

 .                                      

I didn't get any photos of the wildlife. We were there in the middle of the day so we saw none of the mule deer, rabbits, various and sundry rodents, mountain lions, coyote, or rattlesnakes. I did, however, hear meadow larks call, and saw magpies and scrub jays. Not to mention people of all shapes and sizes and their children and dogs.

and, of course, Colorado's glorious blue sky.

That's the prairie and Denver there in the distance.