Mountains and trees

It was a beautiful and sunny Saturday morning and I was heading somewhere... but before I got too far, I changed my mind and ended up at Cherry Creek Park ;) I wasn't planning on doing any serious hiking... just wanted to spend an hour or two in the woods, and this place suited me quite well...

 

I dropped the car in the parking lot and the first thing I looked at was the mountains... Aren't they amazing?

But it didn't take long for me to start on the narrow trail and step deep into the woods.

Unbelievable... it didn't feel like the middle of May! More like late April, probably. The leaves were just unwrapping and many trees were still leafless...

And... the woods turned out to be unexpectedly dense! I am not sure if I would feel comfortable hiking there with no trail to follow ;)

The trail followed a slow-moving stream, which helped. But I still had a hard time with dead trees crossing the path and blocking it.

At some point I heard drumming and looked up. Right! It was a cute woodpecker working on his breakfast, and I was glad to see the bird.

The sun was not yet high in the sky, but it blinded me when I looked up... But... it was pleasant and not as bright and hot as it will be in a month or two.

Wow... this forest is thick, isn't it? Need to find an opening there or... I am in trouble and need to go back...

Another woodpecker. This time it was even smaller and moved so fast...

At this point I was closer to the reservoir and met someone else in the opening...

Young mule deer buck was eating fresh leaves and posing for me ;)

There were actually two of them, but the second one was too shy and this one definitely made my day ;)

The trees there are old... Old and tall... and big...

I made a wide arc and was headed back to the parking lot where I left my car.

Even though I only walked for a short while (a little over an hour), the weather changed and changed a lot. There were more clouds and the rain was coming.

But the rain was still miles away and I wanted to take some bird shots, so instead of stopping at the parking, I continued toward the open space where I heard some Red Winged Blackbirds. But it was a coyote, who first crossed my way. He literally crossed it and continued along the bike trail ;)

Fearless and beautiful animal strolled leisurely for several hundred feet before turning right and disappearing in the woods. What an interesting day it was for me :)

The storm was brewing over the mountains...

But I was lucky and met a few Red Winged Blackbirds who didn't see me as a threat.

But now it was time to turn back and go home. The sky was dark and the air humid. The rain was just around the corner...

It was a nice hike. Just over an hour, it started in bright sunshine and ended shortly before the rain hit the ground. And I didn't expect to find a real forest in the middle of the big city! Not to mention birds, deer and coyote! I definitely need to come here again...

The pictures were taken on May 18, 2024.