Flower for the Day 9-6-12 The Blue Gentian

 The Blue Gentian  (Gentiana)

Our new friends Fritz Fritschel and Carol Langner from Meeker Park and Honolulu

proudly showed us their newly blooming blue gentians (8-8-12). Fritz quoted a verse

from Rainer Maria Rilke:

                  The Ninth Dueno Elegy

... The wanderer does not bring a handful of earth,

    The unutterable, from the mountain slope to the valley,

    but a "pure word he has learned,

    the blue and yellow gentian".

...Here is the time for the unutterable,

   its country.

...Behold, I'm alive on what? Neither childhood nor future

   opens less. Surplus of existence

   is welling up in my heart.

    

Bonus 8-7-12 Mary's Lake outflow

Water is crucial in Colorado. Estes Park water comes from the western slope and is

pumped out of a tunnel into Mary's Lake. I won't say what this reminded my wife of.

Bonus 9-5-12 Coyote

I noticed this young coyote on a morning walk on the 

Fish Creek Trail. He was concentrating on catching 

breakfast and was unconcerned about me.

Flower for the Day 9-5-12 Wild Blue Flax

Wild blue flax (Linum perrene lewisii) is a perennial

wild flower that I found by the Fish Creek Trail, my 

morning walking path in Estes Park. By mid afternoon 

it was already closed for the night. I find myself closing

for the night earlier than before.

Bonus 9-4-12 Bald Eagle

Behind our cabin in Estes Park there is a dead tree on which a 

bald eagle roosts usually late in the afternoon. There is another 

dead tree on the north shore of Lake Estes where he can be 

seen devouring the fish that he has caught in the lake. He is

affectionately called "Baldy" by local birders.

He is named Haliaeetus leucocephalus which is  sea (halo)

eagle (aeetos) with a white (leukos) head (cephalus).

My son Gordon caught him with his mouth open.

In flight he is 

breathtaking..

Flower for the Day 9-4-12 Surprise Lily

Surprise Lilies are also called naked ladies. We have a 

large stand of them but only a few came up this year.

  

There are six blossoms per stalk.

Flower for the Day 9-3-12 Zinnia

There are fewer zinnias this year but they are just as spectacular especially in my

favorite color. Of course rain for the last three days really helps too.

Flower for the Day 9-2-12 Purple Cone Flower

Despite the drought we had our usual bumper crop of purple cone flowers.

Flower for the Day 9-1-12 We are back! Gladiolus

Gladiolus  We have a large stand of gladiolus which are also

called sword lily because of the shape of the leaves. As you 

can see they have been fried but maybe next year.

We are back from our vacation in Estes Park Colorado and 

from having a second cataract operation last week. Over the 

next few weeks I will be sharing some Colorado flowers and 

adventures since our gardens at home are only now starting 

to tilt toward fall after the recent drought.

Bonus 8-17-12 Middle St. Vrain Creek Hike

And after a light lunch the boys and girls 
went up the trail looking for the meaning of life.