In my last post to you all, I alluded to a place with red soil, and dry air. This trail has held a special place in my heart since I was small, and was just as special when I hiked it this past week. Mushroom Rock is the epitome of Western Colorado landscape with it Pinyon, Blue Spruce, and native Sage. The trail is mostly shaped by rock, colored Red by the Iron Oxide found in the soil. It is incredibly steep, but at the top, there is not only the Mushroom Rock but a view of Mount Sopris and the entire town of Carbondale. When I am up there, it feels like the entire valley opens up and I can actually breathe again. That being said, after being at sea level for three months, my heart and lungs might disagree. 8,000 feet is no joke.
The Red Hill the trail cuts through was formed in the build-up of pressure of the North American continental plate that formed the Rocky Mountain chain. Another factor though, that has contributed to the amount of iron in the soils is the presence of two currently dormant volcanoes in the area. When volcanic eruptions occur, they release many minerals into the soil and atmosphere that can be rich in Iron. This, combined with the high elevation and lack of precipitation, facilitates the vegetation and soil health in the area.
The Red Hill trail system has been home to me in times of joy, and times of crisis, but no matter the need or reason, it has been home to me my whole life. Being up there with my mother and sister and watching the young couples mountain biking, dogs running ahead of their owners, and my own sneakers becoming more and more coated in red dust. It made my heart whole, and just in time for Thanksgiving thoughts.
As I hiked, I thought of the differences between my current landscape and my phenology site back in Burlington. The largest and the most obvious difference would be the presence of water, whether it be bodies of water or actual precipitation. My phenology place in Vermont has been shaped by the several saltwater bodies in Lake Champlain history and that can be seen in the presence of sand lining the trail. Further, contrasting with the aforementioned erroneous soils of the Western Slope, the salt water oceanic history has left more Calcium rich soils in the lower Burlington area. There is a much higher level of vegetation stemming directly from the astronomical increase in precipitation. The presence of an understory is representative of the fact that there is more water which allows for more flora to grow and prosper without outcompeting for resources other than shade. In such a dry climate, the lack of water is the main limiting resource in the Red Hill area, that most vegetation grows to be the same lesser height.
Western Colorado has also been much less of an industrial hub than Burlington in its history. The main purpose of the area surrounding Mushroom Rock was housing for old mining towns higher in the mountains, and development for the Homestead Act citizens. There was cattle ranching, just as there is in the Burlington area, but because my phenology site is so much closer to the Waterfront where most of the logging and industrial shipping took place, the effects of the land use in that specific spot varied. Because of this, and because the deforestation that resulted from and caused the industrialization of the Burlington waterfront, there is much more of a presence of newer growth trees and vegetation than there is in the dry Pinyon and Spruce forests found in the Red Hill area.
I hope all you readers out there were able to get some true R&R this Thanksgiving week. Happy times!