US-16 Scenic Drive out of Buffalo, Wyoming

Blue wildflowers along scenic US-16 in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

Identifying the wildflowers is a challenge. These maybe bluebells, but we are not sure! We have several wildflowers books but all the flowers you will see in the Big Horn Mountains are not necessary pictured in the books.

 

 

 

 

 

Large aspen trees on a forest service road off US-16 deep in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

This is a stand of quaking aspen. Aspen is the most widely distributed tree in North America, being found from Canada to central Mexico. Aspen is not your normal tree. What you see is actually one organism with many "stems" that look to us like individual tree trunks.

As all trees in a given colony are part of the same organism, colony, named Pando, is considered the heaviest and oldest living organism at six million kilograms and approximately 80,000 years old. Aspens do produce seeds, but seldom grow from them. Pollination is inhibited by the fact that aspens are either male or female, and large stands are clones of the same sex.

Keep this in mind the next time you see a grove of aspen. They are all the same living organism, they just look like individual trees.

One other thing to ponder -- a colony or grove will either be male or female since the "colony" or grove is one individual.

Interesting Geology on side road off scenic US-16 in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

There is awesome geology to be seen along the forest service roads in the Big Horn Mountains.

Spruce Grouse in conifer forest off scenic US-16 in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

Can you spot the grouse in the center of this picture? He is perfectly camouflaged when not moving. There must have been 6 or more grouse in this covey. I can not spot any more but as we sat still and watched more appeared out of nowhere.

 

 

 

 

Spruce Grouse in conifer forest off scenic US-16 in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

This is a grouse, probably a spruce grouse considering where we spotted it, deep in the Big Horn Mountains. If indeed this is NOT a spruce grouse please let us know and we will correct things.

Just put "info" in the place of "FAKE" in this address: FAKE@travellogs.us

 

 

Wildflowers on scenic forest service road US-16 in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

The wildflowers along the roadside on the forest service roads in the Big Horn Mountains are numerous. They made us smile!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Talus slope on side road off scenic US-16 in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

I stopped so Joyce could get this picture of a talus slope on one of the scenic forest service roads we were taking off US-16 between Buffalo, Wyoming and Powder River Pass.

Talus is a term given to an accumulation of broken rock fragments at the base of cliffs and canyons.

View from deep in the Big Horn Mountains near Powder River Pass west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

This was a view from one of our scenic drives on those Forest Service Roads that are accessible from Scenic US-16. We were deep in the Big Horn Mountains and not far from Powder River Pass when Joyce took this picture.

 

 

 

 

 

Magnificent aspen grove deep in the Big Horn Mountains west of Buffalo, Wyoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Aspen Groves are thick and so beautiful in mid August when we took this drive in the Big Horn Mountains . We can only imagine how beautiful they would be during the fall foliage.

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Until next time remember how good life is.

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Mike & Joyce Hendrix

 

 

 

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Until next time remember how good life is.