As of today, July 5, according to the Fire Incident Information System website, there are four major, active fires in Wyoming. Here in Casper, we were greeted this morning with a nice little rain. Apparently the firefighters down in Fox Park and Sheep Mountain west of Laramie also experienced some light rain and cooler temperatures…
Tag: high plains
Wyoming. Land of Extremes
Last year the Wyoming headlines read: “North Platte River reaches record high at Saratoga” “Platte River floods still threaten; half of record snow pack has yet to melt” “North Platte River Flooding 2011” “Planning, weather help Casper avoid flooding” “River keeps rising” “Casper preparing for high water levels” And this year, in the recent headlines…
Horton Hears a Who
I count three kinds of insects doing their job in this Mariposa Lily, or Calochortus nuttallii. A small, beautiful world. Click on a photo to see it at higher resolution.
Ready for Take Off
These seeds are ready for take off. As kids we all enjoyed the Dandelions in the yard. How magical it was to blow on the seed heads and watch the little parachutes take flight. As an adult I am amazed at the perfection of design of this family of flowers commonly called Composites, of the…
Penstemons I Have Known
In my last post I documented a few Penstemons I have successfully grown in my home landscape. As I hike the local area I have come across some other Penstemon species native to Central Wyoming and the Bighorn Mountains. I’d like to share a few photos. The Penstemon genus is quite varied, but the tubular…
Troubadour of Spring
It’s usually around the 15th of March that I hear my first Western Meadowlark of the year. The bright yellow male bird is often seen sitting on a fence post singing his song of spring. It’s a lovely sound, described as watery, warbly, flute-like. Some say the Meadowlark is crying, “Please pass the salt and…
Wild Bergamot, A Showy Native Mint
Monarda fistulosa is commonly called Horsemint, Wild Bergamot, and Bee Balm. As with many native plants found in the Rocky Mountains and Western Plains, it was used by Native Americans to treat a variety of ailments, from headaches to bronchitis. Even today it is used as a component in some herbal tea mixes, and the…
Wyoming Life 