Ouzel Falls Trail

The trail to Ouzel Falls from the Wild Basin trailhead has had a profusion of wildflowers throughout the spring and summer.  So, when many of the flowers have disappeared from other areas of RMNP, another hike to Ouzel Falls was in order.

The Tall Coneflower or Goldenglow (Rudbeckia laciniata) is a late-summer flower found in moist shade; this clump was about 6 feet tall

The disk of the Tall Coneflower or Goldenglow (Rudbeckia laciniata) is domed, a characteristic of the coneflowers

Cowbane (Oxypolis fendleri) continue to bloom in wet soils

The grape-like fruit cluster of the beautiful spring-flowered Holly Grape (Mahonia repens)

Wild Mint (Mentha arvensis) has square stems, opposite toothed leaves, and is
found in damp soils

The tiny pink-violet flowers of Wild Mint (Mentha arvensis) occur in whorls around
the leaf nodes

Also fond of moisture is the tall-stemmed Monkshood (Aconitum columbianum)

The Monkshood (Aconitum columbianum) "flower" is actually made up of purplish-blue sepals

Pine Drops (Pterospora andromeda) is a parasitic plant lacking chlorophyll and living on the roots of conifers; it is commonly found in dry pine woods, often associated with lodgepole pines 

The cream-colored and bell-shaped flowers of Pine Drops (Pterospora andromeda) hang from short red stalks crowded along the tall flower stem

The egg-shaped white berries of Snowberry (Symphoricarpos sp) are almost hidden under
the large oval leaves

The tiny pink flower of Alpine Willowherb (Epilobium anagallidifolium) can still be found
growing in wet habitats

Twinberry Honeysuckle (Lonicera involucrata) flowers produce twin black berries
late in the summer