Thursday, June 16, 2011

Stats for the day:

·         11,529 steps (on pedometer)

·         42°F at 6am at 8820 feet

·         Highest elevation reached during the day: 9740 feet on hike to Judd Falls (Gothic, CO)

·         Dead Animal Carcasses: 1 (I think it was a calf.)

We’re in Crested Butte, CO, Wildflower Capital.  We’re a few weeks early for the high season of wildflowers, but we went for a hike in Gothic, CO, which is the home to the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory.  We hiked the Copper Creek Trail to Judd Falls within Gunnison National Forest. 

Math thoughts for today:

·         Numbers from the Fibonacci Sequence seen in wildflower petals and pinecone spirals. 

·         Parallel lines created by the trees.  (Are they truly parallel? ) ; )

·         Lots of elevations which can be used for a number of calculations, including percent change

·         Decomposition rates (An animal skeleton, with just the tiniest bit of hair left, caught me by surprise on the path by the waterfall.)

Shout-outs:

·         Katie (Summers) Schmitt – I looked at the view of so many trees from right next to the trunk.  This habit came from you!

·         Posh Chocolat and Jay Willenbrock – Brian brought my mom a hat – and she’s wearing it on her hike!