COLORADO, USA — The views in Colorado's mountains are a little different this year than what we've seen recently. Most of the flowers are blooming at the same time, and it is making for some spectacular scenery.
Carpets of blue and, now, yellow are making for a vibrant wildflower year in places like Crested Butte. Ian Billick, executive director of the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory said we can thank a nice snowpack and a slow warm-up.
"What happened was, we had some nice, late snows in May. We also had colder temperatures that kind of slowed everything up . And it's great for the wildflowers because they've got that moisture they need. And it also means they're all happening around the same time. So they're not being spread out. We're getting that big pop." he said.
The surge of flowers is not unusual. Billick said, "It's kind of what normal used to be back in the 90s. And it's been a little less common in recent years. It's probably similar to something we've had in the last five to 10 years."
If you have a chance to head up to the mountains in the next twto to three weeks, keep in mind that you may need to go higher in elevation to see the wildflowers. Billick said to also expect to put in a little more effort, "One of the things that was unusual about this year was we had unusual avalanche activity. Even though the snow is starting to disappear at higher elevations, there's still places where the avalanches are blocking the road. So people might have to get out of their cars and walk around a little bit."
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