True Grit ; Some of State's Smallest Also Its Toughest

Summary

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To see the rare Pikes Peak parsley, you have to climb Pikes Peak. That's the only place the endemic wildflower grows. But to really see it, Beatrice Willard, the revered alpine botanist, once wrote, "It takes getting down on your hands and knees - or even your stomach - to examine a mini forest at your toes."

The parsley's showy yellow flowers are a small spark in an explosion of blossoms that engulf the slopes above tree line for the brief alpine summer. But like almost all alpine plants, its tiny leaves and flowers grow in a low, aerodynamic mound, hugging the ground like a mountaineering tent. You have to stick your nose in the dwarf garden to appreciate its minute wonders.

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Extract

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True Grit ; Some of State's Smallest Also Its Toughest

Now is the time, because the mountain blooms are at their peak; above tree line, summer ends before you can say Augus...

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