Sunday, January 20, 2008

Land In Colorado

My family has property in a subdivision, The Reserve on Elkhorn Ridge, in Fraser Colorado.  It's a small town in the Fraser Valley, home to the Winter Park ski resort. Last spring my brothers and I went out to look at the bark beetle situation.  Over the past few years the bark beetles have gotten worse and worse.  The Homeowners Association required we cut down dead and infected trees and spray to save others.  We ended up cutting down over 500 trees and spraying 250 more on out 12 acres.  My parents ended up cutting down all the trees under 6 in. in circumference, almost everyone on their lot. 
It's a mess.  If you look at the number of trees left in The Reserve it is pitiful, but the number of green trees is outstanding compared to the rest of the valley.  Google maps recently updated its image of the valley and I was floored when i saw it. I had to call my brother and have him look at it and he was floored as well.  

These are pictures are from the spring visit. 
Here, other than the juvinal moose, you can see some of the infected trees
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This image is of The Reserve and reminds me of how green it was this past spring but you can still see a few brown trees out there.  

The link to the google maps is The Reserve at Elkhorn Ridge.  You'll be looking right at my brother and I's property (between the road and the meadow with an old jeep trail in the middle of it).  To the North is my parents property, now almost naked and treeless.  If you zoom out two and look toward the north west, into the valley, it gives a true perspective of the damage the bark beetles have done.  All that brown is dead infected trees.  Not only is it a bark beetle infection issue, but all those dead trees are basically kindling.  If there is any remote fire, the whole valley will be gone.  I sound like such a hippy but I've never had anything like this effect me so personally.  

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