Tomorrow (Saturday) morning from 8:30-12:30, Tom Schweich of the Colorado Native Plant Society will lead a Field Trip: Plants of North Table Mountain.
Traverse the west and southwest slopes of North Table Mountain on the City of Golden North Table Mountain Trail, then climb through the rim onto the top of the mesa, and return by way of the Jefferson County Open Space North Table Mountain Loop, crossing diverse plant communities where plains and foothills species mingle, including lichen-covered lava cliffs, slickrock and talus, grasslands, and shrublands, looking at and identifying plants as we go. We won’t do any hard-core keying, but some familiarity with local plants will be helpful. There will be a plant list with both scientific and common names.
The route is 2 to 2½ miles and will include a short steep climb with loose rock and a rock scramble requiring 2 to 3 foot steps up. A rattlesnake sighting is always possible on North Table Mountain. Western Poison Ivy (Toxicodendron rydbergii) is found on North Table Mountain. Several of the plants that we may find have stinging hairs.
Meet at North Table Mountain Trailhead. Off CO Hwy 93, 2.0 miles north on CO Hwy 93 from the intersection of US Hwy 6, CO Hwy 58 and CO Hwy 93. Watch for signs on the right, make a right turn on to the access road. Please carpool if possible, because the North Table Mountain trailhead parking lot gets very full on weekends.
For the Saturday, June 10th field trip, register at: https://conps.org/mfm-event-calendar/#!event/2017/6/10/metro-denver-chapter-field-trip-north-table-mountain
This field trip will be repeated on Monday, June 12th.
If you have questions, please contact Tom Schweich at tomas@schweich.com.
