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Northstar Preserve

Two stations were installed at Northstar in the fall of 2015. The land is managed by Pitkin County, and two companion stations are located near each other: one in a stand of aspen trees and the other in a transition zone between a fen and a meadow. The area is considered of special interest as there is curiosity as to whether the ecosystems adjacent to the nearby riparian zone may be drying out over time.

Smuggler Mountain

The Smuggler Mountain Station was installed in 2012 and began collecting data in the summer of 2013. Located at an elevation of around 8,970 feet, the station is located in a mixed conifer forest that includes spruce, pine, fir, and some aspen. This station is powered by solar panel and measures air temperature, relative humidity, soil moisture at 2, 8, and 20 inch depths. In the fall of 2014, soil temperature at 8 inches was added as well.

Penny Hot Springs, CO

Submitted by admin on Tue, 2015-12-29 15:29
A visitor looks out from the Penny Hot Springs, near Carbondale, Colorado. Tourism drives much of the Roaring Fork Valley's economy, but tourism also can impact the ecosystems that support it. Credit: E. Osenga 2012

Elk Lake and Snowmass

Submitted by admin on Tue, 2015-12-29 15:28

A stereograph of Elk Lake and Snowmass Mountain in Colorado (displaying the same image side by side) shows the Roaring Fork Valley during the time before removal of the Ute people. Politics, as well as economics or ecology, can shape a landscape. Credit: William H. Jackson, Hayden Survey 1873.

Snowmass

Submitted by admin on Tue, 2015-12-29 12:33

A stereograph (showing the same image side by side) of Snowmass Mountain shows a scene from Roaring Fork Valley more than half a century before the development of ski trails. Credit: William H. Jackson, Hayden Survey 1873

Maroon Bells, CO

Submitted by admin on Tue, 2015-12-29 12:26

The Maroon Bells, Colorado still retain a light dusting of snow above the green vegetation at lower elevations. As climate patterns change, the amount of snow in the Roaring Fork Valley and how late into summer it lasts may also change. Credit: Emily Jack-Scott

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