The ascent of Pike’s Peak in time of flowers is a surprise for those who expect to see only the rough boulder and riven rock. “Flowers deck their inclined sides in great blocks of color, and litter their terraces and woodland edges in variegated confusion. There is no difficult pass where they are not found; no dusky glen that does not harbor them; scarcely any height on which their beauty will not appear to gladden him who toils to reach the summits.”
“’Tis legend told of primal days
When ‘Manitou,’ like clay,
The gray rock mountain shapes did raise
To celebrate his sway.
He was not pleased. The mountains bare
Were bleak and dull and gray.
He snatched a rainbow from the air,
To use its colors gay.