Fireweed--that plant which traditionally takes over in waste areas.
I beleive this is a stand of wild larkspur. I didn't wade through the knee high vegetation to view it close up. I tried the zoom on the new camera but it didn't magnify as much as I expected.
This is obviously a member of the umbelliferae family, although I don't know which name to give it. It resembles the angelica I've seen in the Maritimes, but could be a sturdy water parsnip. I need to unearth my wildflower book and see if I can be more positive.
A clump of lupin.
These asters are very like the New England asters which cover roadsides and wild areas on the east coast and westward into Ohio. The color was actually a deeper lavender than shows in the photo.
This was a bit of a tended area near a lake in Yellowstone National Park. There was a paved parking lot as it is apparently a popular turn-out for tourists. The prime season for the mountain wildflowers is past. They are at their prettiest in mid July. Many of the plants are recognizable as forms of those found in New England. I've noticed that plants which would bloom in succession over the longer spring and summer season there, bloom here mostly at the same time. The cold mountain nights and the short summer at high altitudes brings the various plants into a rush of blossoms, acres of color. One of the lovliest is the wild cranesbill in varied shades of pink and magenta. They had mostly gone to seed and I didn't photograph the beaky little pods. Stands of goldenrod echoed the bright sunshine and there were a few sprawling bushes of wild roses along the tracks, dusty and crinkled, but so sweet. Their scent was a joy.
