Name this conifer......

[BuckSutherland]

I saw this tree in Rocky Mountain National Park. Wondering what it is??? Bark was extremely THICK. Was it a douglass fir? Elevation was probably around 8,000 feet. Growing down pretty close to a lake. Hoping someone can accurately tell me what it is. Would like to try and order a few to plant next year. Looked like the world's most stout conifer. Good Lord do I miss Colorado.....

 

[jsasker007]

I don't know what it is but I agree that bark has a cool look to it.

 

[Buckly]

I would say from the conifer descriptions in the Rocky Mountain park that tree most closely resembles a Douglas fir

 

[BuckSutherland]

It will be one of my missions in life to get back there and get a better look at that tree. Maybe I will try to get some seed from it somehow. Its by the south side of Lily lake south of Estes Park. That's Longs Peak in the background. Highest point in RMNP. Coolest place I have ever seen and cant wait to go back.

 

[Ben.MN/WI]

I have no idea what kind of tree that is, but it's a nice looking one.

When I go on hunting trips I've been known to leave a 5 gallon bucket and shovel in the truck to bring some cool seedlings back to the midwest. 75 years from now a logger will be wondering how some strange looking pines and spruce trees ended up here.

 

[H20fwler]

That is cool, it's probably crazy old.
We have a half dozen foot tall spruce trees in pots in the back yard that my son brought back from an elk trip in CO a couple years ago, he collected them right at the top of the tree line on the mountain he shot his bull on. I water them a couple times a week in summer if I remember when I water my grafts, they are very slow growers....maybe 1/4" in two and a half years? He says he is going to transplant them out to one of the farms sometime, I told him to be sure to cage them.

 

[BuckSutherland]

It was amazing for a flatlander like me to see the places where a tree could grow from in the Rocky Mountains. I agree with you H20. A bunch of them trees are ancient like the one in my pictures above. I suspect that is why it has such THICK bark. If you're ever in Estes Park go check out the Lumpy Ridge. Me and the kids put some rocks at the top of the mountains for everyone to see. Majestic views from up there and various trees growing in the middle of rocks the size of football fields. I could see hundreds of Elk down in the valley from up there.

 

[H20fwler]

The wife and I have been to Estes, awesome place to visit. Our kids have also all vacationed there.
The boys have been in that area a couple times fly fishing, they have been to a few of the western states on DIY hike in fishing trips. My youngest son does quite a bit of hunting out west for mulies/elk/antelope hiking in and packing animals out way further than I ever would.
When I was younger I had an uncle that lived in Denver and I would stop by and visit when we took ski trips.

Here are the spruce he brought back from one of his elk hunts. They are probably way older than than I would guess as slow as they grow.