"We all travel the Milky Way together, trees and men...In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks. The clearest way into the universe is through a forest wilderness." - John Muir

Take some time to explore around the quaking aspen. What you find might surprise you...

"Something marvelous is happening

underground, something we're just

starting to learn how to see."

-Richard Powers

Many species of animals rely on the quaking aspen for shelter and food.

Some common species of birds you may find in an Aspen include orioles, woodpeckers, finches, chickadees and more.

Quaking aspen grow up to 70' tall. In one year they can grow upwards of 24".

The bark is a smooth cream color with darker areas that have been 'scarred' from damages in the tree's past.

Following a fire, quaking aspen are one of the first trees to repopulate the burned area.

Within 20 years, these "pioneer trees" can become a mature forest due to their rapid growth rate.

Quaking aspen have an interconnected root system. Usually when you see multiple aspen trees close to each other, they are all connected underground where they share nutrients, send signals and reproduce asexually.

Due to this interconnectivity, quaking aspen can cover an area up to 100 acres.

The largest stand (that's a fancy way to say "group of trees") of quaking aspen is in Utah and has approximately 47,000 interconnected trees and weighs over 6,000 tons making it the largest living thing.

Fun fact - that's the weight of over 40 blue whales!