Marsh-marigolds!

"For myself I hold no preferences among flowers, so long as they are wild, free, spontaneous."

Edward Abbey 

Marsh-marigolds always amaze me.  They are one of the first alpine and subalpine flowers to emerge when the snow begins to melt.  Their arrow-shaped leaves push up right through the snow, filled with a reddish pigment that helps warm the plant.  Then they appear in marshes - often within pools of standing water - and line the streambanks with their star-like flowers.

Photos: (Bottom) Marsh-marigolds blooming along a streambank; (Top) and pushing up their leaves through the snow;  Lion Lakes, Wild Basin, Rocky Mountain National Park, CO; July 11, 2014