Just some info you probably already know. Scattering ashes should be a covert operation carried out under the concealment of darkness.
I too have noticed the differences in trees and such in photos of old compared to recent. I would love to live in Colorado. I would probably spend all my time exploring the old mining sites. There is a young fella on Youtube named Dave Explores. Kinda irritating to listen to but has some decent video of mining sites all over the Idaho, Montanna, Utah areas.
Randall