San Juan Skyway

Sunday we drove the 250 mile San Juan Skyway loop.  This drive is designated a scenic byway, and we definitely were not disappointed!  It was another Sunday spent in God’s natural cathedrals.

We began by driving along the west side of the loop.  This takes you through a valley of the San Juan Mountains along the Delores River.  The sides of the mountains were covered with glowing aspens, at the base was a strip of land used for ranching, and then the river ran along the road.  On the other side were more mountains.  There are no words to describe the incredible beauty of this area.  My pictures don’t come close to showing you, but I’ll show you a few anyway. 

Eventually the road led to the mountaintops.  We found this lake nestled among the mountains.  It’s called Trout Lake.

After some white knuckle stretches in the mountaintops, we arrived in Telluride.  What a great little town even if you don’t ski. 

They have a gondola system which is the first and only free public transportation of its kind in the US.  All the electricity to power it comes from wind.   You can ride to Mountain Village and to the various ski runs at the top.  There is also an extensive mountain biking trail system up there.  Riders can bring their bikes on the gondola and must sign a waiver at the top.  This is for serious bikers only!

These next pictures are of some of the ski runs minus the snow.  I was scared just standing at the top and looking down.  I can’t imagine actually skiing down these.  I’ve never downhill skied, but still!  Both of our boys ski, so these pictures are for them to dream about :)  The town at the bottom is Telluride.

There is a small community up there called Mountain Village.  They even have their own little airport.  You can see the runway on the right in this picture.

 

This Dusky Grouse sitting in the tall grass on the edge of one of the ski paths.

 

 

 

 

After leaving Telluride, we began driving on the east side of the loop; more white knuckle mountain roads, but oh the views!

We stopped in a little town called Ouray to hike to the Box Canyon Falls.  This waterfall rushes down through rock canyon walls.  The water is naturally heated underground, and the town uses if for a hot springs pool complex.

 

 

 

On the outskirts of Silverton, Colorado are the Red Mountains.  The red colors are beautiful, but are not natural.  In the late 1800s, silver mines dominated these mountains.  Millions of dollars in silver were pulled from the mines.  However, water seeping through the waste rock left behind, has caused the red coloring.  There is actually a movement to restore the mountains to their natural state.  If you look closely, you can see some of the mine buildings and railroad tracks left behind.

 

I took many more pictures, but these will give you an idea of the magnificent, amazing, phenomenal, beautiful, breathtaking images we saw.  I highly recommend this area to everyone especially in the fall.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument

On Saturday we started our day at the Anasazi Heritage Center.  It is the gateway to Canyons of the Ancients National Monument.  The center is an excellent museum with many interesting displays about Ancestral Puebloen life on the Great Sage Plain.  We walked along the 1/2 mile path to see a view of the McPhee Reservoir.

This bush called a Gambel Oak was growing all along the trail.  I never realized oak could grow as a bush.  I’ve only ever seen oak as very large trees.  The leaves had the same shape as those of an oak tree only smaller.

This mountain is called Sleeping Ute Mountain.  Legend has it the mountain is a sleeping warrior god and some day he’ll wake up and help the Ute people again.  His head is on the right, the large hump are his folded arms, further down are his knee and then his foot.  The next picture is the same mountain from the other side.  Now his head is on the left.  For some reason, I’m fascinated with natural wonders that are supposed to be in the shape of something else.  I look for shapes in clouds, too :)

Canyon of the Ancients National Monument was established in 2000 and covers 166,000 acres.  More than 6,000 archaeological sites have been recorded.  This area has the highest known archaeological site density in the nation.  We drove through a good portion of it.  I’ve never seen so much sage and juniper. 

We visited Lowry Pueblo which is the only developed site within the monument.  It has been excavated to give visitors a chance to see the 40 rooms at this site.  A roof has been added to help preserve the site.  Otherwise, it looks much as it did when it was excavated.

Visitors are allowed to go inside through small doorways.  These people were small.  Average height for men was 5’3” and for women 5’1”. 

This is a kiva inside the structure.  A kiva was a large room used for ceremonies and group events.

 

There was also a large kiva.  The stones on the floor represent a winter and summer figure.

 

 

Our last stop was the Hovenweep National Monument.  This is a canyon with a number of towers built by the Pueblo people about 700 years ago.  The masonry skills of these people is amazing.  There are a number of different sized towers along this canyon suggesting there was an entire community living here. 

It was another beautiful day with temperatures in the upper 60s. 

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Wolf Creek Pass – Yikes!

Yesterday we traveled about 220 miles from south central Colorado to Cortez in the southwestern corner of the state.  It took us about 5 hours.

We had heard on the news that there had been some snow in the mountains on Thursday night, but reports were that it was just an inch or so and that there were no road problems.  We also knew we were going to have to travel through the Wolf Creek Pass at 10,800 feet.  There have been a few other times on this trip that we’ve traveled over or through mountains which made me nervous.  Those were nothing compared to yesterday!

I must say the road was great.  There were many semis, and it was definitely a road designed for large vehicles to use.  It was just so long, and we kept going up and up and up.  The views at the bottom were beautiful with the snow on the top and the aspens still in fall color further down.

The truck performed like a champ again.  There was another stretch where our top speed was 30 MPH, but most semis were going just as slow.  As we neared the top, we were surrounded by snow.  The road was a bit wet in places, and I was concerned it could be slippery.  I was gripping the door handle so tight, my palms were sweating.  We made it across the top just fine, and then we headed down.  I don’t know which was worse, going up or coming down :)

About half way down we stopped at a pullout to let the brakes cool down.  I’m so thankful for Kevin’s driving skills.  There is no way I would attempt that drive.  He’s had enough of the mountains, though.  For the rest of this trip, we’re heading for flatter areas :)

Here’s a picture from the bottom.  Yikes, we just drove over that mountain!

There was a definite change in the terrain as we headed west.  Everything was much greener.  It didn’t seem as desert-like.  There were many ranches with cattle and horses grazing the land. 

We’re staying seven nights at the La Mesa RV Resort in Cortez, Colorado.  It’s another Passport America park, and it’s the nicest one we’ve encountered so far.  It’s older and small with only 38 RV sites.  But it’s clean and has full hook-up sites with 30 amp service and is conveniently located to many places we want to visit. We have a picnic table with a vinyl tablecloth and bench covers.  Sometimes, it’s the little things that make a place nice.  Also, the lady in the office was very helpful in pointing out places of interest and telling us how to get to them.  There is no wow factor, but since we’ll be gone most days, it’s a perfect place to stay while touring the area.

We’re paying the weekly rate which is $120 plus $11.30 tax.  We have an end site so are not looking at any other RVs.  They have wi-fi, but it only works near the office.  We have a strong enough signal to use our own internet connection.  The place is also peacefully quiet.   The last place we stayed was right off the highway and there was a train track on the other side of the campground.

View from our front door.

 

 

 

 

 

 

View out of our back window.

 

 

 

 

 

Here’s our site.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wishing everyone a great weekend!

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge

On Wednesday we drove about 20  miles to the Alamosa Wildlife Refuge.  Literature I read said that the visitor center was open through November and that Sand Hill Cranes came to the refuge in March and October.

We were disappointed to find that the visitor center was closed, and there was not a crane in sight.  In fact, we saw very little wildlife of any kind.

We did see something amazing, though.  There was a 2.5 mile auto tour through the refuge.  I saw a large bird fly up from a canal along the side of the road with something long dangling from its claws.  The bird landed in a field quite a distance from us.  We got out the binoculars and saw what we thought was an owl eating a snake.  I zoomed in my camera and took a picture.  After cropping the picture further, it’s definitely an owl.  This is the first time we’ve seen an owl in the wild!

We also discovered that the Rio Grande River runs through the refuge; the very same river that is the border between the US and Mexico.  It’s headwaters are actually in the San Juan Mountains in Colorado.  Here’s a picture of the river with the headwater mountains way off in the distance.

The auto tour had several signs along the route.  Even though we saw very few birds, we know there must be many that hang out in the refuge because the signs were covered with bird doo-doo.  So much of it that it was hard to read some of the signs.  Maybe they should get some volunteer workampers to clean the signs.  What do you think, Judy?

One of the mountains that dominates this area is called Mount Blanca.  It is the fourth highest mountain in the state.  It frequently has its head in the clouds.  I was able to get pictures with its head in and out of the clouds :)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Colorado has 54 mountains peaks that are over 14,000 feet tall.  That’s more than any other state in the US.  The mountains we’ve seen are truly spectacular!

Another thing we’ve noticed is how people plop their homes in the middle of nowhere.  Frequently, there is a house or mobile home out on the range without any sign of how they even get to it.  I thought this one was particularly interesting.  It’s a trailer with 3 railroad cars behind it.  You can only see the first railroad car, but there are 2 more lined up behind the front one.  We’ve actually seen several homes with railroad cars in the yard.  Maybe they’re cheap storage.  Along with the homes on the range, there are also many homes perched up on top of hills and mountains.  Again, often we can’t figure out how they even get up there.  It’s amazing where people choose to live.

Today we’re staying home.  Time to do some laundry and cleaning :)

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Great Sand Dunes National Park

We arrived at Blanca RV Park on Monday afternoon after another trip through mountains.  There was about an 8 mile stretch where we were climbing the entire time.  Kevin is pretty sure he heard the truck chanting “I think I can, I think I can”.  At one point, our top speed was 35 MPH, but we made it!

I found this campground in Passport America.  The plusses are it is close to Great Sand Dunes National Park and the price is $10 a night for a full hook-up site with 30 amp service. There are also showers and laundry, but I haven’t checked them out.  Otherwise, the place is pretty much a dump.  There are a few mobile homes in the back with a bunch of kids running around.  There are also several construction workers staying here for the summer.  The highway is close, and you can hear trucks going by.  So, it definitely doesn’t have any wow factor, but the price is right for a few days of exploring the area.

Yesterday we spent several hours at Great Sand Dunes National Park.  It’s another amazing place!  This is a 30 square mile area of sand dunes nestled between two mountain ranges.  Due to the contrasting direction of the winds coming off of each mountain range, the sand is blown back and forth, keeping it in the valley.  The tallest dune is 750 feet making it the highest sand dune in North America.  It’s one of those areas where you’re driving along the range, and all of a sudden these amazing sand dunes appear. The Sangre De Cristo Mountain range is behind the dunes, and the views of the dunes and mountains are incredible.  Pictures just don’t do it justice.

We started out at the visitor’s center where we watched another very informative movie.  There were several displays showing how the dunes were formed and explaining the history of the area.  This was the view from the back of the visitor center.  The tiny dots on the highest dune are people.  That dune is named High Dune and is 650 feet high.  If you climb to the top of it, you can see the tallest dune, Star Dune, which is another 1-1/2 miles behind High Dune.

We thought we were up for the challenge of climbing to the top of High Dune.  After all, we hiked on trails with higher elevation gains last week in RMNP.  So, we drove to the parking lot, and set off.  I had my hiking pole which came in very handy.  I must say the altitude really kicked my butt this time.  Climbing in sand is tough, and it was pretty much straight up once you got to the dunes.  I was really having trouble breathing, and Kevin didn’t look so good either.  I’d climb about 20 or 30 steps, and have to stop because it felt like my heart was going to explode, and I couldn’t breath.  We got about three-quarters of the way to the top of High Dune, and I decided it was time to quit.  I was getting a little scared that pushing on might be medically unsound.  The picture shows how far we got.  High Dune is the highest peak in the back.  We only saw a few people make it to the top.  Most turned back far from the top.  One of the rangers we talked to last week told us that it actually takes people about 4 months to fully acclimate to the higher elevation.

Here’s Kevin on the way down.  If you look closely, you can see people on different parts of the dunes.  There are no paths.  Hikers are allowed to go anywhere they want. 

Further into the park was the park campground.  There was a 2 mile round trip trail starting at the campground called Dunes Overlook Trail.  That sounded like a good trail for us.  It was pretty much uphill the entire mile to the top.  Kevin wants me to be sure and tell you that all trails in Colorado go uphill :)

The views of the dunes along this trail were breathtaking.  The pine trees that grow here are called Pinon trees.  Here are a few pictures of the views from the trail.

On the left side of this picture is the parking lot.  You can see how far it is to climb to the top.

We had a very enjoyable day exploring Great Sand Dunes National Park.  It was another tiring day, but as I’ve said before, it’s a good kind of tired :)

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Tunnel Drive Trail

Sunday morning we decided to take a hike on the Tunnel Drive Trail on the outskirts of Canon City, Colorado.

As an aside, Canon City is pronounced Canyon City.  When the town was established, a newspaper reporter wrote the new name using the Spanish spelling which has that little symbol over the first n (I forget what it’s called).  Most every place I saw it written, it was without the symbol.  Funny how one little mistake can change things forever.

We checked out the trail online, and it was said to be a 2 mile hike with a steep incline at the beginning.  I figured this would be a great time to try out my new hiking pole.  The first hundred yards of the trail were somewhat steep, but not that bad.  Once you got to the top, the rest of it was a nice flat, wide gravel trail right along the side of the cliff.  I liked using the hiking pole on the uphill and downhill part of the trail.  I ended up carrying it on the flat portion because it felt like it was slowing me down.  It’s collapsible so at least it wasn’t a problem carrying it.  I also think I might end up with a blister on my thumb if I used it for a long time.  Now I’ll probably need a hiking glove :)

Near the beginning are three tunnels right through the rock.  This picture is of the first two.  The third is a little further down the trail and is the longest one.

The entire hike was on a cliff along the Arkansas River with some beautiful views.  This train is the Royal Gorge Train which you can ride from the Royal Gorge Bridge to Canon City (about 10 miles). 

This area of Colorado is considered to be high desert.  They’ve had an unusually warm and dry fall so everything is quite brown and dusty.  Along the trail were quite a few cactus as well as these little sunflowers.

 

 

This rock formation looks like a stegosaurus to me.  His head is laying down on the right, then you have his spikes on his back and his tail on the left with a spike.  Either you see it, or you think I’m crazy :)

It took us about 1-1/2 hours to finish the 4 mile hike.  We headed back home to watch the Green Bay Packers win their game and spent the rest of the day relaxing.

Right now we’re driving to Blanca, Colorado to spend the next few days exploring in the Great Sand Dunes National Park area.

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!

Florissant Fossil Beds

One of my favorite activities to do while traveling is to visit National Parks and Monuments.  I’ve never been disappointed in what they have to offer.

On Saturday we drove about 50 miles to the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument.  This area is internationally renowned for its variety and number of fossils, particularly of insects and plants.  Paleontologists have collected more than 50,000 specimens for museums and universities around the world.

The fossils are from a time period of 35 million years ago when the area had a much warmer environment.  Erupting volcanoes sent ash and mudslides through the valley, preserving plants and insects in remarkably detailed fossils.

Also found here are fossilized redwood trees.  The mudslides preserved about 15 feet of the bottom of the trees.  This picture is of one of the tree stumps.  Kevin is on the right side reading the sign.  You can see how large these trees were.

We spent about three hours at the site.  We watched the 15 minute movie, perused the displays at the visitor center, and went on a moderate 4 mile hike.  The hiking trail took us to the Hornbek homestead.  This homestead was owned by Adeline Hornbek who was the first woman to file for a homestead site on land that is now part of Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument.  She was a remarkable widowed pioneer woman who established a successful ranch while raising four children.  The original house is still intact.  The other period buildings have been moved to the site.

From Florissant we drove to the town of Cripple Creek.  We visited the Pikes Peak Heritage Center at Cripple Creek which had an excellent movie explaining how the the town sprang up in the late 1800s after the discovery of gold in the mountains of the Pikes Peak range.  At it’s peak, the town had around 50,000 residents, 90 doctors, 15 newspapers, and numerous gaming parlors with ladies for entertaining.  More than 22,400,000 ounces of gold were extracted from over 500 mines in the area.  Three commercial railroads were established.  As mines began to close, the town experienced some hard times.  It has reinvented itself as a tourist area by opening many casinos.  There are over 18 casinos in this small town.  The main historic buildings have almost all been turned into casinos.  There are also a couple of mine tours, a train ride, and numerous small museum buildings.  We enjoyed the Heritage Center because it had excellent displays and it was free :)

Gold is still being mined in the area, but is pretty much controlled by one company.  You can see these mine shafts on top of the mountains.  This picture shows one of them as well as the aspen trees.  Many of the aspens are losing their leaves.

Our drive was along an area known as the Gold Belt Tour.  The road meanders through a valley between two mountain ranges.  The scenery was magnificent.  There are many ranches throughout this area.  On our morning drive, we saw numerous road signs warning to watch for cattle, but we saw only a few cattle.  On the way back, we saw many cattle, including these guys in the road.  They must have been napping earlier :)

As we were heading back, we encountered a little bit of rain.  This is the first rain we’ve had since we’ve been in Colorado.  The clouds over the mountains created some beautiful scenes.  Below are some scenic pictures from our drive yesterday.

You can see the valley and ranch land between the mountains.

I thought these rocks were cool.

This mountain is Pike’s Peak.

I get so excited when witnessing nature’s beauty!

Finally, I promised I’d tell you which famous person’s profile is depicted in the Royal Gorge mountain picture I posted yesterday.  Pidge was the first person to respond correctly with John F. Kennedy.  I liked Karen and Al’s guess of Archie and Judy’s guess of Abe Lincoln.  Thanks also to Judy for identifying the bird as a mountain bluebird.  After looking up images of mountain bluebirds, I think it was a female.  Thanks, Judy!

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!