Lake City, CO and Cimarron Pass (What a trip.)

I'm back at the Gunnison Public Library to use the internet. We will be leaving Gunnison Saturday returning to Monument, CO where my phone card will work again.

Tuesday May 29th Bev and I went on another adventure. It wasn't just touring around but a real adventure.

We decided to take a scenic trip from Gunnison to Lake City, CO. It was a very nice ride and the scenery was outstanding as usual in this part of Colorado. The trip didn't end there though. From Lake City we decided drive to Silverton, CO via the Cimarron Pass which is over 14,000 feet.

On the way before we started our climb up the mountain I pulled off the dirt road to get out of the way of a truck and there it was, a memorial sign of a young police officer killed in action. The unique thing was his name is Larry McMaster and it was just luck that we saw his memorial. You never know it could be one of Bev's relatives.

Starting up the mountain we left the smooth dirt road through a gate (it gets closed when the road is impassable) and the road sign said "4 wheel drive vehicles, ATVs, snow mobiles, or horses only". Well, our Honda CRV is 4 wheel drive so we decided to tackle the road.

When they said 4 wheel drive they really meant it, the road was awful. Our little car climbed and climbed over the roughest terrain which was more of a dirt trail than road. There were large rocks and washed out areas and we could only go 2 to 5 mph most of the time with a max speed of 10 mph. The scenery was awesome but the road was on the edge of a high cliff with no guard rails.

We passed a tepee.

Some mountain goats.

We almost made it to the top of Cimarron Pass (we were so close). On a near vertical section just before the top as our car tried to climb over a couple of boulders we got a fright. Our front right wheel and our left rear wheel  were off the ground at the same time and the car teetered as we looked down over the cliff.

Well that was all I needed, the hell with Silverton! I slowly backed down quite a ways to an area where I could turn around. Remember, we were very close to the edge a the cliff with no guard rails.

We were sure glad to start our trek back down the mountain. After that section of road the trip down didn't seem so bad.

Other than the car covered with dust we safely made it down and headed back to Gunnison. By the time we got to Gunnison we were starved so we stopped at a Chinese Restaurant which was highly recommended to us. The food was great and we will surely go back again.

Another great day but again we were glad to get back home and relax.

As I mentioned we are leaving here Saturday returning to Monument, CO so I won't post any more blogs until I get internet at the camper again.

Tom & Bev Livin and Lovin the RV lifestyle with a few exciting moments.

Black Canyon South Rim and Crested Butte

Thursday May 24th we went back to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Last time we went to the north rim so this time we headed for the south rim to hike and check out the sites. I think the views from the south rim are just as, if not more, spectacular than the north rim.

The north rim does not have a visitor center but the south rim does so it was our first stop. Whenever we go to a national park visitor center we buy a hiking medallion as you can see from our hiking sticks. Our memories are failing so we use the sticks to remember where we've been.

We get quite a few comments and interest from the other hikers about our sticks. Many of them don't realize these medallions are available.

At the visitor center we viewed a video of the history of the canyon which was very interesting and informative.

The Black Canyon, as a geographic feature, is 48 miles in length and 2,772 feet deep at Warner Point. The Canyon is managed by both the National Park Service and Bureau of Land Management.

In just 48 miles in the canyon the Gunnison River loses more elevation than the 1,500 mile Mississippi River does from Minnesota to the Gulf of Mexico. The river drops an average of 96 feet per mile in the national park. We are able to hear the roar of the river's white water from the rim.

"Some are longer, some are deeper, some are narrower, and a few have walls as steep," writes geologist Wallace Hansen. "But no other canyon in North America combines the depth, narrowness, sheerness, and somber countenance of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison.

The visitor center is located at a very scenic part of the canyon with an awesome overlook.

As we drove along the south rim road there were many areas to stop and hike out to the overlooks. One thing that surprised us was the number of bikers pumping their bikes up the steep road. I like to bike but not these roads with the steep up and downs. (Pete, you would like the steep roads. Wayne and I would not.)

The trails to the overlooks range from 100 yards to a couple of miles and along the paths we were treated to the sites and smells of the wild flowers. At each of the overlooks we were again amazed by the awesome views.

It was a great day although my foot did get sore on the last trail but it was worth it. We were both glad to get back to the camper and prop up our feet.

Friday May 25th we took a road trip to Crested Butte which is up in the mountains with the ski areas.

It is a quaint little town for artists, tourists, and of course skiers. Bev and I walked up main street to check out all the little shops and viewed some interesting art along the way. We did stop in one place for ice cream. (Life is good when your eating ice cream.)

We headed further up the mountain towards the ski area, the place is loaded with high priced houses and many condos.

This was another great day. The weather was clear and the temperature comfortable.

The great thing about living and traveling in an RV is you wake up to new scenery out your front window on a regular basis. There is so much to see and do in this great country of ours that we will never be able to see it all no matter how long we live. Other countries are great and we have seen some but why go elsewhere when we have the best to offer right here.

Many people need consistency in their lives and need to wake up in the same place everyday, seeing, and doing the same things everyday. I can understand that and we have that consistency because we wake up in our home every day but with new and exciting scenery out our window.

Bev and Tom Livin and Lovin the RV lifestyle.

I'm back! I haven't posted a blog lately because we just spent our time visiting Pam, Kent, and Elisabeth along with relaxing around the camper. We started our touring again so now I have something to say.

Monday May 14th Bev, Holly, Kevin, and I went to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. We checked out the visitor center and drove around the campus taking pictures.

Inside the Visitor Center is a glider hanging from the ceiling. The cadets can go up in gliders like this one to view the academy from the air.

We didn't spend much time there because we had to drop Holly and Kevin at the Airport for their flight home.

We really had a great time with Holly and Kevin while they were in Colorado for Elisabeth's graduation. The highlight was when Kevin made us all steaks at Pam and Kent's house. He used Fillet Mignon cuts and grilled them to absolute perfection. This was the best steak dinner we ever had. The proof was that everyone cleaned every morsel of food from their plates. Thanks again Kevin it was fantastic.

A couple of days later Bev and I returned to the Air Force Academy to see the chapel. Bev had seen it a few years ago but I have never seen the chapel. I'm glad we returned.

This is a court yard looking from the steps of the chapel.

Wednesday May 16th Bev and I went to the Garden of the Gods which is a Colorado Springs city park.

Bev thinks the Perkins in this plaque could be a distant relative. Yeah, sure.

The amazing Balanced Rock. Amazingly, the narrow pedestal supporting Balanced Rock has held the 700-ton weight for thousands of years.

Here is a brave sole climbing a rock. The park issues permits for people that want to rock climb. They are first checked out to see if they have the right equipment and are experienced climbers.

Around 300 million years ago, the Ancestral Rockies once stood here. Over time the magnificent peaks eroded into swift streams full of sediments. These sediments were eventually pressed and cemented into solid rock. The new rocks took the form of sands full of iron oxide creating red sandstone rock, muds forming softer, more delicate shales, and a mixture of sand and pebbles called conglomerate.

The rocks were exposed more than 60 million years ago when the existing Rocky Mountains rose. As the mountains rose the pressure forced the rocks to crack, break, and to stand on end. What we see today are the rocks that were subject to the forces of wind and water.

Thursday May 17th Bev and I decided to hike to the summit of Pikes Peak which is over 14,000 feet high. It was quite a hike but we made it to the top.

Actually we did hike up to where the viewing platform is but only a short walk from where the Cog Railway car stopped. We like to hike but 14,000 feet? I think not.

This makes the third Cog Railway we were on. The other two are the Cog Railway on Mount Washington in New Hampshire, and the Cog Railway up to the Matter Horn in Switzerland.

Here is a photo of the Cog Railway station (front and back) at the bottom of Pikes Peak.

We are still climbing.

We are getting close.

We made it to the top.

We hiked from where the Cog Railway car stopped to this viewing platform. Hey, that was enough hiking at this altitude! The air is thin up here.

I know, this is an awful lot to cover in one blog but we were always on the go and I didn't have a chance to post a blog.

Tomorrow Saturday the 19th we are back on the road again. We will be heading to Gunnison, CO and the Blue Mesa RV Resort. We have been there before and liked the area so we are returning to see the sights we missed.