Colorado Vacation- Colorado Trail- Day 3

We woke up late the next morning, and leisurely made breakfast. We drank a few extra cups of coffee, with our neat coffee press that fits inside a Nalgene bottle. Since we only had to hike 8 miles that day we just hung out at the campsite. The weather was nice, the view spectacular. A little creek dribbled by. The dogs were entertained by ground squirrels. We didn't want to leave. Food was running low, and we were out of dog food too, although they would have loved squirrel fricassee. Oh well. All good things must come to an end. Slowly packing, we bid farewell to our base camp. We hiked to the train crossing again, calves sore from the previous 12 mile day. It was lunch time, and starting to rain. Just as we got grumpy about having to eat lunch in the pouring rain, we discovered a huge spruce tree. It made a perfect shelter. We watched the train pass by again, with the little chase cars behind (I'll fill you in later). The camping party with the horses passed by. Now for the 4 mile climb up the switchbacks. We didn't count the switchbacks this time. We did pass by some campers with a 2 way radio. They had two parties of parading ponchos. Must have been a sale on ponchos. It never quit raining. It was pouring buckets by the time we got to the van. We were ready to get dry by this time. Off to Silverton. As were were driving down the hill we could see a campground. That's where we would be headed. As we pulled in, the sign said no vacancy. Kristi went inside, and no one came to help her. We left, and pulled around the corner to find 3 more campgrounds. We chose the farthest one away. It was the emptiest. I went to the mobile home office and inquired within. They were practically empty and I chose a spot with a great view, and no campers blocking it. They had a jacuzzi, showers, and a sauna. And the sun came out. With our site secured, we drove to the brewery to get dinner. It was closed. So we went next door. They had a nicer place than the brewery, it looked like an old time bar. I ordered an interesting looking taco. It had home smoked pork, smoked on the premises by the proprietor, using apple wood. It was so yummy. We returned to our site, with beer in hand. We laid out our gear to dry, showered and relaxed in the jacuzzi, then dried off in the sauna. Then we snoozed.

Colorado Vacation - Colorado Trail- Day 2

We woke up the next morning not too sore. We ate oatmeal for breakfast and prepared our day-packs and dog's saddle bags, ready to leave Extreme Base Camp and push for the Summit. The rain had lightened to a faint mist as we left camp. As we were passing our neighbours camp, Kristi asked how their night had been. He muttered some expletives ranting about how he and his wife had to be camping through the worst thunderstorm all year, and couldn't get any sleep. I don't think Kristi knew how to respond to his rants, all she could have said was "earplugs." For fear of any repercussions she just continued smiling. The first couple of miles were really relaxing. The soft forest floor padded the sound of our footsteps. We passed a camp, and had to grab the dogs so they wouldn't spook their horses. After we passed over a couple of creeks, we heard the pounding of water. We followed the sound and came upon a beautiful waterfall. At the waterfall we took some pics and discovered a really pretty flower. I will have to look up what kind it was. Soon the trail became steep and passed through more talus and glacial remains. After the recent rains the canyon was now cascading with little waterfalls all around. Soon we met up with more Boy Scouts at a deep creek crossing. They had their boots off and were trying to wade through. Kristi and I didn't pause and trudged right through, hoping our Gore-Tex boots would live up to their name. For the most part they did. The trail squeezed through a notch dripping with seep springs, then came to an old mining camp. An old cabin sat dilapidated with wall boards strewn about. Since it was above the treeline some campers tried to use the boards for campfires. With out adequate kindling it would be tough to get it going. Judging from the number of unconsumed boards burnt on one end laying around they weren't entirely successful. Luckily we arrived at the cabin before the Boy Scouts did. I was able to get some great pics. After leaving the cabin the trail continued along the now dwindling Elk Creek. The trail then took a turn straight up. Then another turn. It continued to switch back about 30 times. We actually counted. There was some debate where we were counting from, however. Either the corner, or the entire tier. Since Kristi was the one keeping count, she decided to count the corners. Eventually Elk Creek disappeared into the mountain. Talk about headwaters. The trail continued to switch back all the way to the top. I always love coming to the top of mountain passes. The anticipation of what awaits is always worth the climb. Sure enough there was no disappointment. There were a couple more cabins down a thousand feet on the other side. The sun was out and we were surrounded by hills of wild flowers and snowy mountain peaks. Time to collapse and eat lunch. I think I heard Kristi snoring. She was feeling a little light headed. We were right up there at 13,000 ft with the 14,000 peaks surrounding us. Clouds swirling around, and distant rumbles of thunder. At the top we had some choices to make. There were trails going off in many different directions. The guide book steered us toward a couple of high altitude lakes. After some more climbing we reached a ridge, then followed it past Lake El Dorado. The trail kept going along the continental divide, so since it wasn't raining we thought we had better look to see what was around the corner. Another mile or so and we reached what seemed the end of the world. With clouds below us swirling around we were awe stricken. We spent two hours exploring the various trails, careful not to loose too much elevation. Alas, it was getting late and the clouds were closing in. As we started to leave the Boy Scouts were just arriving. They remarked that we were like a couple of jack rabbits for having gotten up there so fast. It makes a huge difference if you don't have an extra 40 lbs on your back. We were actually thinking how hard it would have been to summit with our packs, not to mention not having any shelter away from the thunderstorms. The decent back to base camp seemed to take forever, and the adrenaline faded fast. Our feet were pounding by the time we got to camp, and I could feel my blood sugar level falling. We quickly made an Indian Tofu dish, with fresh vegetables and wolfed it down. Bellies full, we crawled into bed. Then it started raining again. It was a replay from the night before. The dogs curled up at our feet and we slept.

Colorado Vacation- Colorado Trail-Day 1

This is the epic part of the trip. This next post is what Krisiti and I live for. We got up not extrordinarily early, and it was already raining. We had breakfast, which consisted of left overs from dinner the night before and the remaining hard-boiled eggs we still had. We drove up the short rough road to the trail-head parking, then locked up the Bus. It was still raining, but shortly after we started hiking the sun came out, and we started a game of hide and seek. This game consisted of not only rain and the sun hiding but a constant rotation of clothing trying to keep up with the moisture and temperatures. We passed a couple of lite hikers and exchanged iteneraries. They appeared to have spent the night in thier clothes and ate grubs or something. They each had a small day pack and crocs. I could see no sleeping bag, tent, or food per se. I personally would like to pack some comforts, even if it takes longer to get to a destination. They were bushed, and still had to hike to Silverton. They were considering hitch-hiking the rest of the way. We told them where we were headed, and they grunted a little and said "big climb." We parted ways and continued down the trail. The sun came out to display beautiful wild flowers, then hid again behind rain clouds. After about a mile the trail came to a deep canyon. We could see the Animas river below backed by tall 14k peaks surrounded by swirling rain clouds. Every so often we could catch a glimpse of the Durango-Silverton railroad tracks as it paralleled the river. The rush of the surrounding cascading water falls permiated the still forest. It was the relaxing soundtrack as we zig-zagged on the innumerable switchbacks 4 miles to the bottom. Just as we reached the canyon floor we heard a whistle. It was the Durango-Silverton train. We rushed across the bridge over the raging Animas. It was the same bridge the forest service built in the 70s for hikers. Story goes, it was built in response to a backpacker who drowned trying to cross. Krisiti and I agreed that neither of us would have wanted to cross that river, no matter what the conditions. We could see the plume of black smoke progressing closer, then the chug a chuga, and around the bend we could see the head- light shining brightly. I quickly got out the camera and shot as many pics I could get. We waved at the passengers who looked at us like we were interesting wildlife. Then it was gone. Black smoke and the smell of burnt coal still lingering in the air. Cool stuff. From here on it would be up hill the rest of the way to camp. We moseyed up the trail a piece more and came upon some Boy Scouts who were determined to get to an old mining camp just below the pass. They were impressed with the dog's saddlebags and were even more impressed that they were carying the wine. Again I reiterate the necessity of the simple comforts in life, especially if I don't have to carry them. We stopped at a nice rest stop next to Elk Creek, a tributary of the Animas, for lunch. The trail will now parrallel Elk Creek up to the contintental divide topping off at about 11,480 feet. The trail follows the along the canyon passing talus slopes and glacial boulders, as Elk Creek rushes below. At times the trail becomes steep in all directions, not forgiving any mis-steps. According to the trail guide there would be a few level campsites below the treeline. One such place was located just below a boulder field, and on the other side of some beaver ponds. After some wet rock-hopping with backpacks we came upon a camp that was left by mountain climbers who used it as a base camp for some nearby peaks. Protected by trees somewhat, we arrived and sat in the rain shadow of the bigger trees, admiring the view of the near-by peaks. The large can opener looking rock formations were creatively named peak one and peak two. Anyway we arrived about 4 pm and leisurely set up the tent, started a fire, and cooked dinner. We had packed in some Mahi, and seared it in a wasabi-teriyaki sauce. Yum. The dogs suddenly started barking, and looking around a hill I noticed we had neighbors in the less desirable camsite next to ours. A couple of other campers just arrived. We dried out our wet pants and socks, ate some smores and went to bed shortly after sunset. Then it rained. And rained. And rained. And rained. Oh did I mention it rained. Yes until 6 am it rained. Fortunately, I had brought some other creature comforts for occasions just like these. No not an instant hotel room, ear plugs. Something you wouldn't think you would need when you are away from traffic, train horns and children. Well, when large rain drops are pummeling the tent for 10 hours you can see how hard it would be to sleep. That was the problem our neighbours had. I don't think ear plugs made it to thier list.

Colorado Vacation- Hermosa Creek & Molas Pass

We awoke the next morning and were surprised to find that we had camped approximately across the road from a free campground, and Hermosa creek. You know that trail they told us about along with the brewery. There is always something you miss by not going around the next corner. Live & learn. We decided to hike the trail, since we didn't know the conditions and since it had been raining every day off and on. The trail was beautiful & perfect. We spoke to some riders, and it turns out there would be a race the next day. But by the time we had finished hiking it was time for lunch and a big rain storm. Since we couldn't try the trail on bikes now, we thought it would be a good time to drive to the Colorado Trail to go on our planned backpacking trip. The Colorado trail intersects with the road to Silverton. You can follow the continental divide trail or the Colorado trail from the mountain pass before Silverton called Molas Pass. We had a trail guide, which described a free camping area near the trail, but it was closed for construction. We continued down the road to a campground next to a little lake just below the pass. Molas Lake was a beautiful campground, with fishing and fantastic views. The campground itself was rustic and $16. It served us well for a staging area. We used the rest of the evening to cook dinner & pack our backpacks. We calculated logistics, tested the weight of the packs, and prepared the dog's saddle bags. The pass itself is almost 11,000 ft in elevation (10,910), gasp. The trail would be going down to the Animas river & back up again on the other side to the continental divide. We would have to prepare for rain and who knows what. We went through our things and jettisoned all but the essentials. We still felt heavy, since we packed regular food instead of backpacking food, but at least we would eat well. The bear canisters also added extra poundage, but, after all we didn't pack our the food up there for the bears. According to the trail guide there would few camping spots where we could have fires, or even fire wood. The logistics included having to plan where we could camp below tree line and still have a fire, in case we had to dry out from a rainstorm. We polished off the vegetables and other things that would perish in the three days on the trail then faded off to sleep anxious and curious about the wild unknown awaiting for us the next three days.

Colorado Vacation -Durango

We arrived at historic Durango. Some people say that it is the Colorado version of Flagstaff. I agree, but maybe cooler. The first thing we did was go grocery shopping at the City Market. We then walked around Durango to check it out. We went into a couple of sports stores to get a hydration bag and a stuff sack, since I accidentally left mine at home. One of the bike stores mentioned a trail called Hermosa creek, but since we didn't know where it was we didn't get much info on it. We did get the low down on a good place to eat. This place called Carvers Brewery had really good natural food. I had fish tacos, and Kristi had a fish salad. It was better than it sounds. We did some more walking around and came across a Theatre. We are always interested in what other theatres are doing. We read an article posted outside that this particular Melodrama Theatre was performing its last season in its location at the historic hotel. Apparently the owner of the hotel was not including the theatre in its future plans, after 48 years. Typical. We bought tickets for the evening performance. Now that we had plans to go the theatre we were in desperate need of a shower. Fortunately, there was a campground in close proximity. We showered then went for a walk along the Animas River and watched the rafters and kayakers. The kayakers were impressive. They were practicing rolling over, not just sideways, but were actually diving forward into the wave catching the front of the kayak. This would roll them into a frontward roll. Cool stuff. We thought about going on a quick river trip, but decided it would be on another visit. We ate again at the brewery, then walked to the Theatre. The play was an Irish melodrama, full of love triangles, and deceit. After the melodrama, the actors performed skits in the vaudevillian style but with contemporary themes. We enjoyed the theatre thoroughly and thought the melodrama was a nice change of pace. We especially enjoyed the vaudeville acts at the end. Fun stuff, and the place was almost sold-out. At pre-show and intermission the actors sold drinks and snacks, even delivered them to small tables we were sitting at. It appeared that the theatre was doing well, and that a cash cow like that would be able to perpetuate. I guess it's all in the location. I like to think that much like a frog is a bio-indicator of how stable an environment is, theatre is a bio-indicator for the arts. If a community is doing well, it's Theatre arts are also going to do well. Unfortunately just as the frog is disappearing, so is Theatre. We are in a sad state of affairs in this world. To what end ...? The evening came to a close and we again found ourselves looking to the side of the road for National Forest access. We found one in between Durango and Silverton and hastily pulled onto a somewhat level spot. We went to sleep immediately.

Colorado Vacation -Mancos

That evening we left Mesa Verde and headed toward Durango. It was getting late and we just wanted a camping spot in the National Forest. As we passed through Mancos, a little town at the side of the road, we found a road with access to the forest, and we went down it. We found a nice little spot in a clearing surrounded by aspens. The next morning we had a hankering for some bike riding. We got out the bike riding map, and sure enough we were just minutes away from a route described on the map. We re-parked the VW and set off on a route on forest service roads. The route went up to a fire tower named Jersey Jim, then continued down in a loop for 22 miles. I misread a sign and we ended up going 4 more miles than necessary. Max was so tired he pooped out 1 mile from the end, and sat down. I had to run and get the van to rescue our tired pups. We then drove onward to a campsite we saw on our ride. Another site surrounded by aspens. Beautiful. The really neat part about the VW van is that it can stop and convert quickly in to a camper. We drive to a spot and check to see if it is level by looking at a bubble level on the stove. If there are any adjustments we usually can find a rock and put it under the tires. The top pops up, and the awning comes out. With the top up we have plenty of headroom to use the sink and stove to cook full-on meals. We usually eat better than when at home. We have a fridge that I converted from the old ammonia filled unit to a super compact heat sink (much like a computer heat sink but bigger) which I disassembled from a plug-in cooler that I bought from Sam's Club for $13. It is powered from a deep cycle auxiliary battery that can be charged from outside electricity, the solar panel or the alternator. It will cool stuff 20 degrees lower than the ambient temperature. With the extra room that we had when I removed the ammonia fridge condenser I had space enough for a 110v power inverter, a battery charger, and a book and magazine library. That night the dogs and Kristi went to bed early. I stayed up and watched a Star Trek on my computer, and browsed the images we had taken so far. Eventually I crawled up to the bunk to the tempurpedic mattress calling my name.

Colorado Vacation- Mesa Verde

The house is far from being done, but with all the stress of plumbing and having the closet in the garage, we were in desperate need of a vacation. Since Colorado is beautiful and Kristi hasn't ever been there, we packed up the VW bus with two dogs (Jester went to grandmas) two bikes and two back packs and took off. We left late Tuesday night anxious to get as close to our destination as possible. We drove into Colorado and stopped just across the border at the Ute Indian reservation. Ignoring the signs warning against trespassers we slept on the first dirt road we came across, ready to skedaddle at first light. Our first stop the next morning was Mesa Verde National Park. It was really cool. We got there early, ate breakfast on the side of the road inside the park, and proceeded to the visitors center. Soon after we got in line to buy tickets to the larger cliff dwellings, the flood gates opened and a swarm of people began to inundate us. Within about 5 minutes there were people out the door and around the corner waiting to buy tickets. We decided to buy tickets for the later tours, since we were already going to stay in the area that evening. While waiting for the later tours to start we started at the ruins that were free. We hiked a short distance and came to a deep canyon with a whole cliff dwelling village at the bottom. Surrounding the canyon was an arid mesa, but with in the canyon seep springs dripped from the walls creating a virtual garden of Eden. The Spruce ruins, so named from the giant Spruce trees growing from the canyon floor, was surrounded by scrub oak and plants that served as medicine among other things. The air was surprisingly cool, and water abundant enough to support a tiny village. The ancient Puebloan culture that lived there (sometimes referred to as Anasazi) farmed on top of the mesas and transported their crops to the dwellings and the holy people who lived there. At first the dwellings were used as habitations, but as the culture progressed and their beliefs strengthened the dwellings began to serve as places of worship and food storage, rather than just shelter. Deep underground arenas were fashioned, called kivas. These kivas were about 8-10 feet deep and covered over with a weaving of cedar logs for a roof. The people would enter through a hole in the roof and down a ladder. At the bottom one would find a circular room with a fire pit in the middle. On shelves around the walls there would be sacred items used in their private ceremonies. To keep from asphyxiation there were air tubes allowing outside air inside. Traditionally one would think to build a fire in it's own air tube, thus drawing air from the surrounding room and exhausting the smoke up the chimney. In the ancient Puebloan culture it was the other way around. Air was drawn down the chimney and around a monolithic looking rock upright in between the fire pit and the air tube. This monolithic rock served as a buffer to keep the fire from being blown around. Along-side the fire pit was a smaller hole. This hole served no purpose except that it was a representation of the Kiva and the beliefs that the origins of man came from such a hole. This made the hole sacred, and taboo if one stepped in or on it. One wonders why the entrance to the kiva was also the chimney, causing those who enter or exit to do so through the smoke. Legend has it, that young boys who climbed the ladder were blessed by the smoke as it swirled around them. It must have also has some additional significance intertwined in thier beliefs. Notice the similarities between the ancient Puebloan ruins and the modern ruins of my house.