Yesterday (Saturday), we decided to take a drive out 'County Road #162' - as recommended by some locals around here. First parts were paved; then we got into the dirt portions.......4-wheel drive vehicles were common, along w/ ATV's. Cutter was eager to go along and sniff the new smells. I was able to capture a pic of him hanging out the window of the car... of course, slobber was flying everywhere :-)
We stopped to snap a shot of these mule deer just relaxing by the road. There were actually 3, but I only got a good shot of the one....if you look hard, you can almost see the 2nd one to the left.
Hiking the Anges Vaille Falls trail was next......Cutter was excited to hike, too! It was only a .5 mile hike (one-way), but the last half of the trail was pretty steep and challenge-rocky. Of course, I did not think to tape my knee before we left, but at least I had my hiking boots and poles. Cutter scaled the elevation easily; Dick did great, too....altho the last piece was pretty challenging. Me? Well, I made it til the last part of the climb, and had to stop and wait for the rest of my 'hiker family' to meet me on the way down. It was pretty frustrating trying to keep my knee bones aligned....and you can be sure I will not forget the tape again!! The falls were beautiful and the hike was rustic and awesome.
The drive on #162 was just gorgeous, following one of the creeks that feeds the Arkansas River. In some places, the road came so close to the steep drop-offs that we just held our breath and hugged the road.
As the road got rougher, we were able to see the mountain peaks clearer. The 'washes,' as they call them, occur following the heavy rains. When the rains are heavy and/or snow and ice are melting, flash floods are created as water is channeled thru the narrow passes and rock and gravel are grabbed along the way creating the quick and intense 'wash' down the mountain. This picture shows an example of two prominent 'wash troughs' that have been created on this mountain.
The 'end of the road' led us to an official historic 'ghost town' named 'St. Elmo.' It was very cool wandering around the abandoned 'ghost town' buildings - they look just like you see in the old cowboy movies! Cutter also enjoyed his browsing, and was sure to add his 'mark' to the tumbleweeds that rolled thru the main street. St. Elmo cropped up in the late 1880's as a result of the gold and mineral rush, combined with the completion of the railroad. The town survived til the 1930's when it was finally abandoned....partly as a result of the decline in the railroad service to that area. There is an effort in progress to restore the town. It was a pretty cool sight to see!
The most awesome sight in this little 'ghost' town was the amazing number of beautiful hummingbirds. They were everywhere! There were 4 feeders by the entrance to the General Store and each was jammed with hummingbirds. You can see 6 of them at this single feeder!
Today is Sunday and we drove to Salida (about a 90-minute drive) for a Blue Grass Festival. Those country and western 'blue grass' tunes were provided by 4 different groups thru the afternoon, and they were just awesome!
Thought you'd like to see a pic of me enjoying the festival....I am usually the one taking the pics for the blog and you don't get to see me as part of the adventure. So I thought I'd throw in a pic so you would know I am along on this trip out West :-)
I cannot remember the name of this group, but they were super!! The banjos, fiddles, guitars and voices were really something and there was lots of clapping, knee-slapping, and yee-haa's in the crowd to be sure!
The last group we saw was 'Run Boy Run' and they were our favorite!! There were 3 gals in this group with voices that were amazing. The fiddler of the group was also incredible...we bought 2 of their CD's. So...we can now do some of our own yee-haa'n' and knee-slappin' as we are driving along :-)
Tomorrow, is our last day at this stop and we are going to Royal Gorge in Canon City, CO. Dick tells me there will be some amazing sights to see there. Stay tuned.....
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