What whirl wind months July & August were!

I can't believe I let two months go by without posting an update.  To say the least we are enjoying Snow Mountain Ranch and the people we are meeting.  My job here is Interpretive Guide at an old Homestead.  I've learned a great deal about the Homestead Act and about the hardships people suffered in this area back in the early 1900's.  T's job is in maintenance where he does anything from pickup garbage to service cabins that might have a problem.

This posting will cover both July and August.

We arrived at Snow Mountain Ranch on the 2nd of July, got checked in and were given a quick tour of the place.  Wow! What a difference from Keyhole State Park where we were one of seven volunteer couples to Snow Mountain where we are one couple among over fifty volunteers.   The first night here we participated in “game night”, which was held every Tuesday evening.  


YMCA of the Rockies, Snow Mountain Ranch is just outside the town of Granby, Co.  Granby holds an annual 4th of July parade that they bill as the “best small  town parade in Colorado.”  I of course had to see it.  I was quite impressed.  The parade started with a fly over of some vintage airplanes.

I spent the entire morning at the parade taking pictures.  I got carried away taking pictures of dogs.  I’m just putting a few pictures here.  I can only image what they were thinking.

 

Jill Miles, owner of Grand River Coffee Co.

I also met the owner of a little coffee chop called Grand River Coffee Company. Jill, has owned and operated the coffee shop for fourteen years.  She made visiting Granby fun and T and I often went to her place for coffee and a scone in the morning while here.  A great place to meet the locals.

Since the months went by in a flash, I’ll just cover the highlights.

Milner Pass

We of course went to Rocky Mountain National Park at the first opportunity.  All I can say is, “WOW!”  It rivals the Grand Canyon for beauty, though my heart will always be in Arizona.   My pictures of the Rockies will not do it justice.  

I knew the Continental Divide was the midway point between the Atlantic and the Pacific, but I did not know that it "separates drainage to the Atlantic from drainage to the Pacific. It traverses America from Alaska almost to Cape Horn."

We had the opportunity to go on a Zip Line.  The way to the top was either climb a ladder or a pole.  Those of you who know me, know I didn’t do it the easy way.  I went up the pole and zipped down.  What a thrill!

Our granddaughter, Sammy, came for a week.  Some of the things she got to do for the first time are listed below. T & I get to do these kinds of things on a regular basis, living here in Granby, Co.  Her visit was way too short.  Alas!  She had to leave due to starting kindergarten the following week.

Sammy coming down from the top of the Rocky Mountains

• Go to the top of the mountain- We took her to Rocky Mountain National Park and she walked part the way to the top.
• We drove Berthoud Pass, a winding, curvy road with many switchbacks.  She loved it.

Look closely, you'll see Sammy's name on the stick.

• One of the many highlights of being at Snow Mountain Ranch is that you get to make your own walking stick.  Sammy worked hard at it and has a very unique stick to show for it and Granddad burned her name on it. 

Waterfalls @ Snow Mountain Ranch

• Hike to the waterfalls - There is a waterfall trail at Snow Mountain.  It is a mile and a half one way with a significant incline, or so T & Sammy thought.  We made it to the falls and Sammy got to use her walking stick.

• She went to “work” with me one day and saw humming birds up close and loved the ground squirrels one of which posed for us.
• We had s'mores by the fire.

After a week of fun, it was time for her to fly home, alone. She was thrilled beyond belief and had an uneventful flight.

Grandma and Sammy Canoeing

Some other things T & I have done while here are:

Drive Rollins Pass, also known as Corona Pass. 

Rollins Pass, Elevation 11,600 feet

“John Quincy Adams Rollins established a toll wagon road through this pass in the mid 1860’s.  David H. Maffot’s Denver, Northwestern & Pacific Railway crossed the Continental Divide at this point in 1903.  First know as Bolder Pass, then Rollin's Pass, the railroad workers dubbed it “Corona”, the crown of the “Top of the world.”  

 It is incredible and hard to believe that wagons used to traverse that pass.  In later years track was laid and the train used to come across the pass.  I’ve seen pictures where the train was buried in snow.  Around 1928 the Moffet Tunnel was built and the track across the pass was abandoned.  Now it is a rocky rough drive to the top, but well worth the drive ONCE.

Top of Rollin's Pass

T & I went to Winter Park Resort and road the Alpine Slide.  What a thrill!  I think it is the longest alpine slide in the US.  We rode a chair lift up to the top and looked out over a magnificent view.  I can only image what it must look like in the winter.  I even tried my hand at getting through the human maze.

Top of Winter Park

I hiked the Monarch Lake Loop, a 4.4 mile loop around Monarch lake.  While on the loop, my friend, Andrea, and I came upon a moose.  I’d been told they will charge at you, so I of course backed away and waited for the moose to make up his mind as to which way he wanted to go.  I wanted badly to step onto the trail and get a good shot of the moose, but I thought better of it and stayed out of his way.

Moose up close and personal

Andrea & Glo hiking Monarch Loop

Osprey nest

Along with all the activities here in Colorado, I flew back to Myrtle Beach for four days.  Our son, Thomas, came to the visit the "grannies", on his way to Quebec for a speaking engagement.  I couldn’t pass up the chance to see him when he was so close. (For those of you who don’t know, Thomas lives in England.)  So I drove to Denver, two hours away, to catch a flight to Myrtle Beach.  Got back on a Thursday, drove the two hours back to Granby, worked on Friday and on Saturday drove to Santa Fe, NM (8 hour drive) to pickup Sammy for her week with us.

Oh! And during all of this, I traded my Miata for a Mini Cooper.  Call me crazy, but it was time for me to have a car that would allow me to carry more than myself and one other person.  Plus my body said it was time to get something a little easier to get in and out of.  I do miss “Red”, but life goes on.

We have another month here before we head to southern Arizona for a few months to work at Kartchner Caverns in Benson.  That is if the weather holds out. The weather here has been wonderful.  We’ve had highs in the 70’s and lows in the 40’s all summer.  However, fall is fast approaching.  Today the high was 59 and the low tonight is forecasted to be 38.  The next few days are forecasted to be the same.  We will be on the road as soon as snow is forecasted if that is before October 3rd.  

Cheyenne & Laramie

June 30

We left Moorcroft and headed south to Cheyenne.  We spent two days there and took in the sites before heading to Laramie and on  to Colorado.

Cheyenne Depot

The Cheyenne Depot is a National Historic Landmark,  the former Union Pacific Depot.  In front of the depot and scattered around town are these 8 foot tall boots beautifully decorated by local artists.

We took a trolly tour of the town to get a  quick overview of the history and the sites.

The Plains Hotel

The Plains Hotel, built in 1911 was “the first hotel in the US to have a telephone in each room.”  It is a five story structure with a solid marble  front desk.

The Capital Building was built in 1888, two years before Wyoming became a state and Cheyenne was named the state capital.

Wyoming was the first state to grant women the right to vote and the first female Justice of the Peace was from Wyoming. She is honored with a statue in front of the Capital Building.

Esther Hobert Morris, first Justine of the Peace

Laramie

After leaving Cheyenne we went through Laramie and visited the Territorial Prison.  The prison was a former federal government prison built in 1872 and is one of the oldest buildings in Wyoming.  It operated as a federal penitentiary and state prison from 1872 to 1903.  “It held the most notorious outlaws in the territory - including Butch Cassidy.”

Butch Cassidy

While there we interviewed for a possible volunteer position there next summer. We had lunch at a cute little restaurant and fell in love with the town of Laramie.