Sweet Silver Travels: Rocky Mountain National Park, Great Sand Dunes N.P. and running to escape the snow

COLORADO September-October 2017

ROCKY MOUNTAIN N.P. near ESTES PARK, CO

If it is Fall in the Rockies, it must be rutting season for Elk. The park was so crowded with people watching the drama of bulls rounding up cows and fighting for every one when necessary.

The air was filled with bugling of bulls, exhibiting their abilities to gather and keep as many cows as possible. I was surprised to learn that with all the work bulls do during rutting season, some are too warn out to survive the winter! Where there are animals, people park all over the road (causing driving hazards) to watch and photograph this spectacle. The warning is to give the bulls plenty of space especially when they seem agitated.

We did have an early snow fall and very cold nights during our stay, but that just added to the beauty of the place. We stayed in the park with no electricity to our camper, but we learned to love our generator for the few hours we were allowed to use it and get heat.

Hiking was always available but we had to get up fairly early to find a parking place at the trail heads. This was a favored recommendation, Mills Lake.

The beauty of the mountains surround you, with the highest peak in the park of about 14,000 feet and a very technical climb. In perspective, Mt. Everest is just over 29,000 feet.

The tundra area starts around 11,000 feet. That meant another early climb, first driving to the parking located at the seasonal road closure. Three miles up a winding road starts the barren landscape with only rocks and close cropped vegetation. But the skies are clear blue and the sun is rather warm.

Moonlight on the Rockies.

GREAT SAND DUNES NATIONAL PARK, Colorado What a difference at our next destination!!

A desert location in central Colorado, this is a favorite destination on a warm weekend for locals. The 30 square miles of sand dunes are located between 2 mountain ranges with creeks surrounding them.

The dunes appear smallish compared to the mountains behind them, but the highest peak is 750 feet tall. (Some of you have been to Sleeping Bear National Lakeshore, where the highest dune is about 450 feet.)

Medano Creek is a swimming area which eventually empties into a lake. There is an unusual rippling effect to the water which shows as small waves.

Yes, those small black dots are people in the distance.

We were game to try this so we rented sandboards, however it was a great deal of effort to climb up a dune for the few seconds of pleasure going down.

Our last day, a climb to the 750 foot peak was an adventure. Again the little dots are people. That same afternoon however, the winds increased to about 35 mph as a cold front approached.

Shorts for the celebration one day, but snow predicted the next!

Time to keep ahead of the storm and drive south to Taos, NM.

As we drove through rural Colorado, little communities appeared composed of shacks, a gas station and a marijuana shop. Some many crossroads in Colorado seemed to have the same components. But not in New Mexico.

TAOS, NM

I heard of Taos as we researched the southeast, so we decided visit and see what it was all about. We found a nice little downtown area with interesting shops, featuring lots of artists and street musicians, and boutiques.

Fun place to spend an afternoon, but beyond that, the residents appear rather impoverished and many look like they recently relocated from San Fransisco's Haight-Ashbury neighborhood. However, the Health Food store had a booming business with accompanying high prices. There was a housing community where the up scale houses were half submerged into hillsides with attached green houses. They appeared to be off grid.

In a feeble part of town stands San Francisco de Assisi Mission Church which is considered the most photographed church in New Mexico, and some say in America. Construction started in the late 1700's and was completed in 1816. A couple of dogs were hanging around in additional to the six tourists who came to visit and waited until someone showed up to open the building. It all seemed very casual for such an iconic example of Mexican architecture.

Traveling from Taos, NM to Salt Lake City, UT

DURANGO, Silverton and Ouray, Colorado The route took us through southern Colorado again.

Silverton, CO is a famous old mining town in the middle of the mountains north of Durango. An open train will take you there but we decided to drive. It looks like a busy little place from above, but when you get to street level, most of the beautiful little buildings are abandoned, many others appear to be in ruins. The greeter at the visitors center said the population was increasing and boasted that the school had 65 students. We really didn't see any evidence of that. The one restaurant that was open was very busy when the train from Durango arrived but closed after that. Not one but two marijuana business were established there!

The town of Ouray, CO (10 miles further north of Silverton) was actually a thriving town conducting business. Residents could be seen roaming around this beautiful little village. Population around 1000.

From Ouray, CO the nearest grocery store is about 30 miles away and you better hope there is not a winter storm on the horizon. The twisting roads with no guardrails were frightening even in pleasant weather.

UTAH

On our way to Utah along a divided highway, we ran across this most unusual site. The cattle drive came down the mountain and had to use the edge of the highway for a couple of miles!!

The truck was helping in additional to several cowboys. Denny did notice that one cow was starting to turn around, but I continued to click pictures so I don't know what happened.

These animals graze on land that seems to extend forever. Cowboys have to ride to round them up. I did ask one cattle rancher if the animals were always retrieved. He said getting them all is rarely a problem, but there was one that actually avoided the round up for 4 years. I never asked him how that story ended.

MOAB, UT

A short stay in Moab, home to Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, was our next stop. We have blogged about this area before. Even though the parks are rather close to each other, the landscape is totally different. We took a day to hike in Canyonlands which is a plateau with the canyons dropping rather than mountains rising.

The road was built as a mining road, but now you need a permit to travel on it. I was hoping we could do it on our bikes, but it is more suited to ATV and small jeeps.

Final destination SALT LAKE CITY and SNOWBIRD ski area

At 8500 foot elevation, this is a year round destination featuring not only winter skiing, but also mountain biking and hiking when snow isn't present. We left the camper at the bottom of the mountain and made the short trip from Sandy, UT to take up residence in a condo for a week. We arrived in a snow storm, but the temperature climbed into the 40s and 50s while we were there.

The ski areas are at 11,000 feet and most people take the tram to the top only to find the temp about 30 degrees colder. Some will take mountain bikes on the tram and ride down.

Others opt to hike up the 2500 feet which took us about 3 hours. I have a set of hiking sticks, but my better half usually wants to borrow one. Two work so much better than one!

I can't say enough about Cliff Club Resort which offers dramatic views, workout /spa areas, roof top heated pool and hot tub, our own private hot tub on our balcony, and yoga classes with views of the mountains as you balance and stretch. The interior is beautiful and the staff treats you like you are their most important guest.

The valley and Sandy, UT can be seen below.

TEMPLE SQUARE , Salt Lake City

The Mormon Temple, located at Temple Square, is the most important park of Salt Lake City and the first on the list to visit. Several buildings are on the square center. For those with questions about Mormanism, Sisters will explain every aspect and answer all questions. These Sisters, as they call themselves and who are rather young, always work in pairs. They serve from many parts of the world and might be assigned anywhere.

The genealogy department is a separate building with many computers and an abundance of records. A volunteer assisted me in starting my family tree. My grandmother was a wealth of information and I have her recollections that I can enter.

The Mormons have erected the Jewish Temple and Jerusalem.

With our week completed in Salt Lake City, we are heading back to Michigan and Charlotte, NC to spend time with our families, but we have a few more photos as we leave the often desolate parts the West....