Avalanche Trail; A Trail Finder; Ferns? Aspens; Heavy Loads; Heart Gifts in Aspen; Mushroom Rock

While in Carbondale, we went on a hike recommended by a helpful US Forest Service ranger. Avalanche Creek is a moderate hike uphill through pines and aspens in the Maroon Bells - Snowmass Wilderness area of White River National Forest. Suzanne noted that it was only "moderate" at the front end... the trail steepened rapidly after a mile or so.

The first hiker we met was Preston, who moved from Houston for Colorado's outdoor adventure opportunities. He is a web designer, and built a helpful site, www.TrailFinder.com, for those looking for trails in the area. It was his first time on this trail as well, and he commented that we had chosen well.


















Having lived near the Olympic National Park's rain forest in the Pacific Northwest, we were used to lots of ferns in the woods. We hadn't expected to find so many here in the Colorado Rockies.











But our favorite tree here is the quaking aspen (Populu tremuloides), which grows in clonal colonies derived from a single seedling. Roots spread the population, and some colonies are thousands of years old. One Utah colony, nicknamed "Pando", is estimated to be 80,000 years old. Aspen wood has lower flammability than most other woods, so it is often used to make matches and paper. It is also used in animal bedding because it lacks phenols which may irritate some animals' respiratory systems. It also regenerates quickly after forest fires, and does not require planting seedlings as pines do. (Again, you should thank your friendly loggers and foresters...)





Elk hunting season was just getting started, and we ran into fully loaded hunters packing into the back country. Bill Mullens and Kent Austin, from near Clarksburg, West Virginia, were carrying huge loads, 75 and 85 lbs., and had actually built their own black powder rifles for the hunt. No fancy high tech military weapons here, but rifles not much different from those used by frontiersmen 200 years ago. My Lovely Bride is showing off her heavy 12 lb. pack as a comparison.







While not exceptionally rugged, this part of the hike was impressive enough, and is typical of north central Colorado. We didn't see elk and bear, but we saw hoof prints of big elk, and metal bear boxes for food storage were provided at every campsite.In fact, the local paper in Carbondale had more bear-related incidents than any other category. (By the way, the most serious incident on the weekly crime report was appalling... someone had actually let their dog bark excessively!)







 On the forest service road to and from the trailhead, we had to ford a small stream. I was a bit apprehensive, but another USFS ranger assured us that our front wheel drive CR-V would make it. Glad he didn't ask why were were driving when we had two kayaks strapped to the roof!

After our hike, we had dinner and then headed for Aspen for Suzanne's next event, a Heart Gifts presentation. Catherine Anne Provine, Executive Director of the Aspen Chapel, hosted us there, and because of some unusual technical problems, Suzanne got to use her "Isn't that interesting" phrase. Here Catherine Anne on the right, My Lovely Bride, and Rita Marsh (on the left) from Carbondale's DaviNikent Center are all smiles at the end of the evening. We loved our stay in Carbondale/Aspen, and are looking forward to returning soon.







My last "event" before we left town was to go climb a rock... in this case, Mushroom Rock in the Red Hill area of Carbondale. The young lady doing pushups on Mushroom Rock is not MLB... I think she has stopped posing on rock cliffs after our experience in Moab, Utah last year.










The twisted pines atop this peak were dramatic. There were thousands like this one, and they kept getting more dramatic as I hiked for three hours. Once off the main trail, I saw only one other hiker. I enjoyed myself immensely, and the trailhead was only a five minute hike from our campground.










Our campground is about 1,200 feet in the valley below. This is a telephoto shot taken from a ridge about 800 feet above our coach -it's in the middle of the picture, with our car and kayaks on the roof just to the right of the central tree. Suzanne was giving an in-person reading that morning, so I was off on my own.












Finally, this is the really cool shot of Mushroom Rock. I thought about climbing down to the big rectangular rock below and to the right of the two guys sitting there, but fortunately I had forgotten to take my "Stupid Pill" that morning...

An Aussie Update; Snakes! Biking in the Aspens; Eat Mor Chiken; Low Country Cooking; Steamboat Moon; Carbondale Event

We recently heard from our Australian friend Dan Baxter, who was cycling across the USA. We had met Dan in Oregon, not a month into his trip. Well, he arrived safely in NYC this week, in under three months and in the best shape of his life. He had a great adventure, and will be returning to Australia and his patient girlfriend Katie. Good on ya, Mate!








Twice while hiking, and again while walking in our campground, we encountered snakes. I can't remember the last time that happened, and for us to have three encounters within a week, in Colorado, was highly unusual. The funniest of these occurred when we were hiking along a riverside trail, with Suzanne about five paces ahead of me. I looked down and watched a snake slither right between her feet. When I shouted, "Snake!", she about jumped out of her skin. (I almost said "shorts", instead of "skin", but that night have been indelicate. I was amused; she was not.)

 

Before we left Steamboat Springs, My Lovely Bride said, "Up and at 'em, Ty, we're going mountain biking!" I was feeling a bit lethargic (that's Ty-speak for "lazy"), and suggested eating an ice cream sundae instead. It was futile... my suggestion was summarily rejected. Here is MLB tooling through the aspens in a perfectly lovely setting near the Olympic luge training run on a mountain overlooking town. It was a beautiful day, and warm for a change, hence the short sleeves and shorts.








We had another wildlife incident on this ride - when three cows appeared on the trail, one aggressively head-butting another. MLB was hesitant to proceed, since a few days before I had told her of a woman hiker who had been trampled by a herd of cows in the Austrian Alps. I pedaled ahead of her and shouted loudly, "Eat mor chiken!" (You have to be a Chick-fil-A devotee to fully understand this...) They politely moved along, and we proceeded safely on our ride. MLB was suitably impressed by my ingenuity and courage...

As a reward, Suzanne consented to take me out to dinner. She wanted something healthy, like salad or sushi, but I convinced her that because it was the last full moon of September in Steamboat Springs, she must allow me to select the restaurant and my entree. She agreed, and I picked Low Country Kitchen, which specializes in Charleston, SC, cuisine. We started with a bowl of clams, fabulous Southern biscuits and farm cheese. Here I am with my first Southern fried chicken in about ten years!  (You have to remember that Madame is a Yankee, so this was a Big Deal for Your Faithful Correspondent.) Suzanne had shrimp 'n grits, which was also terrific. There was so much food that it made a nice lunch a couple of days later.

This was the Steamboat Moon that was rising as we finished our dinner that evening. We had enjoyed our visit, but were looking forward to our next stop as well.

Oh, I almost forgot about one hilarious incident in Steamboat Springs... we had noticed this unusual tower one block off the main drag, and when we stopped in a shop for MLB to look for some goodies, she asked the owner about the tower's purpose. The owner's reply, "Tower? What tower? Oh, that white thing? I haven't a clue. Sharon, what's that tower thingee all about?" Her good friend, and fellow town resident for a couple of decades, replied, "Tower? Gee, I don't know... I never thought to ask." Now, we could understand if this was just another building of the same height as its neighbors, but it "towers" over the town like the Empire State Building in 1950's NYC. You can't miss it; we just laughed and wondered about the women's lack of curiosity...







Our next stop was Carbondale, Colorado, where we would be presenting the Messages of Hope documentary. We arrived in time to meet our host, Rita Marsh, at a farmer's market, where she had set up a table with two of Suzanne's books, Messages of Hope and Wolf's Message, and flyers for the documentary and her Heart Gifts presentation scheduled for later in the week in Aspen. Rita had also graciously agreed to accept delivery of about ten boxes of books to have on hand.






Rita had evidently been reading this blog, which proves she is a woman of exceptional taste and culture. How did I know this? Well, she asked if I had met Ernesto yet... I said that, no, I had met no one by that name since we arrived in town, but would love to make his acquaintance. She told us where to find Ernesto, and mentioned that he and I had a lot in common. This photo shows our meeting. I have to admit that like myself, Ernesto is quite robust, handsome and evidently quite a studly kind of fellow; but I'm not sure that's what Rita had in mind...







On Thursday evening, we showed the Messages of Hope documentary at the Davi Nikent Center for Human Flourishing, which Rita directs. We received an enthusiastic and friendly welcome from the attendees, and the evening went exceptionally well. It was a great start to our Carbondale/Aspen visit, with more details to follow in tomorow's blog post.

Debri? Ho-Hum; Steamboat! An Avian Attack; Dueling Strings

Our departure from our Wyoming campground had one funny moment. As I made a final run to the dumpster to drop off trash, I noticed this sign. Perhaps (a) the sign painter was trying to conserve on paint by dropping an "s", or (b) the Dirty Boyz don't like French words; or (c) someone flunked a spelling class...











Speaking of signs, I recalled this inspiring motel sign back in West Yellowstone...
















Well, it's happened again... we have fallen in love with another neat place. This time it's Steamboat Springs. We arrived to a warm, sunny welcome in this north central Colorado ski town that advertises itself as Ski Town USA and Bike Town USA. We took a recon walk along the Yampa River Trail through town, and Suzanne was thinking about a swim, but had forgotten her suit.








Steamboat Springs is named for one of the many hot springs that dot the landscape here. That particular spring made noises like a steamboat. The most aromatic spring we discovered was Sulphur Spring, and its rotten egg odor reminded me of a high school chemistry experiment gone dreadfully bad. 

Walking down the main drag, Lincoln Ave., I thought about booking a room at one of Steamboat's classier motels...

Our walk took us past an industrial area on the river. This dilapidated, abandoned warehouse caught my eye; I found it intriguing, if not very pretty.

We also discovered the Chief Theater, Steamboat's downtown performing arts center. We got two of the last tickets available for Duel of the Strings II, featuring cellist John Sant' Ambrogio and guitarist Mak Grgic, along with the Steamboat String Quartet. It was an amazing evening of world-class classical music. Both John and Mak are absolute masters of their instruments, and we felt fortunate to have had the opportunity to attend their superb performance.

As many of our readers know, Sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis pratensis) are common back in The Villages, our home town in central Florida. I didn't know that they were also visitors to the Yampa Valley. In fact, there is a Crane Festival here next weekend. Unfortunately, I encountered one belligerent member of the species right on the trail. My Lovely Bride cautioned me about getting too close to the aggressive avian, but alas, I ignored her advice. (Is this also a recurring theme?) You may have noticed that I added this photo to others of my daring interactions with wild animals on the blog's banner above.

Antique Hunting; Tetons Biking; "Gluestick?" No Urban Sprawl Here; Diner Gluttony

This first photo is of our first antique hunting trip. Actually, we were walking the puppies around the back side of the campground and came upon these parts of very old wagons or buggies. They must have been at least 75-100 years old, judging by the wheels and other iron pieces, but they are just sitting along the fenceline rusting for now, until some homeowners or ranchers need them to decorate the entrance to their kingdom. We thought about getting one for our front yard in The Villages, but storage space in The Coach is a bit limited for booty like this.






My Lovely Bride, as I may have mentioned in a previous post, likes to stress me physically. The latest occasion came the other day when she said, "Sweetheart, let's take a mellow bike ride along the Jenny Lake Scenic Loop. It's only seven miles, flat and very scenic." It was also a bit chilly, if 45 degrees doesn't really qualify as Brutally Cold. After The Ordeal was over, I deduced that she was correct on one of the three adjectives... it was indeed very scenic. (The tallest peak here, Grand Teton, stands 13,770 feet. The peaks around it are 12,800 ft or so.)



As for the other two adjectives, regarding distance and relative flatness... well, the seven miles she quoted was one way, and of course we were starting 3-4 miles early, and going out and back, making it somewhere near 20 miles long, not too bad on a road bike, but our mountain bikes are heavier and less aerodynamic than road bikes. The first half was actually pretty easy, being downhill and downwind. But guess what? When you turn around, you're going uphill and upwind. But it was even more scenic looking that direction, if that's possible, which almost made up for the uphill/upwind feature.






Here is the Dynamic Duo when I was still smiling, before hunger pangs made me want to scream... that's beautiful Jenny Lake in the background.

Did I mention hunger??? I thought I was doomed when MLB went into the Jenny Lake Store to get lunch. I expected her to get something healthy like gluten-free tofu or a salad made of green and yellow stuff (I think they're called "vegetables" and "weeds"), but was shocked and pleased when she returned with two enormous spicy hot dogs, a delicacy in which she only indulges about once every two years! I might actually complete this ride, I thought, with a half pound of sausage, bread and mustard to keep me going. (I didn't mention that she could have also gotten a couple of beers, but you know, that would have been risking a hot dog thrust up my nose.)

This photo taken near Moose, Wyoming, and shows how the terrain can vary in just a few miles. We were bushed by the end of our three hour ride, and the rest of the day was spent in relative ease, mostly horizontal.

Our next day's travel took us east from the Tetons, but this last view up into the Teton National Wilderness Area near Togwatee Pass (9,658 ft.) made me wish for a few more days here. I would love to backpack into that area - it's southeast of Yellowstone and north of the Wind River Range. The "snaggletooth" peaks you see are 12,000 footers, and you can be sure that there aren't a lot of folks in the backcountry there.



The mountains were beautiful, but the cold, dry air had left me with chapped lips, and I asked My Lovely Bride to grab the chapstick. She replied, somewhat saucily to my mind, "I can't find the chapstick... but try this gluestick." (Perhaps she was tired of my complaining about salads? In any case, I was not amused.)


We continued on south for a couple of hundred miles, the terrain changing from mountains to high plains, but with occasional Badlands-like features...












Most of southern Wyoming is ranchland, with lots of sagebrush and tumble weeds. There weren't a lot of cars or trucks on this road, and urban sprawl isn't too serious an issue here. There was one section where we saw only one farmhouse in an entire hour's drive.But there were lots of antelope!

We arrived in Rawlins, Wyoming, for a one night layover before dropping down into Colorado. We had passed a diner on the way into town, and knowing how much MLB loves waffles, I decided to surprise her with a meal out. We arrived at Penny's Diner, the only place in Rawlins that serves waffles, and were happy to find the quintessential highway diner... silver outside, greasy and friendly inside. Here is our brekkie: Suzanne's (small, boring) waffle and my tiny mountain of hash browns with bacon, tomatoes, jalapeno chiles, onions, green peppers, eggs, cheddar and salsa, with diner toast, with plenty of salty butter applied with a paintbrush... YES! (and I really don't want to hear any snide remarks about Ty's Diner Gluttony - I planned on burning those 8,000 calories!)

Big Hooves; Grand Tetons National Park; Signal Mountain; A Favorite Sunset

We hadn't seen any bears in Yellowstone, other than at the Discovery Center, but just an hour or two into our drive through Yellowstone to the Tetons, we passed this bull bison scratching his shoulder and snacking on some local vegetation. He was a big guy, over 1,000 lbs I would guess, and in excellent shape. You can appreciate why the Indians held the bison in such high regard -  they provided not just meat, but material for tools, sinew, clothing, sleeping robes, water bladders, medicine and many other valued items. 






While Yellowstone is unique and beautiful, I was looking forward to heading 150 miles south to the Grand Tetons, one of my favorite places (on this planet, at least). And it's the mountains that attract me here, not the derivation of their name, although I must admit that the French origin has some allure as well. This initial view of the Grand Tetons across Jackson Lake was enough to grab my attention.








We got settled in our campground in Moran, Wyoming, population about 75, and then took a drive back to a viewpoint and enjoyed this lovely sunset behind the Tetons before settling in for a very cold night at 6,500 ft.











This was a hillside right near our campground. Even with the sun already below the mountains,  this small group of aspens looked dramatic against the hillside.











Our first outing in the Tetons was a moderate hike up Signal Mountain. It's only a three hour, seven mile hike up and down, but there were surprisingly few hikers on this beautiful trail. This lake near the beginning of the trail is a hangout for moose, but since we were hiking late morning, the moose were already relaxing until their sunset dining hour.









The climb was worth every bit of effort, since we were rewarded with this view of the Tetons at the top.













While we were prepared for an encounter with a grizzly, the most impressive wildlife we stumbled upon was this butterfly (or is it a moth? Connie, can John help us out with an identification?)












This pretty hiker is wearing a smile, but the altitude (7,700 feet) is wearing on her... Signal Mountain was originally formed from volcanic ashfall, but  large part of it was added when a glacial moraine covered the peak. Fortunately, the weather was not glacial, but sunny and in the low 60s, perfect for hiking.










I generally don't like being fenced in, but this view might make it worth while... in the summer, at least.










Finally, these clouds just before sunset made for a beautiful ending to a perfect day. Can you understand why we don't watch television?

Icy Roads? Bears and Wolves; Here, Grizzie; No Fish For You! A Four-Legged Vixen; Rudy's in Trouble

We woke up to 32F this morning! Yes, FREEZING! Here's the warning on our navigation computer at 0801, after the sun was up and warming things up to a toasty 35 - "Caution: Icy Roads"... with a snowflake even! Hard to believe the weather here in Yellowstone on September 2nd, when our friends back in Florida are sweltering in the 90s.

We took two opportunities (in between thunderstorms) on Saturday and Sunday to visit the Wolf and Grizzly Discovery Center in West Yellowstone. It was really cool to see these predators up close, but not too personal. This smaller 600 lb. grizzly can run at 35 mph, so meeting him on the trail would be an exciting experience, to say the least. His claws are about 4-5 inches long, perfect for opening up the belly of a 500 lb. elk or... Shudder...








Here's another bear, Sam (1,000 lbs.), looking for snacks on one of our rainy days; I got to thinking that I would not want to have this view of a grizzly out in the woods... gee, I wonder what is he is thinking about?  The grizzly's unique hump is quite apparent; black bears do not have this feature.










Lest you think this talk of grizzly encounters is just hypothetical, take a look at the sign at the entrance to our campground in Gallatin National Forest, just three miles west of Yellowstone.We actually met two gals traveling in an RV who left salmon outside their door to attract grizzlies for a photo op; they were quite surprised when the bear they attracted not only ate the salmon, but ripped the door off one of their storage compartments to get at the bag of dog food there.







The wolves we saw at the Discovery Center looked like very large grey or white dogs. It wasn't until we watched a movie of a pack of nine wolves pulling down a big elk that we realized how powerful and crafty wolves are. They will even engage a small grizzly, usually in a fight over an elk carcass, but most experts give the edge to the bear in those battles.

Two days of rain made the roads, well, interesting. A small pond formed on the Forest Service road into our campground. This VW bug was lucky to make it safely through; what you can't see are the 12 inch deep potholes. Cuts to USFS road repair funding didn't help matters. (I'll bet the road repair budget at Andrews Air Force Base, where our Golfer-in-Chief plays three times a week, hasn't been cut...)

We were able to get out onto Hebgen Lake near our campsite on one fine day. The view was stunning. Kayak Chick paddled and took photos while I fished...
















This fisherman has a smile on his face, but alas, no fish in his cooler, undoubtedly due to the previous week's heavy rains and the frigid 32-35 degree nightly temperatures. All the fish have gone to Florida where it's warmer... the heavy weeds choking this lake didn't help... is that enough of a list of excuses? At least he had a Backup Plan B - chicken enchiladas!

Our campground had lots of squirrels, which likely attracted this lovely four-legged vixen which gave us a fun and unexpected wildlife moment.  (Ken, this one's for you!)













The forest here in Yellowstone is varied, but this photo shows a common growth of yellow pines with lots of light filtering between the trees, allowing much better visibility than we typically get in Florida or along the East Coast, where the undergrowth tends to be much thicker.

Finally, our little Dachshund Rudy is in big trouble. He is such a lazy butt. Here he is sleeping in - on MY pillow - yesterday morning. He thinks he's cute with this "dog in the headlights" look, but I'm not cutting him any slack. If I have to be up in 32 degree weather, then he does, too.