Let's see, where was I?... Oh yes, I was in Colorado with Ruth and Bill. It was a great visit, as usual. Ruth and I went to Glenwood Springs three different times. Driving through the Glenwood Canyon still just leaves me in awe. The first time I traveled through that amazing corridor it was a good thing that I wasn't driving. It was still just a narrow and winding 2 lane road that hugged the earth between the side of the canyon and the river. And there I was hanging out the car window with my camera, snapping pictures at every turn, trying to capture every nuance of the visual feast that Mother Nature had laid out before me. I still experience that same sense of wonder whenever I go through the canyon. The towering cliffs on either side are an amazing shade of red with just enough green trees to set off the hue of earth. These days, though, it's no longer a little 2 lane road but a continuation of Interstate 70 with 2 lanes in either direction, the westbound lanes sometimes elevated above the eastbound. And it is still a feast for the eyes.
I got to see some new places, too. One day Ruth took me up over Cottonwood Pass. I have heard the pass mentioned over the years and wanted to see it for myself. For the first 10 miles or so it's just a very pretty drive on a paved road up and up around the mountain just to the south of Glenwood Canyon. Nothing but cattle ranches and natural terrain for as far as the eye can see with the monstrous Mt. Sopris off in the distance. Very serene......until the *maintained* road runs out. By this time you're up pretty high and the dirt road starts getting really rough. It hugs the side of the mountain with a sheer drop on the other side. I can't imagine what one does if another car comes from the other direction. Fortunately I didn't have to find out. Once you reach the summit the road starts to gently descend the other side and eventually gets easier to travel again. More cattle ranches. And then you see the valley up behind Gypsum spreading before you. You pop out on Gypsum Creek Rd. just a couple of miles from the house. Pretty cool!
Ruth also took me up Brush Creek to Sylvan Lake, another area I have heard about but had never seen. It's a beautiful drive and once again I had my camera earning its keep!
We had lots of time to just hang around the house too. I got my political fix watching politcs on TV with Bill and discussing the election. During my week stay the 3 of us also managed to get to the antiques show at Beaver Creek over the weekend and drive up to the quaint little town of Redstone for lunch on another day.
Ruth and I had planned on doing a lot of hiking but 2 days after I arrived she broke her kneecap by falling when she tripped on a rock! Fortunately she won't need surgery but she will spend the next 4-6 weeks in a leg brace that goes from the top of her thigh down to the middle of her calf. So hiking was definately out but, as you can tell, we still found plenty to do! The hard part was and still is to convince Ruth to try to stay off her leg. There she is every day out back taking care of her yard and all her gardens. She can't get down on her knees and pull weeds so she brought out a long handled hoe. The one big thing that she has had to give up for the duration is her yoga, which she usually does every morning. It's a little hard to turn yourself into a pretzel when you can't bend one leg!
The kids and are all going back for Christmas this year, with Steve and Bert in tow. Winter wonderland, here we come!
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1 comment:
I can't wait! And man, Grandma must be going absolutely nuts this year -- first bunyan surgery, and now a knee brace. I hope Grandpa Bill is making sure to tie her to the house at night so that she doesn't try to go sneak in her vertical mountain climbing while nobody is looking.
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