Tag Archives: Travel Series

An Amazing Adventure~Part 5

23 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

 

As we were leaving the Grand Canyon, once again we had a picnic meal near the van. After we packed up from our meal, we headed toward Cameron. But before we arrived, Brian stopped the van and we all got out. It was a clear night, at elevation, and with almost no visible “town” light, and we did some stargazing. It was AMAZING! And I was able to see the Milky Way for the first time in my life. It is really beautiful! I never thought I could see it with my “naked eye” like that.

We headed to Cameron for an overnight at the Cameron Trading Post Hotel, in Cameron, Arizona.

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It is near the Grand Canyon, but outside the National Park.   Interesting place—perhaps not as “fancy” as the Ute Casino, but unique in its own way. It was established in 1911 as a Navajo and Hopi trading post, where the Native Americans would bring their goods to barter.

The inside of the restaurant was unique, as well. Notice the hammered tin ceiling.

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There was a small garden near the hotel, that Fred and I wandered through the next morning after breakfast.

From Cameron, we drove northwest toward southern Utah, but we were still in northern Arizona at this point. We were still following the Colorado River—the river that carved out the Grand Canyon. We stopped and walked across the Navajo Bridge, built to replace Lee’s Ferry.

 

 

Lee’s Ferry was essentially the only way for the Mormon’s to cross the Colorado River, leading them into Utah. Lee’s Ferry is designated within the southwestern most extreme of Glen Canyon National Recreation Area and is considered the northernmost end of Grand Canyon National Park. It was an important crossing point before construction of the Navajo and Glen Canyon Bridges. It was named for John Doyle Lee, who operated the ferry for many years. The ferry was in use for 60 years, before the bridges were built in 1928. If one didn’t cross on this ferry, one had to travel another 800 miles just to cross the 85 feet of the Colorado River. So it was an important ferry crossing.

 

Driving out of Glen Canyon, from Lee’s Ferry we passed an area with several balanced rocks, and an inspiring vista of Cathedral Peak.

 

 

We then made our way alongside the Vermilion Cliffs National Monument that was set aside in the 1990’s due not only to its beautifully colored cliffs, but also its importance as a preserve for nesting condors.   We continued our journey through the upper end of Kaibab Plateau National Forest where we stopped at the Forest Station for a picnic lunch.

 

~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~

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My Colonial States Trip~Part 1

19 Nov

A Slice of Life

 Bill Lites

Bill Red Spot Plane

 

Since I always wanted to visit the northeastern U.S. Colonial States during the fall foliage color change, I decided to give late September and early October a try this year. My primary museum resource was, of course, my “Guide to Over 900 Aircraft Museums – USA & Canada,” which gave me an approximate route for my trip. Next came the airline and rental car research. One friend, who had lived in the Boston area and still had relatives living there, recommended the Providence, RI airport for two reasons. One, because Southwest Airlines (I could fly free with points) had non-stop flights from Orlando to the T.F. Green airport in Warwick, RI; and two, because it was a smaller airport with much less hassle than JFK or LaGuardia.   When I checked out the rental car prices, I found I could save over $250 by renting the same car at a downtown Providence location instead of at the airport. That savings would go a long way toward paying for my gas on this trip. Here again my Boston friend was able to assist me with Rapid Transit information to and from the airport to Providence. On most of my trips I find that talking to friends who have lived in the areas I plan to visit is a great source of valuable information. Next, I researched the Internet for “Things to do” and “Points of Interest” in the major cities of the states where my initial route seemed to be taking me. This narrowed the route down to more specific locations along the way. Then I approximated the distances between museums or attractions (including time at the museum/attraction) along my route to look for motel locations and rates (nights for the lowest points) so that hours on the road per day were reasonable. All this makes for a very time consuming process, but I enjoy the research and thinking about all the fun places and things I am going to be seeing.

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I had planned to start my first day (flight day) after arriving in the Providence area, to pick up my rental car, and then visiting a museum and a memorial park before checking into the motel for the night. I was a little concerned about the timing of all this because my flight was scheduled to arrive at the T. F. Green Airport at 12:50 pm and the commuter train left the airport stop for Providence at 1:25 pm. If the plane was late, it would mess up my whole evening as the next commuter train would not leave the airport until 3:55 pm. My Boston friend assured me that I would have plenty of time to make the 1:25 train and not to worry. Right, easy for him to say! Well, as it turned out, the flight was early getting into the T.F. Green Airport, and I got to the train stop in plenty of time. Interestingly, there was a young man waiting for the same train I was, and I asked him about how to know which train was my train. He kindly explained and come to find out he was from Melbourne, FL (about 40 miles from Titusville, FL where I live) and had been on the same flight that I was on from Orlando. He was there to visit relatives and was very helpful with information about the commuter train system.

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—–To Be Continued—–

 

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An Amazing Adventure~Part 4

16 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

 

As a child growing up in New Mexico, it seems I had always known about “Shiprock” New Mexico. It wasn’t until many years later, that I knew what or where Shiprock was, or the Indian lore about it. It is a majestic piece of rock—possibly volcanic but probably sandstone—that is just out in the middle of nowhere. It just sprouts up by itself. It is absolutely magnificent, and for some reason, holds a special place in my heart.

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Brian had not thought that we would have time to cross into New Mexico, but then proclaimed that it was a “pilgrimage” for me, so we went to see it. I’ve had a framed calendar photo of it on our wall for many years, but Karen and Brian had never seen it in real life. They were AMAZED.

As we were leaving Shiprock, I made the statement that “it’s dirty, it’s dusty, it’s scrubby—and I love it! This is home!” Of course, I hadn’t lived in New Mexico for more than 50 years, but it still felt like “home” to me. Funny how our minds work.

From Shiprock, New Mexico, we crossed into Arizona, heading to Monument Valley Navajo Tribal Park that is in both Arizona and Utah—Navajo Nation land. Absolutely AMAZING!!

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This picture is of the two formations called “Mittens” – and you can see why. They look like right and left handed mittens.

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And here is Brian, trying to hold up The Cube. Those are enormous rocks! It reminded me of a “saying” that my dad had, i.e. “I sure wouldn’t want that pebble in my shoe!” I asked Karen if I had told her about that “saying” of her grandfather’s, and she said “no.” So she got another touch from the grandfather she had never known. I keep wanting to pass along those things to our girls and their children – so they will know him, as well.

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The roads in Monument Valley are just dirt—and, as you can see by the car—it just covers everything!

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We stopped by the side of the road there and had a picnic lunch right at the car. The wind was blowing in such a way that the dust made by any cars passing by would blow the other way from us, so we weren’t eating dirt!

At many of the stops along the way, there were Native American women selling hand-made jewelry. I bought a neat beaded necklace with a silver Kokopelli at the center. He’s my favorite Indian character—the flute player.

After we had packed up from lunch, we headed to Grand Canyon National Park. I don’t remember how long it had been since Fred was there, but I think I was about 8-years-old the last time I visited the Canyon! It hasn’t lost its appeal at all for me! Absolutely breathtaking!!

There are so many pictures we took of the Grand Canyon, that I just can’t show them all. But here are a few of our favorite sights.

 

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These were taken at sunset. Absolutely gorgeous!!

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On the side of one of the buildings up top, this sign was posted. Marvelous!

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~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~

 

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An Amazing Adventure~Part 2

2 Nov

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

 

 

The next day, Brian was working. He works with a Christian organization called GEM—Greater Europe Mission. You can check them out on the internet—great organization. Before he went to his meetings, we walked through the Garden of the Gods again—through the mist. We saw rabbits and some deer. I really LOVE this stuff!

While Brian was at work, Karen, Fred and I visited the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

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Again, Fred and I had visited there on our honeymoon 53+ years ago, but the Chapel was not completed at that time. It was such a treat to see it up close and personal. It is a massive structure, and really beautiful.

 

Next we went to Peterson AFB Museum. We had a great guide, Carl—he was very knowledgeable about the history of Peterson. He also told us that, when he was young man, he was working at the golf course on base, and his supervisor called one day in a tizzy. He was told that “Ike” (President Dwight D. Eisenhower) was flying in for a round of golf, and Carl had to caddy for him! And he did! What an experience for a young man!

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There was some really neat architecture in this place. Very “hollywoodish.” One funny exhibit there had a “Wild Hair” painted on the fuselage. The caption said that the pilot had complained and complained about something wrong with the engine, but the mechanics couldn’t find anything wrong with it. Someone made the remark that it seemed like there was a “wild hair” in the engine—and the name stuck!

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After we picked up Brian, we headed south. We stopped at a neat BBQ place called Obie’s and picked up some great BBQ. We then headed to the house of a childhood friend of mine for supper and overnight. (More about them at the end of this tale)

Brian had called them the previous evening and spoke with Ruth Anne. He told her who he was, and said we would be there in about 10 minutes. We heard Ruth Anne clear in our room saying: “WHAT! TONIGHT?” He’s quite the joker. Ruth Anne and her husband have built a cabin for themselves on top of a mountain—and have 35 acres of land—and absolutely MILES of dirt road to get to them! But we had a great time with them, and I was so pleased that Karen and Brian had the opportunity to meet them. They are such fun people. They provided us with an enormous breakfast the next morning and sent us on our way.

 

 

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Brian said later that one of the highlights of the trip for him was to meet these friends—however, the nearly-tame red fox and her two kits right outside the back door probably had something to do with it!

 

 

 

~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~

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An Amazing Adventure~Part 1

26 Oct

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

I’ve just had the most A..M..A..Z..I..N..G adventure! Fred and I, with our oldest daughter, Karen, and her husband, Brian took on the National Parks in the southwest. We covered nine National Parks in about five days! That doesn’t include the National Forests and state parks. Yes, it was a bit tiring—especially to us “old” folks—but we loved every minute of it!

We started out our adventure by flying into Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the best airport near where Karen and Brian live near Chicago. (Just a side note here: In the Milwaukee airport is the area just past security—you know, the area where you put your shoes back on, your belt back on, put the stuff back into your bag, etc. Well, at that airport, there is a sign that names it the “Recombobulation area.” I’ve never seen that area named such in any other airport. Cute, huh?!)

We spent a few days with them—visiting with their two children and new granddaughter-in-law.

 

The four of us then flew out to Denver to begin the real work.

The first thing that Brian did was to rent a van for us to travel in—one with captain’s chairs in the middle row. So much more comfortable to travel in than a car, and the windows are bigger so we can see more from the “back seat.”

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The next great thing was to purchase a $2.27 Styrofoam cooler, along with ice, and lunch meats, bread, condiments, etc., for those times we would be having a “picnic” out. Almost always once a day and occasionally twice, if we were out in the boonies and had no other place to eat. We replenished the stock whenever it was needed. It was great. There’s just something about eating “al fresco” that really satisfies the appetite, you know?!

Since it was afternoon, we drove to our hotel and checked in. We were not far from the Garden of the Gods, so we drove through it, not stopping right then. We would do so the next morning. Fred and I had been there on our honeymoon, 53+ years before. Lots I don’t remember about it, and I suppose the wind and weather has changed it a bit. Fascinating. Here are a few of the sights:

 

 

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And Balanced Rock was just about the most fascinating to me. How does it stay up there?

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We drove through Manitou Springs, but took no pictures. Lots of “springs” around the town, with supposedly healthy/healing qualities to the water. We didn’t have an opportunity to test that theory out.

 

~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~

 

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An Everglades Adventure~Part 2

1 Oct

A Slice of Life

 Bill Lites

Bill Small Red Plane

 

Well, as it turned out, that engine had died a loud and painful death! Much later, I discovered some of the teeth on the phenolic timing gear had sheared off and left the valves and push rods free to fend for themselves.   Boy, what a scary racket that was! Well, since the car wouldn’t run, Dwayne had to tow our dead car, with us and our camper off the Interstate, to the closest campground. What a mess! Here we were, not an hour into our great Everglades Adventure and we were stuck with a broken car.

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 However, not to be deterred from our original goal, we spent most of the that day setting up for our overnight stay in a nice campground there in Melbourne, after which we had to locate, purchase and install a bolt-on trailer hitch for Dwayne’s car. We arranged with the campground owner to leave my car until I could come get it, and transferred everything from our car to theirs. Now we had 4 adults, 4 children and a baby in Dwayne’s car with two canoes strapped to the top, and also pulling our tent camper. What a site that was when we pulled out of the campground and headed south again the next morning.

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Since I-95 ended north of Miami back then, we had to use county roads for the last 45-50 miles before we made it to the entrance of the Everglades National Park.   Then it was another several miles to the Flamingo camping area. With no A/C in the car, it ended up being a grueling 5-hour trip (counting lunch & several potty stops). Then we had to get checked in at the Everglades campground, and find our campsites in the sprawling camping area.

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The grassy campsites had paved slots, which made camper and tent setups very easy. We had a picnic table for each campsite, which we put together for our meals. After we had eaten, we went exploring to find the closest restrooms. We found them, and also discovered that for a shower we were going to have to drive 3 or 4 miles to the closest bathhouse, and then pay 25 cents for water. We would have to think about that. We were used to swimming in the fresh water springs and didn’t usually need showers.

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—–To Be Continued—–

 

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Gunnison Adventure ~Part 3

9 Sep

A Few Things

Patricia Franklin

The most memorable Gunnison trip we took was one into the high mountains via Steers Gulch Road. My husband rode horseback up here as a child with his Uncle on a fishing trip. He had not been up here since, and neither of the guys knew the road or the way there and down the other side into Antelope. The road was not well traveled, but they figured it would get better as we drove up on this round trip down memory lane. We drove for two hours uphill and were still climbing. We had forest service maps with us, but these maps did not show the roads that these guys travel, so we were not too sure where we were going to end up. Finally we came to a deep valley with an old road leading down to a cabin, which my husband remembered as “April’s Cabin.” So we knew we were on the right track, even though there were old logging roads or hunting roads leading off in other directions.

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As we drove on up, we saw field after field of flowers and more varieties of mountain flowers than I have ever seen, and we had to get out many times and get close up pictures along the way. Several were very rare and only bloom for a short time when conditions are perfect. We ran across many we did not recognize.

After enduring this rough “road” for many miles, we finally came to the top of the mountain and were able to look over into the next range of mountains, the Baldy Mountain Range, which is visible on the horizon from Gunnison.

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This is where my husband and his uncle rode horseback down the side of the mountain to Beaver Creek, where they caught a “pillow case” full of trout to take home. Of course, that is not legal any more, but I don’t know of anyone who would make this trip just to fish anyway. This was a beautiful area with a big old stump at the top of the meadow with Columbines growing all around it. This made a wonderful picture, with the Baldies in the background.

 

We then started down the other side of the mountain and headed for home. It was not supposed to rain that day, but the clouds were building up and we did not want to get caught up there in a rain storm. We had a couple of choices of roads to take, and we figured out later we took the road that was not a road, and I’m sure had not been traveled or maintained forever. We ended up going down over huge rocks and just hanging on till we got to the bottom of a ravine. At the last bump going down, our brand new off-road tires got scrunched by the rocks and we blew a tire — 20 miles out in the wilderness on a non-used road, and no cell phone service. So the guys got out to change the tire, and of course it started to rain. 20 miles out in this country could have been 100 because of the rough up and down terrain, the rocks, gullies and then clay-like mud and swampy areas. Well, they got the tire changed and we started up the hill on the other side of the ravine, not knowing for sure where we were going or if we would end up at a dead end. The guys kept saying the road should get better, as they were sure this was the Antelope Road, but in fact, it got worse and we were bumping over rocks, then sliding down the clay-like muddy road that just kept going up and down, through the trees and gullies. It was a very long, tedious ride for many miles, as everyone got quiet, the road got worse and rain kept coming down.

Finally, we topped a hill and they saw the city of Gunnison in a valley many miles away. The “road” we were on looked like it would continue on, so in spite of the conditions, we were relieved, even though we knew if we slid off or lost another tire, we would be walking this road for many hours in the dark, without proper clothing or lighting. We finally came to civilization again as we spotted a ranch house about 1/2 mile away. After that, we felt like we could breathe again, and finally came upon a main road that took us home.

You would think that someone of our age and experience would know getter than to get into a situation like that, but after all, we were just out for a “little Sunday drive.” That was our big adventure for this year. I would not do it again, but we did get some beautiful pictures and saw flowers that we will never see again. And I got closer to the Lord as I did a lot of praying

The original family homestead with new construction.

The original family homestead with new construction.

 

Slide show of the flowers we saw.

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Transition to Maine~Part 5

8 Sep

SUNDAY MEMORIES

Judy Wills

JUDY

 

Winter humidity in Maine is so dry/non-existent, that we had to have a humidifier running inside the house all winter.  Otherwise, the furniture would come apart, and the glue in the picture frames would dry up and the frames would fall apart.  We purchased a new one when we arrived, and sold it when we left.

It was so cold and dry during the winter, that I wrote to family and friends that “when you go outside, and the moisture in your nose freezes, you KNOW it’s cold!”

Fred was able to get off time at Christmas, so we drove to King of Prussia, Pennsylvania to spend it with his parents.

 

 

 

It was a long drive, but it was nice to get back to “civilization.”  While it was still cold in PA, it was almost a relief to have “normal” cold rather than the bitter cold of Maine.

We held a going-away party at our house for the departing Commander of the Weather Detachment.  Most of the unit attended, including spouses.  While in Germany we had some reel-to-reel tapes of instrumental music made, and since they were long-playing, we just let them play during the party.  The Commander got up and gave his goodbye speech.  There was a pause – in the music as well as in his speech.  When he started up again, he started with “I just want to thank you all….”  At the same instant, the music began again, and it happened to be Bob Hope’s theme song Thanks for the Memories.  I couldn’t have timed it better if I had planned it!  One of the other officers there was also a musician, and we looked at each other and grinned – we both caught the significance of it.

After the departure of the Commander, Fred became the unit Commander, serving in that capacity for the remainder of our time there.

Our little church was without a pastor when we arrived.  Several of the men in the church would take turns preaching – including Fred.  There was a small choir.  In spite of it all, the spirit of the congregation was good, and we had a good fellowship, and were able to worship our Lord and Savior.  While we were there, the church called a pastor.  Turns out, his wife was a Maine native, and they were eager to return to the state.  God used him greatly in that place – and he stayed as pastor for 20 years, until his retirement.  We have since learned that the government has closed Loring AFB, and that impacted the church as well.  We knew they had been reaching out to the local communities, in hopes of having a lasting congregation if….when….the base closed.  We don’t know, currently, how it is faring.

~~~~~~~~To Be Continued~~~~~~~~

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Parachute Man

27 Aug

A Slice of Life

 Bill Lites

Bill

 

When I was six years old (1944) WWII was still raging and most everyone in America was trying to do their part to support the war effort. Children’s toys were among the many things that were slanted toward the war and my parents bought me a small stuffed Parachute Man. My Parachute Man was decked out in a camouflaged battle outfit with a cloth parachute attached to his back. I could wrap the parachute and shroud lines around his body, and then when I threw him high in the air, the parachute would unwind and he would come floating down just like a real U.S. Army Paratrooper. Boy, did I have fun with that Parachute Man! I repeated the sequence over and over, day after day, trying to see how high I could throw him. As you can imagine, the higher I could throw him the longer it took him to float back down to me. I can’t remember how long this went on, but I had gotten pretty good at lofting my Parachute Man way up there.

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 Our house in Dallas, TX was on a corner lot, and the side street was usually fairly busy with traffic, going both ways, and I had been instructed to play on the other side of our yard. One day as I was playing with my Parachute Man, and having so much fun, I didn’t notice that the wind had shifted and was now blowing across our yard from the west. On one of the highest lofts I had ever thrown, when the parachute opened, the wind caught my Parachute Man and he drifted across our yard and out into the cross street, right in front of a car. I held my breath. Was he going to be run over and crushed? I ran to the edge of our yard to see what had happened to my Parachute Man. But, he wasn’t there! Where was he? I looked up and down the street, but he was nowhere in sight. Then I realized… he had gotten caught on the front of that car and I would never see him again. I was a sad little boy for a long time after that, but my parents didn’t buy me another Parachute Man; probably thinking it would end up the same way or worse, if I were to run out into the street after him.

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The next year, our family flew to our new home in Albuquerque, NM in a beautiful shiny American Air Lines DC-3, and I’ve been hooked on airplanes ever since. I had planned to be a fighter pilot when I grew up, but my astigmatism ended that dream. I even took flying lessons, and soloed a couple times, but ran out of money before I got my license.   Now that I’m retired, the # 1 item on my “Bucket List” is to attend as many Airshows and visit as many Aviation Museums as I can while I can still walk.

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Just last October I was at an airshow in Addison, TX to see “FIFI” the only flying B-29 in the world, and happened to run into Bob Bearden. Bob was a sergeant in the 507th Parachute Regiment, 82nd Airborne Division, who parachuted into France on June 6, 1944 as part of the Normandy invasion during WWII. Bob was dressed in his jump gear and boots and he reminded me of my Parachute Man. It was my privilege to meet and talk with Bob and have my picture taken with him, in front of a C-47, painted with invasion stripes, just like the plane he and his fellow paratroopers jumped from on that infamous day so many years ago.

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         “Thank you Bob and all those many other Parachute Men for your service to our country.”

 

 

 

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Gunnison Adventure~Part 2

26 Aug

A Few Thoughts

Patricia Franklin

One of the most beautiful trips we took, and one I always anticipate, was up to Paradise Divide above Crested Butte at about 11,500 feet. This is one of our favorite places to go, and we hid a geocache up here years ago, which is still there. We get many great comments about the Paradise area on our geocaching site.

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There are several rare flowers on this trip and some of them only bloom for a very short time, if conditions are right. For instance we saw Glacier Lilies that only grow near the snow banks for a short time after the snow melts;

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Moss Campion (moss in bloom, with the sweetest smelling little pink flowers you have ever seen); Monument Plants which only bloom once, then are dormant for 20 – 60 years, then will bloom again. Rosy Paint Brush with its different shades of bright pink to pale pink, grows at this altitude. We saw a multitude of Lemon Paint Brush and the bright red Indian Paint Brush, too. Then there is the fluffy little Bistort that is soft and pleasing to the eye, but smells like dirty socks. These are just a few of my favorite flowers. There is a wonderful waterfall on the road up that cascades down 1000 feet this time of year, and a beautiful pristine Mirror Lake at the top. Also at the top, a large red mountain above timberline dominates the scene. You never see a lot of people up here.

Going down the other side, a few miles down you see many more people, as it is a popular area. You pass the Biology Research Center located in beautiful Gothic. They established research plots in this area years ago to study the gorgeous flora here. It looks like they are expanding their research, as they are building a huge new building up here. Also as you come down this side, you pass Emerald Lake, which is very deep and is the color of emeralds. This is a favorite fishing, hiking and biking area, with many bicycle trails in use here in the summer. One popular trail passes the famous Maroon Bells and leads you into Aspen on the other side of the mountain to the east.

We saw a lot of wildlife during our stay in the area this year, including several deer, a couple of herds of elk (mamas and babies),a family of raccoons climbing a tree to spend the night, and 3 deer being stalked by a coyote.

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We were parked by the road watching the deer right above us. They were not spooked by us, but kept looking over our heads into the meadow below. So we looked down there and saw the coyote. He was watching them and looked like he was going to try to go around and maybe get behind them. However, we don’t think he would attack on his own. We also had our own little resident doe that stays close to our condo

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