TRIP TO COLORADO 7/29-8/11/90

We left Arnold 10:00 am Sunday July 29 and drove over highway 4 to 395 and up 208 to Yerinton on 95 to Fallon arriving about 3:30. Stayed at the Western Motel. Penelope read the Sunday paper and David gambled away $10 to satisfy his ten year gambling itch. After dinner we visited Aunt Rheta, Uncle Art's first wife. I haven't seen her for 30 years so that was fun and interesting. We had a nice visit.

Monday July 30 we left Fallon at 7:45 AM and drove Highway 50 through Austin, Eureka, and Ely. We ate lunch at the Hickison Summit Pictograph Site which was very interesting. Highway 50 is billed at the loneliest road in America but it is a lot of hype. We certainly saw lots of cars and there are interesting communities along the way. I found it much more pleasant than driving through Arizona and Southern California. We stayed in a two block town called Baker so that we could make it to Grand Junction the next day. We had time to drive through Great Basin National Park and wished we have more time to hike there. I would love to camp there. It is such a contrast to the desert. I saw lots of Chukars (a new bird) at a rest stop. Also saw more common nighthawks than I've ever seen before. Also saw lots of Kingbirds, cliff and barn swallows, ravens, kestrals, and red tailed hawks. We've driven 800 miles so far (Menlo Park to Baker).

Tuesday Left Baker at 6:30 AM (yeh for PB- now this is more like traveling). We saw an immature Golden Eagle along Highway 50 and a Ferrugenous Hawk near Delta. We visited the Arches National Park which was very interesting but it was just too hot and dry. We arrive in the late afternoon at Grand Junction having driven 438 miles today- that was just too much driving, I ache all over. Colorado had a very interesting Welcome Center as we came in with all kinds of information and maps and very pleasant people. They really take tourists seriously.

Wednesday (8/1/90) We left Grand Junction by 8:00 and drove through town and bought some "famous" Grand Junction peaches. They were ok but certainly not the best we've ever eaten. We drove over the Grand Mesa on our way to Montrose. What a beautiful drive that was, so many wildflowers. There were many true Alpine meadows and lots of Aspen. It was truly good for the soul and I had to stop often to experience everything. I saw a new bird, a pair of pine grosbeaks up at the summit when we took a short walk. I also saw red tail hawks plus a few other birds I couldn't identify. We continued on to Montrose and got a motel around noon and then drove to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. That was an awe inspiring sight and words fail to describe that grandeur. Fortunately we were able to drive along the rim and then get out and walk right to the edge. It was something else. After that we drove to Cimarron and saw the back side of the Mesa that makes the canyon. They have a beautifully restored narrow gauge engine there. We drove a total of 185 miles today which is much better for me- I'd say my maximum is 200 miles a day any more and I hurt all over.

Thursday We left Montrose by 8 AM and drove to the Blue Mesa Reservoir stopping several places to look at the Gunnison River and Dams. It was beautiful. We drove up to Crawford and then to Paonia and had a wonderful visit with Hermon Nelson (Mother's cousin). He talked for a solid hour and a half about his ranching life, his trouble with his brother Leonard (who tried to take the ranch away from his father) and some of his experiences in the early 40's working in Golden. He chewed and spit tobacco the whole time. He is 80 and still keeps cattle. He was so interesting. We also went to meet his wife who was working at the visitor's center. The town is really pushing tourism and claims to be the fruit capital of the valley but they are in a drought and haven't had any fruit for two years. We then had a very scenic drive up to 133 to charming Redstone. I wish we'd spent more time there. We continued up through Carbondale to Glenwood Springs where we spent the night. We had to stay there because Bush was in Aspen and that area was all booked up. Drove 220 miles today.

Friday We left Glenwood Springs at 7:15 so that we could arrive at Maroon Bells before 8:30 so that we could drive our car into the area instead of having to take a bus. We hiked for three hours over a place that would match anywhere in the world, even California. There were thick aspen groves, alpine meadows filled with many kinds of wild flowers and then we got to timber line with incredible rocks and vistas. It was definitely the best part of the trip so far for me. This place is not advertised but is well populated but we missed most of the crowds. Then we drove through Aspen, a pretty town- what we could see through the people and traffic, worse than Tahoe. We continued up over Independence Pass, as beautiful a drive as you'd find in the Sierras. The Continental Divide was at 12,095 feet, cold, windy and beautiful tundra. Today I have seen whited crowned sparrows, blue grouse, broad tailed humming birds, robins, solitary vireo, MacGillvry's warble, Wilson's Warblers. At Twin Lakes the grocery store had lots of hummingbirds and we had fun watching them. We arrived at Frisco about 5:15 having driven 187 miles. We met Sharil, my cousin and went to her house. We spent a very enjoyable evening with her and her husband Bill catching up on thirty years of news. They have a beautiful home in a lovely area and we enjoyed spending the night with them.

Saturday We left Frisco in the morning driving highway 70 stopping at several small towns along the way, Georgetown, Idaho Springs, and Golden. We went to the Arco Mine which was very interesting and we also went on the Coors Tours. I went to the Golden Cemetery to check on the Nelson Family graves but could only find my Grandparents'. We drove to Auroa and met Mom at her new home and had a tour of the building. It is a very nice place and we were both pleasantly surprised with how comfortable it all is. It really looks like a high class hotel and the apartments are very nice. Then we drove on to Genevieve's. Bob and Barbara came over and we all had a nice dinner together and a pleasant visit. We only drove 80 miles today but they were fraught with frustration. Colorado highway signs are not as clear to us as California's and Denver is a very spread out city- much like Los Angeles so it is hard and long to get around. If you like Los Angeles you'll love Denver. I did call Margaret Ann and we had a nice visit but she wasn't going to be home Sunday so I didn't get to see her.

Sunday We stayed with Genevieve and in the morning the three of us drove to Estes Park and took the main road through and up Rocky Mountain National Park. It was about a 50 mile drive in the Park. We had lots of wonderful vistas and took all the walks we could. There were lots of people- it was even hard to park in some places but I just forced myself to look beyond that problem. We had fun seeing lots of marmots, also some elk and a few picas. I saw lots of Clark's nutcrackers, stellar jays, horned larks, water pipits, ravens, and white crowned sparrows. When we got home we got pizza. It was a pleasant day- we drove a total of 258 miles.

Monday 8/5/90 We went to Barbara and Bob's home for breakfast and saw their home and yard. We had a nice visit. Then we drove up to Golden to the cemetery again and the man on duty was able to help me find some information on the Nelson family. I was able to get some new information, such as birth and death dates, middle initials, and the name of one wife. We stopped at the Colorado Rail Road Museum so David could poke around all the old trains. They sure had a lot there and it was very interesting. We stopped at 1 Mom's on the way back and showed her our pictures and visited a bit and then went back to Genevieve's. Mom took all six of us out to dinner at one of her favorite places- a cafeteria and we had a nice visit. (Drove 78 miles today.)

Tuesday We left early and went to Manzanola for a nostalgic visit for Penelope. I thought we'd also visit David's old home in Pueblo but he didn't want to go so we skipped Pueblo altogether. Manzanola is a pleasant town and although the buildings are changed the character of the town hasn't changed at all. It brought back many happy memories for me. The first thing I noticed when I got out in front of Grandma's house was it still smelled the same. Afterward we drove to Rocky Ford and had lunch there in a local park (and by the way no melon in Colorado was any better than any I've had in California- Rocky Ford Melon is a myth). Then we drove to

Bent's Fort in La Junta which was very interesting and worth while. Drove through Walensburg and stayed in Alamosa. Sure is interesting scenery from the dry high plains to the mountains with streams and bushes. We drove through the Alamosa Wild Life Refuge and could see geese in the ponds. I also saw a new bird in Manzanola, a blue jay - the only one I saw on the whole trip. They are just beginning to move into Colorado. I also saw kingbirds, Norther Harrier, Red Tailed Hawks, lark sparrow, sage thrasher, yellowlegs, killdeer, house finch. Drove 356 miles today- ugh.

Wednesday We left Alamosa by 8 AM and arrived at Mesa Verde about 1:00. We drove through Durango and stopped at Several scenic spots along the way. We spent 5 hours at Mesa Verde taking the Ruins Road and looking at a lot of Pueblos and Cliff Dwellings. We went into the Spruce Tree House. It is amazing to think of those people living and building so many years ago. It was all very interesting. We arrived at Cortez about 6 PM and stayed there. Today I saw white breasted nuthatches, pine grosbeak, sharp shinned hawk.

Thursday We left Cortez at 7AM and drove to "Four Corners" which was a big disappointment to me. We had to pay $1.00 entrance fee to a very tacky area surrounding the monuement. Then we continued on 160 to Tuba City to 89 to Flagstaff. Talk about a desolate, lonely drive it could match Highway 50 many times over. You'd see a house every so often and wander what they did out there. There certainly was some beautiful desert scenery, very red sand and so fine, amazing mesas and rock formations. We didn't stop much because we were on the way to Barbara's. David forgot (he says we didn't need it) to get gas so we drove across the desert on empty. We drove the last hour with the air conditioner off and the windows up to save gas. I was never so afraid in my whole life. Having 2 gallons (enough for 30 miles) left was small consolation to me when we finally did get gas. But after drive 430 miles we arrived at Barbara's home about 3:30. She has a lovely home but it is right in the middle of the desert and it was hot - 110 degrees. It is comfortable indoors. We had a nice visit- they had a birthday dinner with cake for David and we watched lots of birds through her window. She was so thrilled because the cardinal came and I saw him. In the morning we went to the Hassayampa River Nature Preserve which is a jewel- a riparian area in the middle of the desert. Not only did we see birds there we saw a javelina. I got 11 new birds in Arizona, Harris Hawk, Gila Woodpecker, Abert Towhee, Canyon Towhee, curved billed thrasher, cardinal, cactus wren, LeConte's thrasher, white wing dove, Inca Dove, Common Ground dove plus a green backed heron, wilson warbler, black phoebe, morehen, orange crowned warble, kingbird, ash throated fly catcher, common night hawks, house finches, and hooded oriole. It was a nice visit with Barbara and Dan.

Friday We left about 10:00 and headed across the desert to Bakersfield. The scenery and road was uglier and dryer and lonlier than anything Nevada and Utah have. I simply cannot empathize in any way why anyone would live in the desert (even writing now about the desert makes be feel awful). We stopped for lunch at Lake Havasu City and Drove across "London Bridge". When I got out to photograph it the heat almost knocked me out. I just can't believe it. We arrived at Bakersfield about 7:00 having driven a long 475 miles.

Saturday We left Bakersfield about 6:00 AM - our earliest departure time and drove 271 miles to arrive home - wonderful home- about noon.

We drove a total of 4030 miles and spent a total of $1300 ($100 a day). It was an interesting experience.