Rocky Mountain High

Saturday, July 20, Day 89 (cont'd)

We passed through Colby Kansas, a town of about 5300. While there was not much to see, this Sherman County Courthouse caught my eye.  It seems like every small town in the Midwest has a landmark building.  This one features Seth Thomas clocks in this fifth story. Kansas has 105 counties, the most of any state! 

Soon we were at the Kansas- Colorado border - another clever name Kanorado, for this town on the border.

This seems like such bucolic farm country.  It is known for its continental climate, i.e. hot humid summers and cold dry winters.  And average temperatures go from 12 degrees to 90 degrees.  And those are averages!  Temperatures are below freezing 165 days of the year.

Up ahead we are beginning to see the Rocky Mountains, and a storm front moving in.

This rain squall is coming down the face of the mountains and it looks like we are heading into it. Which we do! Lots of thunder and lightening.

Just on the other side of the squall, toward Colorado City, we encounter these amazing rock formations called the Garden of the Gods.  We are headed to the home of Aunt Jolene, our friend Laura's Aunt.

Laura told us we would go past this area, which is close to Aunt Jolene's. 

The Garden of the Gods was sacred to the Indians from about 1300 BC.  They were attracted by the wildlife, plants and rock overhangs that provided shelter.  Indians who used this area included Ute, Comanche, Apache, Kiowa, Shoshone, Cheyenne, Pawnee and Lakota.

One of the two surveyors who came here thought it would make an excellent beer garden! 

Fortunately, he didn't have a say in the matter, and when the man who purchased it died, his family donated it to the city for a public park.  Now it's about 1300 acres of recreation land. We wished we had time to explore.

Helen Hunt Jackson, who wrote the classic Indian novel "Ramona," said of this place. "You wind among rocks of every conceivable and inconceivable shape and size…all bright red, all motionless and silent, with a strange look of having been just stopped and held back in the very climax of some supernatural catastrophe."

What we didn't know, but shouldn't have expected anthing less --- Laura's family was having a party, a birthday party for her father who was turning 85.  We met the "famous" Aunt Jolene, whose late husband was the first representative of  Rolex Watches in the US.  She has a wonderful house, filled with her  fabulous sumi-e Japanese brush paintings, and the landscaping around her house has one of every kind of fir tree imaginable.  It's almost a botanical preserve! She had many of the species imported.  Her house, I'm sure has been featured in one of the design magazines!

After seeing Laura's son Seth, wife Tara, granddaughters Savannah and Charlotte, plus sister Linda, we went with her father Ed and mother Dolores to a wonderful little French restaurant.  Ed is amazing for 85!  Being surrounded by women, Ed was happy to have John along.  It was a lot of fun! It was a surprise to see everyone and an unexpected highlight along our way! 

Dolores, Linda, Ed, Laura, Aunt Jolene, John, Dixie 

Sunday, July 21, Day 90

We met Laura the next morning in historic Old Colorado City for breakfast at the Bon Ton Cafe.  And we got a chance to look around briefly.  It looks like a great little area to explore!  Another place to visit again. 

Laura had been a coworker John' s and has been such a good friend to both of us for a long time,  it was good to see her.

This was a mural in Old Colorado City, paying homage to its days as a wild west town!

As we headed south along highway 25, we passed through Pueblo, and then saw these mountains jutting out.  They are called Spanish Peaks.  In Indian language, the translations are "two breasts," or "breasts of the earth."  Guess guys just can't help themselves …

The peaks are very prominent and can be seen from all sides for many miles.

Everywhere are stark reminders of pioneers who have come and gone.  This is such harsh country, high plains with wind always blowing.  Whoever lived here gave it their all…

 

And a reminder of that ever blowing wind, here are some wind generators under construction.  Seeing the car in the foreground gives you an appreciation of just how big they are!

The blades are amazing and it's easier to appreciate their size here on the ground.  Imagine all the equipment and effort it takes to put one of these together, out here on the vast plain.