Colorado (Elk & Mountains 2012)

My first trip to Colorado actually occurred sometime in the 1990’s when I was visiting my friend in Santa Fe. Harold and I took a long weekend and made a journey up to Mesa Verde. I mentioned that trip earlier when I was talking about New Mexico. Mesa Verde is a wonderful national park to visit, rich with history and culture. To get to Mesa Verde from the south you can pass through the delightful town of Durango, Colorado. https://www.go-colorado.com/Durango/# The main attraction in southern Colorado though is Mesa Verde. To reach the ruins it is necessary to drive way up into the mountains. It is a sacred place that was inhabited by the ancestral Pueblo peoples for over 700 years. Vibrant communities thrived in the cliff dwellings. From an elevation of almost 7,000 feet it is possible to view New Mexico and Arizona from this little southwestern corner of Colorado. You can even see all the way to Shiprock, New Mexico on the plateau below, giving a breathtaking view of the basalt volcanic plume. If your travels take you to southwest Colorado, I strongly recommend a trip to Mesa Verde National Park. https://www.nps.gov/meve/index.htm

Other than the daytrip detour into Mesa Verde, my “real” visit to Colorado came in July of 2012 when my friend Linda drove up from Santa Fe, picked me up at the Denver airport and took me touring to Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park, and the Boulder area. I absolutely enjoyed the sites in Colorado, most prominently the elk roaming in the streets of Estes Park at the base of Rocky Mountain National Park. I had never seen elk before, although now I have visited herds in both Yellowstone and the Allegheny National Forest, and I have a better idea of what to expect in elk behavior and manners, or lack thereof. I was amazed at how brazenly the wild animals roamed the town’s streets, darting under clothelines and behind hedges in their quest for delicious edibles. Of course they were followed across people’s lawns and through gardens by a horde of tourists like myself snapping pictures as we watched them go about their business. Since it was July there was no rutting or bugling going on and the elk were quite peaceful to watch as they moved through the town.

Once we left Estes Park behind and climbed into Rocky Mountain National Park I was impressed by the incredible elevation gain. This national park is one of the highest with a peak elevation on a paved road of over 12,000 feet. https://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/mileages.htm The views are breathtaking and it, along with Glacier National Park, is one of the few places where I got up close and personal views of mountain goats. They were definitely in their element at those elevations on the rocky terrain. We settled for a picnic by the side of the road in the mountain splendor. The views were magnificent. The phrase “purple mountain’s majesty” took on a whole new meaning.

On the way back to Denver we stopped off to explore Boulder. Boulder is the kind of town where one loves to roam on pedestrian friendly streets, visiting farmers’ markets and quaint shops. There are a number of tea shops in Boulder, it appears they take their tea quite seriously. https://www.boulderteahouse.com/ Being a fan of fine tea myself, I wandered into one of tea shops and bought gifts for my office mates including a bag of rather smelly lapsang souchong for my law clerk Marc. Even though it smells like smoky burned rubber, Marc said he enjoyed his present. Boulder is also home to a Chautauqua center left over from the days when people traveled to such retreats in the summer months. The Chautauqua Institutes were always located in wonderful locations where folks went ostensibly to pursue educational endeavors. A few still exist such as the DIning Hall in Boulder where I was fortunate to dine one evening in connection with the conference I attended in Denver. https://www.chautauqua.com/dining/dining-hall/

After Linda returned to Santa Fe I had a five day conference in Denver to attend. I had abundant free time to explore the sites of Denver in spite of the bike race which apparently was headquartered close to my hotel and resulted in a bike traffic jam of mammoth proportions. I, however, jumped on the trolley that runs along the main street and went off to explore. http://www.denvertrolley.org/ The trolley is a great way to see the city. I found two highlights of my exploration to be a wonderful bookstore and The Unsinkable Molly Brown. Denver has a number of independent bookstores and in one of them I found a new to me mystery writer, Robert Greer, whose main character is CJ Floyd, an African American bail bondsman. CJ gives a new spin to the private investigator image. The book I brought home to Harold was The Devil’s Hatband, the debut novel in the series first published in 1986. I managed to find an autographed copy. Harold enjoyed it and it still sits on my bookshelf. Visiting a bookstore is a good Denver activity. https://www.tatteredcover.com/ It is also fun to visit the 19th century home of JJ and Margaret Brown when touring about the city. https://mollybrown.org/the-denver-years/ “Molly” became famous because she survived the Titanic disaster and acquired the nickname “Unsinkable Molly.” In addition to having a couple of elegant hotels in town named after her, she also has a museum and restored home which can be visited. Denver is a great place for a visit and the mile high air is fresh and crisp !