LEAVING DURANGO

What a wonderful week I had in Durango! As I mentioned previously, my condo was right downtown and I could walk nearly everywhere. I finally got adjusted to the altitude, so walking wasn't as difficult and, besides, it was good exercise! I attended to alot of "duties" this week, including getting the oil changed and tires rotated in the Roadtrek, getting a pedicure, a haircut, and doing some laundry. I think I visited every shop in Durango at least twice, bought a couple pieces of jewelry, had a couple of drinks at the Diamond Belle Saloon and listened to the Ragtime Piano Player. It's a really fun place that we enjoyed during our summer in Durango and we took all our guests there, too. On Wednesday I took a van trip to Silverton which is about an hour and 10 minute drive over some of the most beautiful scenery in the country, but on some very dangerous roads with lots of horseshoe curves, and no shoulder! It is not a drive I would do by myself, especially in the Roadtrek! I had lunch in Silverton at Handlebars, which was always a favorite of ours, did a little shopping, and then took the train back to Durango. The Durango Silverton Railroad is a coal based narrow gauge railroad and takes 3 1/2 hours to return to Durango. It's a beautiful ride through the mountains, close to the snowcapped peaks, past many waterfalls, and rocky canyons. Some of us saw a brown bear which was a real treat! It was a gorgeous day and even at the higher elevations, I only needed a coat for a short period of time. Durango had unusually warm weather at the beginning of the week, but the nights were always pleasantly cool. I left Durango this morning and it was cool all day long. I know this won't last, so I'm enjoying it while I can. I went to the Trimble Hot Springs one day which has a heated Olympic Size Pool and two natural hot springs, one at 110 degrees which is too hot, and one at 104 degrees which is just right. While there I decided to get a massage and what a treat that was! My neck and shoulders were really tense, probably from all the driving I've been doing, and a soak in the hot springs afterwards made me relax even more.

Saturday night I went to a Melodrama called "The Tavern." A melodrama is a Victorian stage melodrama featuring a hero, the villain, the heroine, an aged parent and a comic man. "The Tavern" was exceptionally good, well acted and very entertaining! Rafters and kayakers were everywhere over the weekend for "Animas River Days" and the water is still flowing freely from the melting snow. The water was really brown at the beginning of the week but has started to clear.

On Friday I went to Bayfield, a small town about 20 miles from Durango, to visit my cousin Jackie Hanson and her husband, Ted. I met her through my genealogy research about 10 years ago and she's a third cousin. Ted was a country western singer years ago and Jackie was the vocalist for his band. They traveled all over the western part of the country in a bus for 20 years and then settled in Colorado. They maintain a 300 acre ranch now that belongs to a woman and her family from Chicago. Jackie and Ted have their own house on the ranch and the family owned home has 6 bedrooms and, of course, is much larger. Ted, with the help of some ranch hands, takes care of the property and Jackie takes care of the guest house. They had an elk come to visit them this past winter that stayed in the barn with some of the horses. He still appears regularly, but he was nowhere in the sight the day I was there. I hadn't seen them for six years and we had a really nice visit. Jackie broke her hip about a month ago, but she's doing well, although moving around slowly.

As I begin my trek home, I leave with mixed emotions. The mountains here are so beautiful and look more like a picture than a reality. It was a wonderful trip, but I'm looking forward to going home and spending some time at the beach now that summer is in full swing! I just wish it wasn't so far from the East coast to the rockies! Depending on WiFi service along the way, I will try to send another Blog; otherwise, I will send one after I get home.

DURANGO, CO - MY FINAL DESTINATION

I ended my last blog in Estes, Park, CO - nearly a week ago. I left on Wednesday, May 26 and I spent that night in Denver with Beverly Winters, a friend I had met while taking ballroom dance lessons in New Bern, NC. She moved to Colorado nearly three years ago, so we had a lot of catching up to do and she treated me to a delicious dinner at the Washington Park Grill, a great restaurant in Denver. I left there the next morning for Buena Vista, CO. It was a relatively short drive but through a very mountainous area which greatly made me appreciate being a North Carolina "Flatlander!" The views were beautiful but mostly 20 to 30 mph curves with steep inclines and 6 to 7% declines so I didn't have much of an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of those mountains! I had intended to spend a couple of nights in Buena Vista but there wasn't much to do there so I spent the one night and headed to Durango a day early. The campground in Buena Vista was very nice and I've attached a picture of my campsite. Some of you reading this may not have seen my Roadtrek, so this will give you a good glimpse of what I've been driving these past three weeks! The picture of the snow on the mountains that I've attached was taking while I was driving (I know!) over Wolf Creek Pass and at the crest there was snow everywhere. There was nowhere to pull over to take a picture but I wanted to show how close I was to the snow!

I arrived in Durango on Friday, 4 June and this is my final destination. I will be heading home on Sunday but will take a week to get back to North Carolina. My husband and I worked in Durango for 4 1/2 months 10 years ago at the Alpen Rose Campground. Durango is my favorite city - and I've been to many - so it holds a special place in my heart. I spent two nights at that same campground and it's one of the nicest campgrounds I've ever been to. I walked through the downtown area and drove around - refamiliarizing myself with the area. The Animas River runs through Durango and right now it is raging with melted snow from the mountains. You can always see a raft or kayak on the water as rafting is a big business here and many places in this part of Colorado.

I'm in a timeshare now for the rest of the week and it's in a great location right downtown. I can walk to shops, restaurants, etc., instead of driving and trying to find a parking place. I drove to the Durango Ski Resort yesterday where they have many summer activities, including an alpine slide and chairlift, but not much is open except on the weekends until the end of June. It was a pretty drive, at least, with spectacular mountain views! I also stopped at Honeyville, a shop that produces their own honey in flavors like Amaretto, Maple Hazelnut, Strawberry, Cinnamon (their best seller) and it's great on toast or bagels. In fact, I think I'll have a bagel after I finish this blog!

Last night I stopped in at the Diamond Belle Saloon and listened to the Ragtime piano player. It was a fun crowd and just a short walk from here.

Tomorrow I'll be taking the train from Durango to Silverton, a 2 1/2 hour train ride on an historic steam train. I'll spend a couple of hours in Silverton, have lunch, and return by bus. We took this same train ride several times during the summer we lived here and the scenery is spectacular.

Durango is at an elevation of about 6500 feet and I'm slowly getting acclimated to the altitude. Days are warm but nights are refreshingly cool. Shops keep their doors open and most restaurants have outdoor seating since there really aren't many bugs here. It's really a delightful place! More later in the week! I hope you are all well.

This is my fifth and last night in beautiful Estes Park, CO. Not only are there snow-capped mountains surrounding the town, but around every corner are mountain streams filled with rushing water from the snow that is still melting. Fly fisherman abound and sports enthusiasts from hikers to bicyclists can be seen everywhere. This past weekend was Memorial Weekend and the town was bustling with tourists. The downtown area has many shops catering to the Western lifestyle, interspersed with restaurants, coffee shops, and many stores selling fudge, taffy or ice cream! There was a craft fair on the town square with some high end hand made items. The only thing I bought was a piece of stained glass made to look like an aspen leaf branch with five leaves. It's very pretty and almost looks like crushed leaves are inside the glass but the craftsman assured me it was all glass. This is the elk calving season and because of the close proximity to Rocky Mountain National Park, the elk and other wildlife can be seen almost anywhere in and around town. A sign upon entering the town remindsyou to watch for wildlife on every street in Estes Park. Many homes have wire around their plants and shrubs to prevent the elk from eating them. One day I saw five elk running on an actual running path at the edge of the highway. Yesterday there were four bull elk grazing at the side of the road and I was able to find a place at the side of the road to take some good pictures. That was an awesome sight! There are gophers running all over this campground and today one got inside an empty plastic cup that someone had thrown on the ground. It was so funny! Today I didn't see any elk but did get a picture of two deer in a residential district. It's been fun to drive around in search of wildlife!

Saturday night I attended a Chuckwagon Dinner right here in the campground and it was a delicious meal, followed by entertainment. We were served brisket, baked beans, coleslaw, corn bread and a brownie for dessert. Cowboy poets are popular here in the west and they tell stories and sing songs interspersed with bits of humor. Bill Barwick was the poet Saturday night, although he was more of a comedian than a singer and it was first class entertainment. I met a very nice couple from Nebraska who farm 6,000 acres of wheat in the western part of the State. DiAnna and I are already Facebook friends! If you're reading this, thanks again for your company, DiAnna and Roger!

Tomorrow I'm headed for Denver and will spend the night with a friend and then I'll be in Buena Vista, CO for two nights, followed by a week in Durango. Stay tuned for more Blogs to follow!