Road trip pics

jeg43 asked that I post photos of my recent road trip. Riding and aiming a camera don't mix, and it was raining much of the time, so I really didn't take a bunch, but here are a few and a little commentary.

I'll start out with a map...

This is the area I traveled. Although I've spent many an enjoyable hour exploring much of Colorado by scooter, 4-wheel drive and sitting a saddle, it has been several years since I've done so. This was a much needed trip, and I'll not let time slip by again before taking similar trips.


The brother's house in Boulder. Notice the "for sale" sign in the yard. A sad sight for me, as I remember when he first bought the place (1969) and the time we spent wrecking out the old plaster and lath getting it ready to be restored. It was hard but rewarding work, and as you can see... the place is spectacular.


It rained all but one day of my trip, but rain is not always a bad thing. This double rainbow was shot over Boulder.


This is a view of Mt. Meeker taken from out in the Front Range farming areas. Views like this are particularly spectacular at sunrise on a clear day. Unfortunately I had only one clear day, and as you can see, it was still hazy.

I wonder if the farmers ever look up from their fields and wonder at the majesty of the Rockies.

Mt. Meeker from a bit closer in, taken with 4X zoom from the Peak to Peak Hwy.


Boulder Creek just below Boulder Falls. In my youth we would tube all the way from the falls into downtown Boulder. As you can see, it could be challenging... and painful if you were unlucky enough to bust a tailbone on one of those rocks.


The Cascade Creek was one of my more favored places for hiking and camping. Recent rains have kept the creek flowing, but light winter snows may lead to the creek drying up as summer wears on.


Just above Lyons, Colorado. Long's Peak is visible in the distance.


Long's Peak through the trees.

At 14,255 above sea level, Long's Peak is a pretty majestic sight. Many moons ago, while taking pilot lessons, I had the opportunity to fly over Long's Peak in a Cessna 270.


The Stanley Hotel was built in 1909 by F.O. Stanley, the inventor of the Stanley Steamer automobile. Stanley had tuberculosis, and his physician recommended he go to someplace high and dry. He and his wife settled on Estes Park as a vacation spot in an effort to ease his misery. It worked. His health improved and they decided to stay and invest in Estes Park's future.


The northern Front Range as seen from in front of the Stanley Hotel, Estes Park.

Fuel prices at the least expensive station I could find in Estes Park.

The Big Thompson River flows through the Big Thompson Canyon (duh). This is the river that flooded back in July of 1976, wreaking havoc and killing 144 people. Up to 16 inches of rain fell in a dramatic thunderstorm that started at dusk and continued well into the night. Most residents had no warning of the impending disaster, and nothing like it had happened in that area before.

The flood nearly wiped Estes Park off the map. It scoured the canyon walls, moving tremendous amounts of rock and debris downriver, overrunning crowded campgrounds and wiping out riverside cabins. Bridges throughout the canyon became temporary dams, which quickly backed up then broke violently, creating a series of flood surges that worsened the devastation. Houses and cars all just became a part of this "flow."




The vast majority of those killed were determined by the county coroner to have been crushed before they could drown. Several victims were never found.

The Big Thompson flood is known to flood experts all over the world. Although it is considered to be a rare event, if such a flood were to hit Boulder the results would likely be far more devastating, as so many more people live at the mouth of that canyon.

My brother and I participated in the rescue efforts. This was perhaps the event that caused me to enter EMS as a career.
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