Reflections At "The Ponds"

A negligible western wildfire haze softened the atmosphere , lending a pastel painting ambiance to our Red Mountain surround. Summer's lush green grass at "The Ponds" was on the wane, as chlorophyl beat a slow retreat to dormancy. In a week or two, our above-timberline mountain playgrounds will fade to slopes of tawny gold, and remind us of Ms Autumn's steady approach.

Old Dog, New Tricks

When it seems like you can't change what's going on around you, it might be time to consider changing what's going on inside. 

Finding Purpose By Movement In The Outdoors

To say that a Mount Abram summit begins with a serious, near vertical grind is an understatement. For some reason, it reminds of my grandparents ladder-like attic stairway, a narrow, near vertical shaft constructed with 4 inch treads on a 12 inch rise. Somehow, and at great peril, I might add, my Grandma Carder could traverse up and down that contravention of ethics and "building code" in 3 inch heels. Then, as if to elevate "perilous" to treacherous, Granddad never bothered to install a handrail.  The attic was crammed with odds and ends of "memorabilia," boxes and boxes of artifacts destined for a "someday" yard sale that never came to pass. If there is a "bright side" to getting old and crippled, it's that it will excuse long put off chores indefinitely, which, at some point, becomes forever.

Fun With Megan and Micheal

 

Great niece, Megan, and spouse Micheal, dropped by Lovely Ouray for a couple of days. The Pennsylvanians were on a 4 to 6 week road trip tour of the southwest. Unfortunately, record high temps, countless forest fires and a monsoonal deluge plagued some of their camping trip, they made lemonade out of lemons and toughed it out. And to think, it was their honeymoon?

On Wildflowers

 

"Wildflowers are the loveliest of all because they grow in uncultivated soil, in those hard, rugged places where no one expects them to flourish."  Micheline Ryckman 

Red Rovers Hike The "Reds"

Red was my father's favorite color. He loved red cars, red dresses, red apples, red neckties, and, of course, Arizona's flaming red sunsets. Anything red got his attention. Like father like son, they say, and this ole "red apple" didn't fall from the "tree."

Barstow Mining Ruins, and Flower Blooms In Spirit Basin

 

At over 11,200 feet, visiting the old Barstow Mine will certainly test the lungs of "flat-land" tourists. But it's worth every breath just to gaze upon immense piles of colorful tailings plastered against a sheer backdrop of green vegetation and mountaintops that soar into the heavenly blue skies of Southwest Colorado.  But wait, there's more!