South, West or Somewhere In Between?

 Hello friends, I have been absent for awhile. We have been busy getting settled back in Texas.

We are happy to be home but I feel sure we will miss our Colorado house, especially along about June of next year.

I haven’t been out taking any photos..but this caught my eye when I walked by. Southern Living is my favorite magazine. I do enjoy reading the articles but look forward mainly to the recipes. It got me to thinking…Is Texas considered a “southern state”? Yes geographically we definitely are, but Texans don’t like being  grouped with the southern states and there are those that don’t even like being grouped with the western states!…They want Texas referred to as The Lone Star State.something like this: There are the southern states, the western states and the lone star state. Sort of silly isn’t it?

A Welcome Home

 We have made it back to Texas…and wouldn’t you know it…it will be 100 degrees today! Whew!

On Saturday morning though..before it got too hot, my sister Polly  had a beautiful brunch to celebrate me on a milestone birthday.

She served honey salmon on bagels, quiche, fruit etc, etc.

and to be safe we ate outside

in  her very pretty backyard. Several of my friends and neighbors were invited,

and I was delighted that all four of my sisters were able to attend.

Such a special welcome home…thank you Polly

Twenty Five Percent Chance of Rain

 We were chased home yesterday morning (from our walk) by a sudden rain. I was hoping to take some pictures of the changing leaves.

 There was only a twenty five per cent chance of showers….let me tell you it was quite a shower!

Turned into a whole day of occasional downpours.

So I took a picture out the window thinking it would show the changing color of the Aspen trees…not sure that worked though. The flowers are  for the  new  owners who are arriving Wednesday about noon. We 

are departing early morning, so I guess we will pass on the road.We sold the house furnished…which made them very happy, and much easier for us.

We had gone back to the mundane chore of packing when our new neighbors down the hill stopped by to say goodbye and brought us a loaf of sourdough bread. Not only was I pleased by the visit and the bread…but I was astonished that she has already learned to bake at this high altitude (nearly 9,000 feet)!  I love when people feel comfortable enough to just drop by, and gosh we had a nice visit.

Later I glanced out and saw clearing skies and a pretty sunset…not a bad day after all, and maybe this morning we  can finish that walk.

Going in a Circle

 Yesterday morning, we decided that we had grown weary of packing so we headed out for a long drive.

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Starting at the bottom of the map, we headed north

on  Hwy 149, turning west on hwy 50 at the Blue Mesa Reservoir,

before heading north again on 92 along the north rim of the Black Canyon (a National Park).

We stopped in the tiny town of Crawford for a cup of coffee (which  isn’t on the map ).

It is located just  south of Hotchkiss and only has about 400 residents.

It appears to me that they have consolidated their whole downtown!

We took a shortcut from Crawford up to Paonia a town full of apple and peach orchards, and even a few vineyards.

We had originally planned to head to Redstone,  but  decided to turn east on Kebler Pass and head back…actually going in a circle. Kebler Pass is a dirt road but one worth taking. The views are spectacular,

 with a lot of Aspen trees which are a favorite of mine.

Oops..what is this? Excuse me, we need to get by! Around here you just patiently wait until livestock decides to move over. Kind of an unwritten law that they always have the right of way.

That horse actually belonged to a Sheperd  ..Yes they also graze sheep along Kebler Pass.

Kebler Pass ends at the cute ski town of Crested Butte. From there  hwy 135 will take you south to Gunnison (where we go weekly in the summer for groceries).

If you have followed the map we have circled around and will take Hwy 149 south back to Lake City….where we really do need to get back to packing!

Oops!

 A big part of the appeal of this area of Colorado is it is a great area for going 4wheeling. That is traveling  around the mountains in a vehicle that has 4wheel drive.

 The area highlighted in blue on the map is called The Alpine Loop. This is a very rugged dirt road through the mountains with one lane traffic in places, and no guardrail. Notice Lake City in the top right hand corner.

It is not for the faint of heart….meaning me. People are getting in and out of their cars constantly to take pictures. . So the local FaceBook page usually has items people have found along the way like sunglasses, wallets, cameras.etc

Yesterday someone found a Border Collie  wandering around up there  alone. So, like a Good Samaritan he brought it down and posted a picture hoping to find its owner.

What he didn’t know is since most of the Alpine Loop is public land it is used by ranchers as summer grazing land for their sheep.

Yep…the dog belonged to the sheep herder and was supposed to be guarding the sheep not  hitching a ride down  the mountain with a stranger.

Oh well…doggie made it back up the mountain and all is well.

Ice Festival

 I have spent a lot of time explaining and showing you what goes on in this little mountain town in the summer. ….but what goes on in the winter? Well there are hundreds of miles of groomed snowmobile trails, a small but fun downhill ski hill, Phil keeps the movie theater open, there are game nights for the locals and the restaurants take turns being open.

Well…what is this?

Yes they even have an Ice Climbing Festival the first week of February.

Cross over that little bridge on the right,

and you will be facing a shear wall of a cliff  on the other side of Henson Creek.

They turn on water faucets at the top 

of the Cliff…flooding it to form ice and the competition  begins!

Climbers wear shoes similar to this,

and using a pick like this, up they go, hopefully with a safety harness.

Surely they don’t do this at night…

Although I did locate this neat picture!

Have you ever done ice climbing?  Maybe it would be fun to be a spectator….not sure..

Ever Seen A Yak?

 First of all I want to thank everyone for the kind remarks on my previous blog…I have decided to keep blogging. It….and most of you have been a bit part of my life for the last ten plus years 💕 So it is difficult to give it up.

Okay back to Yaks. For years we have been driving past a pasture full of Yaks just as we arrive in Gunnison, CO., which is a trip we make almost weekly to the grocery store. I was hoping some of them would be near the road when we passed today,

but they weren’t. 

So this is what they look like.

Meet the Tooles. They own the Bar T Ranch just west of Gunnison, CO.

Seems they don’t mind tourists  stopping by to see their Yaks  ….Now I find this out!

So if you would like to know more about why they have been raising Yaks for seven years now go HERE