Bluff Spring Journal
July 2010
From June 13th to July 24 Gap in Journal
What an experience! I ordered a new computer in Feb. 2010. It arrived in May. I know this sounds like a long time but some things are worth waiting for. This one is a new model and they were hard to get. It finally arrived and that is where the gap in the Journal started. In brief, I spent about 30 hours over a few weeks installing software or talking to technical support about issues with the new computer. After sending it back twice I finally just told the company that I was not at all confident in the laptop and that I wanted to return it for a replacement. The replacement has arrived and so far I'm a happy camper.
July 18th
Headed out for Colorado to meet up with some friends to do some wildflower shooting in Colorado. I left Springfield at 5:40 am and made it to Fairplay, Co about 6:30 pm. The drive wasn't as long this year. My usual trip is about 1100 miles but Fairplay was only about 850 miles. I certainly felt better when I arrived not to mention how I felt the next day.
Here is a brief description of the trip.
Sunday July 18-arrived at Fairplay at about 6:30 pm, shot wildflowers and a plant that looks like miniature bamboo at small lake near where we stayed.
Monday July 19-up at 3:30 am to drive towards Breckenridge to Spruce Creek Drive on left towards Mohawk Lake. Shot the sunrise at Lower Mohawk Lake. Started the hike with headlamps. Gain of estimated 1000 to 1100 feet in elevation. Shot Columbines at Mohawk Lake. Then back to cabin for lunch and a nap. Around 4 pm we headed up to Horseshoe Mountain Gulch to shoot the sunset.
Tuesday, July 20 up at 3:30 am drive beyond Buena Vista to Cottonwood Pass-Continental Divide to shoot the sunrise. The clouds didn't fully cooperate but there was good light on the distant mountains. While we were shooting a deer ran past us and stopped to look at us as if to say 'what are you doing in my neighborhood'. After shooting we went back down to Buena Vista and had a great breakfast at Jan’s. Then up to Chalk Creek falls near the Colligate Peaks-Harvard, Princeton, Yale and Columbia. Harvard is the highest at 14,427. The sunshine was too bright to shoot the falls but occasionally the sun would go behind the clouds and give us the opportunity to capture a few frames. Then is was our normal back to the cabin and take a nap. We left a little early this afternoon to drive to McCullough Gulch. This place is towards Breckenridge. Just look for the Blue Lakes Road. It is also marked as Quandary Peak Trail Head. We first took photos of Fire Hydrant Falls at the base of the hike. These falls literally look like they are shooting straight out of the rocks like a fire hydrant. We hiked up past private cabin with Colorado, POW and the American flags flying. There were also 'No Trespassing' signs in abundance. We were about 3/4 the way through the 1 mile hike when a vicious storm blew in. We hunkered down for it to pass. It was some show of lightning, hail and distant rock slides. Tom commented he felt a rainbow coming on and we laughed at him just trying to be optimistic. The rain and lightning finally let up and we hiked on to Sapphire Falls. Low and behold a rainbow did appear and Tom had the last laugh. All day we talked about having Pizza on the way back from our hike from the Pizza Hut in Fairplay. After surviving the wet hike up McCullough Gulch we called at 8:30 pm and they were closed. What a bummer. Fortunate for us the South Park Salon in Alma was open where we had some great cheese burgers and fries. We were in bed by 10:30 pm. Quite the long day.
Wednesday, July 21st Slept in Wednesday and headed towards Crested Butte. We went up Gothic Road. Rain which was socked in by rain and clouds and not much luck with flower pictures. We came back to Crested Butte and ate at Last Steep Bar and grill. Had ahi tuna Salad which was really good. Then on to Lake City where we took the Alpine Loop and and a side trip to American Basin. There were great wildflowers with lots of Columbine. The rain set in but then cleared off to give us great light on the peaks with clouds rolling in. I could into find the name of peaks on any map so far. The maps just list the elevation of the peaks at 13806 and 13744. The moon came up was really bright with the dramatic background of the mountains. We had our usual ham sandwiches and chips for dinner that we usually had for lunch. Since it was raining hard we slept in our vehicles. About 5:30 am we got up for sunrise pictures. I stayed in my vehicle because I wanted to make sure there was a sunrise. No luck the clouds wouldn't cooperate. So we made the best of it and just shot wildflowers in the rain.
Then is was back down American Basin road to Cinnamon Pass Road. Very dramatic with several tight switch backs. We stopped at Animas Forks Ghost town. They had the highest printed newspaper in the US when the town was occupied. It was the county seat before Silverton. Once a judge handed down a verdict to which the lawyer replied that he would appeal to a higher court. The judge correctly stated that 'Sir, there is no higher court in the land'. The mill used steel instead of lumber which was unusual for the area. Then it was back to Alpine loop and down to Silverton. We ate at Brown Bear Café. It was a really good breakfast but most anything tastes good after being out in the wilderness. Next we went back up to Maggie Gulch and shot some great wildflowers. Then back to Silverton which was overrun with tourists. We didn't stop and headed to Black Bear Pass road. There were great wildflowers and two tall cascades. On my way through Ouray, pronounced U Ray, I heard a debate on Medical Marijuana in Ouray. They didn’t want it under any circumstances. I found out that Medical Marijuana distribution centers in Denver outnumber the Starbucks. Over 400. Hmmm, Colorado Rocky Mountain High takes on a whole new meaning.
We reached our destination in Ridgway (without an e). The hot shower felt good. Afterwards we ate at the True Grit Café. True Grit with John Wayne was filmed in this area. True Grit has connection to Ft. Smith, Ar I think. Something about taking prisoners back. After dinner we went scouting for fall places to photograph. We also saw the Ralph Lauren Ranch. A huge ranch with Mt. Sneffels as a back drop.
It was an eventful week. I'll post photos later.