Boulder is interesting. We want to look around Boulder some more when it isn't so hot and humid. Nathan ate at moronic Craig's, or some such place. Foolish Craig's, that's it!
We visited Boulder in March when Nathan did his interview but we didn't see it very well as it was snowing at the time (but gee it was fun that it snowed! The locals were over it, naturally). This time we saw a bit more and had a look around town before heading up Boulder Canyon.
Now after a while, these canyons don't look quite so un-ewes-ual and different. After all, this is the fourth one we've seen now! But if you are into rocks then it is interesting seeing how the rock types change as you go further and further up the canyons.
We stopped to look at Boulder Falls, supposedly one of the bigger (accessible) falls in the Rockies. Only problem is you can't see most of the falls! Here's the lower bit:
The creek is verra nice.
I like the creeks and rivers of the Rockies as they are so energetic (at least until autumn when I am told they calm down). Lots of water in a hurry to get to the plains, where it gets stuck in reservoirs and used for drinking or agriculture or industry or whatever. It is very unlikely to make it to the Gulf of Mexico.
We drove around and around and around. We drove to Nederlands, where the toilets were pretty feral when I finally found them (and we had a barney over toilets, believe it or not simply cos I couldn't find one and NEEDED one!). They had some sort of event happening but we had a fit of the grumps and only took a picture of a steam shovel
(what is the name of the steam shovel in the kid's book I seem to remember?)
On we drove after I did a, umm, ooh about a 450 degree turn around a roundabout (and blasted someone upon entry as he decided he had right of way over the person who had already entered the roundabout on his left and was half a second from occupying the same spot in the roundabout (ie me)).
At this stage we had no particular aim in driving anywhere. The navigator had given up on the job and my directional sense is useless in the mountains. So we drove.
And we drove
And we drove, and suddenly after passing by a bizarre school with a turret connected to the rest of the school by a bridge, we were in a casino town! There's been virtually nothing in the way of towns or "civilization", we think we are in the middle of nowhere and bingo, bango! Bizarre! Everywhere in the canyon was gambling related. Even the crossroad is called Richman.
We gambled a little too - the Jeep (cousin to Crazy Aunt Purl's Jeep and I mean the red car not the yellow Hummer) two cars ahead actually stopped to let someone merge, which the mitsubishi star wagon behind me did NOT expect. I don't know how he missed us. And us in a rental car and all! He backed off a LOT after that!
Eventually we ended up in Idaho Springs, really rather lost. Idaho Springs is in the Colorado Rockies, not someplace in Idaho like you might expect. Don't ask me why. The lovely lady in the visitor centre was very helpful (but slightly challenged on the map she gave us). She suggested we drive up Mount Evans, or at least do the scenic drive up to the entrance.
What a fantastic idea! So we drove up and up, having been promised alpine tundra and bighorn sheep and all sorts of wonders if we coughed up $10 for the Mount Evans Scenic Byway.
Turns out that if you don't stop along the way, the nice parks people will waive the fee, but like who would only want to drive to the top of the highest paved road in the USA and turn around and come back?
So we drove up and up and up (it gains 7000 feet over 28 miles). At first you drive through forests and do a few switchbacks, then you hit areas that are treeless and it starts looking a bit Scottish
We saw Bristlecone Pines, though I don't think these ones were particularly ancient
As we pushed further up the mountain, we hit the clouds. All grey and misty!
But there were worrying signs
And I was rather glad of the clouds, cos if we looked over the edge of the road
it was a loooooooong way down! Plus the edge of the road had quite frequently fallen away... eek! Vertigo was kicking in for one of us!
(to be continued)
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