Sunday August 26 in Steamboat Springs

I started Sunday with a ride on the Gondola to Mt Warner.  On Sunday's there is a package deal for the trip and Sunday Brunch.  The gondola is right by where I am staying.

Sunday Brunch was very good.  You could eat indoors or out on the terrace.

One of the bike paths down the mountain.   You could bring your bike or your dog on the gondola both.  Most people were bringing bikes. 

Sunday afternoon I went to Fish Creek Falls.  This is a National Park Service site.  It has been very dry here so there was not as much water flowing over the falls.  There were two hikes.  One took you to a view at the top of the falls and one took you to the bottom.  I went on both.

The couple are near the bottom of the falls.  You can see there is not that much water.

Yampa River Botanic Park, Steamboat Spring, CO

I visited the some of the volunteers at the Botanic Park at the Farmer's Market booth where they were selling plants.  They told me where it was located so Saturday afternoon I visited.  There is not charge for visiting and the Park is very lovely.  Everything was in bloom and I could have snapped hundreds of pictures.  I am posting just a few that I took. This is a must visit if you are in Steamboat.

Each of the seperate areas are named.  This one is Tim's Garden and the sign said that Tim was the number 1 volunteer in the garden.

Just one of the places you can sit and enjoy the gardens.

The name for this one fits the location.  This is the Corner Garden.

These are shade plants and I would love to have them in my yard.

There were also 4 x 8 community garden beds.  This one is a herb bed.

There are sculptures like this eagle scattered around the park.

I wanted to include a shot of the Yampa River as seen from the Park.    Mostly because I lived on Yampa Ct when I lived in Colorado.

Saturday Morning in Steamboat Springs, CO

I started the day at the Farmer's Market in downtown Steamboat.  I bought some really cute Cat earrings, some delicious yoghurt  and some salve for arthritis pain.  There were not that many booths with produce but a lot of interesting items to look at or buy.

After the Farmer's Market I walked around the area where I am staying.  This is a stream that was buried but is back on the surface and channeled for enjoyment.  There were kids playing in it, dogs splashing around, and people just sitting and enjoying the sound of running water.

Just around the corner from where I am staying there was a charity bike ride .  This is the last group to leave on the ride.

My home here in Steamboat.  My condo is the top one on the left.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

My destination on the day trip was Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Southwest Colorado. On the last 2 million years the Gunnison River has cut a canyon that in some places is 1900 feet deep. I visited the canyon on the less developed north side. The canyon is a favorite of rock climbers but there were none visible on the day I visited. There were several short hikes to the rim of the canyon, all of them worth taking. As you can see from the photos the canyon is black.

On the way I stopped at the Black Canyon Cafe in Crawford for a wonderful lunch of homemade soup and pie. If you are in the area the cafe is a great place for a meal stop.

Winter travel

Winter, snow and skiing remind me of the Vail Valley in Colorado. I have a timeshare in Avon/Vail and that I where I am now. This is my first time to visit in several years. I have rented and traded the week instead of using the unit myself.

I faced two challenges on this trip. The first was adjusting to the altitude. I planned on spending one night in Denver but ended up staying two. It made the to adjustment to 8000 feet much easier. The second was driving on snow again. In Bella Vista when it snows we just stay home until the snow melts. I got here yesterday and by today I was comfortable with the snow-covered streets. They do plow regularly but on many roads I am driving is on packed snow.

There is a lot of snow here. There was an additional 3-5 inches up on the mountain last night. Down here in the valley we only got a dusting. We are suppose to get additional snow tonight.

I don’t ski but there are other things to do here. Free busses will take you anywhere you want to go and today I road the gondola up to Beaver Creek West and took the bus the rest of the way to Beaver Creek Village. There were no signs of a bad economy in the Village. There were no empty storefronts. The art galleries, high end clothing stores, and jewelry stores were do a good business. I tried on a beautiful yellow diamond ring that was only $4200. I didn’t bring it home. I am planning on going to Vail Village tomorrow.