It was a full day of travel today. It was also a little cooler; we broke out our long pants for the first time on the trip. We bused to Silverton, Colorado this morning. The driver/tour guide was a hoot; we learned a few things and somewhat didn’t notice that we were climbing to better than 10,000 feet (at least until we stopped at a viewpoint. The view was tremendous!).

We arrived in Silverton about 15 minutes before the first train of the day was due to get there. So, job one was to beat the train passengers to the town’s restaurants for lunch. We did this, beating a path to Handlebars, a tavern/restaurant on the Main Street of town. They served a great meal in a really fun space…see pictures below.

This left us with an hour and a half to explore downtown Silverton. We shopped a little, bought a coffee for the train ride, and as we often do wandered by some little churches to take pictures. Soon enough, the call “all aboard” rang through the air.

We had the good fortune to have a steam locomotive pulling the train, the sounds and sights of a steamer are nostalgic. The ride from Silverton to Durango was nearly four hours, but was the prettiest scenery you could have asked for. We saw mountains, aspens just turning on their fall colors, the canyon dug by the Animas River, and so much more.

So, the next two days are free for us to spend. Tomorrow we plan to drive the Million Dollar Highway for ourselves, visiting Silverton and Ouray for a closer look.

We arrived here at the campground to find ourselves in a lovely campground strung along the Animas River. It reminded me a little of going up to Aunt Gladys’ place on the Toutle…the stream hurrying downhill. Today’s drive was short, just one mountain climb above 8000 feet.

We rested this afternoon, then the group went to the Bar D Chuckwagon for dinner and a show. Dinner was fun, and the show was a quartet along the line of Riders in the Sky…cowboy tunes, yodeling, and some comedy. They were great! We picked up a couple of CD’s…now all i need is to be at home where I have a CD player.

Before dinner they had a number of activities you could do…we took a nice little train ride, and Leila got to try her hand at a six-shooter. They had target shooting with a real revolver, with kinda real ammo. The bullets were filled with wax, but they certainly put real holes in the target. She got to keep the target, and received a certificate naming Deadeye Leila as a junior deputy.

Tomorrow takes us by bus to Silverton, CO, and then on a narrow gauge train ride back to Durango. It’s gonna be fun!

Another beautiful day in American SW. We took a drive out to Hovenweep National Monument; the trip out took us through rolling hills and farmland, the road back went first through Navajo land, then through a very pretty river bottom.

The monument was the main attraction though. A very kind ranger got us oriented, and we set off on a two mile loop hike around a canyon. The path took us clambering down into the canyon and back up again on the other side, eighty feet down and eighty back up…over very rocky terrain.

The payoff was the chance to see Anasazi dwellings at a much closer range than we could at Mesa Verde. The buildings date back to 1200 AD or so, and show an amazing level of ingenuity. It’s quite something to see how those peoples survived and prospered in that place and its environment.

The afternoon was much quieter. We got caught up on stocking our larder, and did some reading before tonight’s driver’s meeting. After the meeting we were treated to a showing of The Long Long Trailer, starring Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. Funny movie, and the mountain roads looked familiar to some of our fellow travelers.

Tomorrow is moving day; we take a short drive to Durango. Tomorrow night the group goes to a chuckwagon dinner with western music show following. Should be fun!

My lovely wife and I went for a drive today to Telluride, CO. The highway took us up the Dolores River, past a cute old mining town named Rico, then into the San Juan Mountains. Our trip today took us over 10,000 feet in elevation twice; once on the highway and a second time on the Telluride gondola. Our map has the route marked as scenic, and it certainly was.

We had a pleasant day up there. Historic downtown Telluride is in a valley, the ski resorts are about 2000 feet higher on the mountain. The resorts have built a gondola ride that connects the two; it is a no charge public transport and a real hoot to ride. We did some browsing in both places and had a great lunch in an old tavern downtown.

These mountains certainly have stories to tell. Native Americans, miners, ranchers, railroaders, all must have been challenged by the terrain and the climate.

Well, tomorrow is another day to learn more. We are headed to Hovenweep National Monument to do some hiking. We have a driver’s meeting tomorrow night; Friday is a travel day as we move on to Durango, and an appointment with a train on Saturday.

Today started quietly with some chores. I spent time cleaning Utah bugs off the front of the motorhome and Utah dust off the car’s windshield. Then, we took a stroll through the RV park, visiting a little bit as we went. The afternoon was where the day’s activity was…

Our group took a bus tour through Mesa Verde National Park. Once again we were presented with something different than what we’d seen before. Archeologists have uncovered Anasazi dwelling places in the park that range from roughly 700 AD to 1300 AD (if my memory is still working…it was hot out there!).

The people of the area were bright and resourceful, and managed to survive in a really hostile environment. Life expectancy was short, and the challenges were many. What they accomplished with meager tools is amazing.

Tomorrow is a free day…we’re planning to drive to Telluride to look around. They say there is a free gondola ride up the mountain…”free is a very good price!”

We’re solidly into the second half of this trip, and we’ve moved into a new state. We arrived here in Cortez around lunchtime, then went into Cortez to explore.

We found a Safeway and picked up some groceries. We looked for a coffee shop, but the one that looked interesting closed at 2 PM. Nuts. Leila did find a quilt shop, and then found a quilt kit she likes. It will look great on the wall at home.

Next we took a side trip; our campground’s address is actually Dolores, Colorado, but is a good eight miles from there. When we got into town we first noticed Railroad Avenue, but no train tracks. Soon enough we came on an old train depot that contained a museum for the narrow gauge railroad Rio Grande Southern. Out front was one of their Galloping Geese, a depression era mashup of Pierce Arrow car and box car. It was all very cool, and a nice warmup for the train trip coming up in Durango.

Tomorrow…we go to Mesa Verde National Park.

Last day here at Moab; we spent the morning filling in the gaps at Arches. We got an early start to beat the heat, and saw a variety of windows and arches. The early start also helped with parking…Arches parking lots fill up by mid-morning.

The hikes were great…we saw the North and South Windows, the Pine Tree, Turret, Skyline, Tunnel, and Landscape Arches. It’s amazing to see how the arches come to be and to enjoy them.

Next we turned a little ways north and drove up a BLM dirt road to two dinosaur areas. The first had dinosaur footprints imbedded in rock, the second was an area with exposed petrified dinosaur bones in a rock face. We used Leila’s new experience in driving through drifts of sand to get us through safely. The whole excursion was interesting.

The afternoon was a rest period after a busy few days. Tomorrow is a travel day, as we move to Cortez, Colorado and a visit to Mesa Verde National Park

This day was quite an adventure. There were no group activities, so we took advantage.

Leila did something neither of us have ever done, she went on a four hour ATV ride through the backcountry. She went places we couldn’t go see…rock formations that once were on the ocean floor, fossils, and native wall art. It was bumpy, dusty and hot, and she loved every minute. She’s already plotting an outing back home.

Meanwhile, I went on a photography outing that’s been planned for months. A local guide picked me up at 6:15 AM, and we went out to Canyonlands NP and Dead Horse Point SP to catch the morning light. I learned some new tricks, and certainly saw some angles at Mesa Arch I would not have found on my own.

The plan was to take a mid day break, then get back together at 5:30 to get twilight and Milky Way photos. This plan had a flaw…the weather conspired against us. Brian took me over what may be the roughest road I’ve ever been on, but the payoff was wonderful; we ended up at Marlboro Point, named that because numerous cigarette ads were shot there. But…clouds covered up the quarter moon we were counting on lighting up the rocks. A cloud covered up the sky where the Milky Way would be. And…as the evening went along there were busy lightning storms to the east and west of us. We waited past sunset, but finally gave up. I enjoyed the day immensely, but it didn’t turn out quite as planned.

One more free day on day twenty…we plan to go back into Arches NP and explore places we didn’t see on the bus tour. And, there will be a driver’s meeting. We leave for Cortez, Colorado on Monday

Another hot day today, and another bus ride. today we drove to Canyonlands National Park, then took stops in Dead Horse Canyon State Park and at an area of native pictographs along the Colorado river.

As usual today’s parks were impressive, different than the ones that have come before. Canyonlands is somewhat similar to Arches, but due to its location between the Colorado and Green Rivers it has more canyon views to go with arches. In addition we got to see the top of Shafer Trail…steep, multiple switchbacks, and sorely in need of a 4 wheel drive vehicle. We were amazed/amused to watch cyclists riding down the grade.

Our guide told us about a number of movies shot in the neighborhood. The two most interesting were done, in part, in Dead Horse Canyon. Tom Cruise dangling on the canyon wall in Mission Impossible 2 was shot here, and this was also where Thelma and Louise launched their car into the great abyss (locals are still unhappy that the movie made you believe it was the Grand Canyon).

Native artwork on canyon walls never ceases to be interesting. These were well above eye level; we were told that the natives were standing on the ground when they made their drawings, but that the Utah highway department had removed quite a lot of soil when the highway was built.

Tomorrow is going to be a busy day. It’s my day with a photography guide; we’ll be shooting 6-10 AM, then again in the evening. I’m excited…hope I have all my gear ready. Leila will be riding an ATV around Moab backcountry in the morning as well. I think she will have our action camera, and we hope she has some great footage to share.

The day dawned bright and glorious, and early. We boarded a bus at 8 AM for a tour of Arches NP. We got to see highlights of the park; Leila and I plan to return on Sunday during a free day. We did some light hiking and clambering around rock at Balanced Rock, Double Arch, Delicate Arch, and Sand Dune Arch. Once again the rock formations we saw were completely different from our earlier stops.

We had lunch at a restaurant called Blu Pig, and enjoyed a really nice meal. In spite of the heat (high of 97 degrees today) we then walked around town and checked out the shops. As usual in tourist towns, there were lots of t-shirts. We did get back to the coffee shop for another iced coffee.

In the evening our group had a buffet dinner on the shores of the Colorado River, then went for a sunset boat ride up the river. This excursion came back down river with an interesting light and music show on the canyon walls.

Tomorrow is another 8 AM start. Our group bus takes us to Canyonlands National Park and to Deadhorse Canyon State Park. More to come tomorrow…