Lake City, Colorado --- A Day Trip

Roger here....   We had been hanging around Creede for a couple of weeks, and although there is still plenty to do here, it was time for a side trip.  The Silver Thread Scenic Highway (149) traverses the valleys and mountains between South Fork and Lake City, CO.  We saw the first 23 miles when we drove the motor home to Creede.  It was now time to see the next 52 miles.  The opening photo shows a panoramic view of the headwaters of the Rio Grande River --- quite a view.

This is mining country.  Early in the drive, we passed the remains of an inactive mine.  We will show you a lot more about the mining in the area in the next post.

The first several miles followed the Rio Grande River.  From the valley, we noticed that the Aspens were starting to turn into that bright yellow that we had always heard about.  You can see them in the picture above near the top of the mountain.

Soon we began the inevitable zig-zag up into the mountains.  As the Toyota plodded along in third and sometimes second gear, the temperature dropped, and we found ourselves in the middle of a golden Aspen forest.  We were both glad that they turned color before we left the area.

As we topped the 11,530-foot Slumgullion Pass (what a name!), views of different mountains appeared.   They looked familiar to us for good reason.  These were the same mountains that we saw in Ouray --- only the other side.  The cloudy day definitely detracted from some of the most spectacular views.

Red Mountain is red on this side, as well.

As we descended into Lake City, we passed by a colorful landslide.





It was Dianne's birthday.  She usually finds embarrassing pictures of me to post on my birthdays; however, it appears that there are no youthful pics of Dianne in the archives that she manages.  (I am sure she did this on purpose :-)).

I did manage to find a few pictures from the past.  Here she is with our two daughters, Robyn (the older daughter) and Amanda.

This is a shot of the two of us on a cruise.

Dianne hugging our granddaughter, Kaia.

Dianne posing with Jasper. (Ignore the hair.  It was windy.)

(Dianne here:  This photo makes my heart pang for my precious Jasper (he was my constant companion for 11 years).  He was already ill in this photo and had only a month or two left to live, though we didn't know it at the time.)

And, of course, Dianne with a previous boyfriend.  Happy Birthday to my beautiful wife and my best friend.

We decided to celebrate by eating lunch at the Southern Vittles restaurant in Lake City.

Forget about the diet.  We both had barbecue chicken and french fries - a rare treat.

We took a couple of pictures in Lake City before heading back.  This is public library.

Dianne really like this shop that had a living roof, Oso Ocho Gifts.  Too bad it was closed. Sunday.

The mounting clouds tended to spoil the views on the way back to Creede, so we only made one stop.  A good stop.  North Clear Creek Falls is purported to be the most photographed waterfall in Colorado.  We walked along the canyon for a while to get a more distant shot of the falls.

We both hopped from rock to rock at the edge of the canyon, taking care not to fall into the narrow crevasses that were  two to three stories deep.  Then the rains came, so we headed back to the car.

Back at Creede.... As the evening approached, and the clouds dissipated, we enjoyed another spectacular sunset.

The Pet Picture of the Day shows Bandido psyching up for our daily two-mile walk into town.

Lake Superior -- BEACH TIME!

Roger here...  Nothing like starting with the end of the day!  More sunsets to come.


Dianne and I decided to take a couple days of hiatus from our sightseeing.  There is so much to see and do here, but what a shame it would be to not enjoy our beachside setting, especially in this ideal weather -- highs in the mid seventies and sunny.  

Miles of beach walking are just 25 yards from our campsite.  Our doggies love the daily long morning walks.  Bandido has discovered a new joy -- digging deep holes in the sand between romps in the shallow water.

Here is a view of our campground across the bay from about a mile away.

The few times we have been to Lake Michigan in Indiana, we enjoyed the magnificent dunes, but were disappointed by the pungent brown water that was full of seaweed.  That is not the case where we are located right now on the south shore of Lake Superior, where the water is a deep blue and incredibly clear.  Instead of slimy kelp, the view through the water is of multi-colored pebbles and rocks.  We have collected enough of them now to put our motor home overweight.  (Remember Lucy's rocks in the Long, Long Trailer?)


Yesterday, when the sun became a little too intense, I dug out one of our purchases from the Cabela's store in Nebraska.  We often find ourselves unable to enjoy the outside due to a campsite configuration that puts our outdoor area directly in the sun.  If it is too windy to put out the awning, we either stay inside or slap on sunscreen and hats, and then sweat.  Our new toy solves the problem.  It is amazingly simple for one person to assemble in a five-minute time frame.  It is lightweight, easily carried in its over-the-shoulder sleeve.  And... it is small enough to easily fit in a bay.  I present to you...  the Sport Brella.

After spending an hour at the campsite, we decided to disassemble it and take it to the beach.  Pretty cool, huh?  Dianne even agrees that my impulse purchase by the check-out counter was a good one.

What a relaxing day, and the view......

(What you can't see in these photos are the hardy little northern kids swimming and playing in the cold Lake Superior water.  I overheard a man say the water temp was 55 degrees!! -- D.)

Back to the end of the day....  Here is a ten-minute record of the awesome sunset.  (My favorite pic is the last one, when the sun is fully down and the reflection on the water is perfect.)

Tomorrow... The Fourth of July Celebration in Munising, Michigan.  Should be fun.

We return to a retro Whippet Picture of the Day for today's pet picture.  We recently reconnected with RV Dreamer friends, Steve and Evin.  We met them at the RV Dreamers Rally in South Carolina last year.  They just sold their house and are ready to embark on full-time RVing!  Steve just e-mailed the above photo to us.  The picture was taken in April, 2010 at the bottom of the waterfalls in Stone Mountain State Park in NC, where we accidently ran into them and their three dogs at the bottom of a million or so stair steps.  Steve and Evin took the picture.  Our sadly-missed Jasper is the whippet on the left.  Chaplin is the whippet on the right.

Jasper -- A Sad, Sad Day

Jasper 12-24-99 - 1-15-11

Roger here....   Ten years ago...  Our daughters grew up, graduated,  and moved out of the house.   We were happy, but there was a definite void in our lives.


Within the year, we drove to Bloomington IN.  In the parking lot at the Indiana University Football Stadium, we met Jasper for the first time.  He was nine months old and living with a grad student at Indiana University.  

The young man who owned Jasper wisely realized that he was too busy to care for a dog that was so full of life.  Jasper became an integral part of our lives from that moment.

On the way home, we stopped at a pet store to buy the essentials for taking care of a dog.  Dianne went into the store while I walked Jasper around the parking lot.  I will never forget how he looked at me during that first walk with those big brown eyes.  We bonded instantly.

When we opened the doors of our house to him, he immediately bounded up the two flights of stairs, rarely touching the steps.  We watched in amazement as he leaped OVER (not on) the bed.  Our boney, skinny-looking dog with the hind legs you could see through on a sunny day was an athlete.


When we went to bed that night, he did not hesitate to hop up and burrow his way under the covers where he warmed our feet -- a nightly ritual for the next ten years.

Jasper loved me, but he adored Dianne.  He quickly became her shadow, and remained so.  One day, I took him off his leash while hiking in the woods a couple miles from our house.  He gave me one of those brown-eyed looks and went into a 35 mph sprint.  No way for me to catch him.  He made his way straight home to Dianne.  

He loved to run - to chase squirrels, to leap over flower beds, to chase tennis balls (when he was in the mood).  Unlike most whippets, he also loved to swim.  

He was not a good swimmer, but any time there was activity near the water he joyfully leaped in as if he were a labrador.  He never met a person he did not like, running up to strangers while wagging his tail and begging for attention.  (He was not a good guard dog.) 

 He was so very, very gentle with our granddaughter, Kaia, during her toddler years.  I have vivid memories of her leading him around the house on his leash, while he remained so calm and patient and walked so-o-o slowly beside her.

We loved Jasper so much, that we found Chaplin a couple years later.  Chaplin is a sweet, gentle, fun dog who has been a good companion for all of us (including Jasper).  However, from the outset, it was evident that Jasper would be the alpha male -- a role that Chaplin readily acceded to.  Jasper's role at the dog park became one of intervening with the other dogs if (in Jasper's mind) they became too rough with his dog, Chaplin. 

Jasper always considered himself to be a person.  (Dianne and I did, too.)  

Jasper was not without his faults :-).  He was an expert at stealing Chaplin's treats (and ours).  If we forgot to put the cat food away, as soon as we closed the door, he would immediately leap onto the console of the motor home, where he licked the bowl clean.  He often knocked over the trash can, but he would always wait until we left the room. 

 He did not bark often, but if a large dog or a raccoon (and in one case an armadillo) got too close to the campsite he did not hesitate to run them off. 


 He was an expert counter surfer. One evening, after work, when Dianne and I were enjoying a walk around the yard, the two chicken breasts that were thawing at the back of the counter disappeared.  There was no evidence that they had ever been on the counter other than a very clean, empty plate.  We soon found Jasper in the corner of the family room, head lowered, tail between his legs, looking at us with doleful brown eyes.  It was hard to be angry with him.


Two weeks ago Dianne noticed blood in his urine.  Since he was acting perfectly normal, we were not that concerned - the internet led us to believe that it was probably a bladder infection. We took him to the vet, that day.  We were devastated to learn that he had a large tumor on one of his kidneys.  An x-ray revealed that the cancer had spread to his lungs.  We knew that there was no hope.   The vet was surprised that he was doing so well.  He was not in any kind of visible distress, so we brought him home, where he received more table food and coddling than he has ever had in his life.  (Actually, he has always received a lot of coddling).


We were blessed with two weeks of the Jasper that we have always known.  Perky ears, curiosity, those intelligent eyes, prancing along during his walks -- always insisting on taking the lead.  We also had the mischievious Jasper  -- stolen cat food from the console, stolen treats from Chaplin, trash can surfing.


Two days ago at the dog park he chased Chaplin doing a full-blown 35 mph run.  So glorious, yet so sad.  It was a great day.  It was his last good day.


We knew yesterday morning that he had gone into a rapid decline.  By the middle of the day, he could hardly walk.  On the way to the vet's office, he licked my hand.  His last view before passing was of Dianne's face.


Writing this is one of the most difficult things I have ever done. I am writing this because it is too difficult for Dianne to do so.  Selfishly, it is also therapeutic for me.  We have lost pets before and are familiar with the pain, but this is different; Jasper was much more to us than a pet.


We'll get back to our regular, hopefully upbeat, posts in a few days.


By the way, our blog name will not change, because Jasper's spirit will always be traveling with us.