Fossils, Cripple Creek, Burros and Surprises!

I've been slacking. . .because. . .there's too much to put.  The last few weeks have been crazy! I've done so much.  For example, this all happened (Part 1) in ONE day a few weekends ago.

We started our trip on a scenic drive through some park/wilderness.  Where there were TONS of dirtbikers and I got a little jealous until we came to the river. . .

. . .the beautiful South Platte river where we stopped for a break and I FOUND GOLD! Yup, it's true.  I "panned" for gold with my hand and found some flakes and according to my internet research, which is very valid, it is real.  I may have a slight case of gold fever now.

Then we drove to Florissant and stopped at this old homestead of some famous lady who helped found Florissant's National Fossil beds and ran a ranch and the general store and raised a family and owned land all on her own, basically, although she was married several times but her husbands died or went away.

Since it is off-season nothing was open so I looked through the windows of the house and Linda took my picture, unknown to me, from one of the windows on the other side of the house.

Then we ate some yummy Chia seed pudding. . .which is my new favorite thing!

All before we made it to the National Fossil Monument Park place.  Now, I had been very skeptical because ALL other fossilized forests and petrified wood places I have been to have been tiny pieces of wood that are basically nothings.  However, I went because Linda wanted to go and thought it wouldn't be bad to see another stone or two BUT I was so surprised to see REAL HUGE petrified/fossilized trees!  It was so cool! 

They look tiny in pictures but they are just as big as redwoods. In fact the signs say they are petrified redwoods.  There used to be 20-30 of them but back in the day the "pioneers" cut them up into smaller pieces and took them home as souvenirs, so now there are only about a dozen.

This used to be a giant tree that people cut up and carried away. Now it just looks like a rock - like the rest of the "petrified forests". 

Then we saw this done rock park - which is supposed to be like a mini half dome.

On our way to Cripple Creek we saw a large herd of mountain sheep.  There were a lot of them.

This one had the biggest horns.

This is now Cripple Creek.  Which is full of cute houses and old buildings that I have a ton of pictures of - to many for this summary of a day.  So you'll just have to visit to see them for yourself.  It's mostly a casino/gambling town but still has a working gold mine that you can tour which would be fun to do sometime - now that I have a case of gold fever.

All over Cripple Creek are these signs of burros that say "Burro at Large".  Linda and I couldn't figure out what the signs were for .  I assumed that they were jokes since the town had large bronze-looking burro statues all over the place.  Then I talked Linda into driving down Shelf Road - a 4-wheel drive road that the lady in the Welcome Center told us was do-able in a car.  We went around a corner and there they were. . . .

The herd of burros strolling along the road.   Eventually they stopped and ate and drank water on the side of the road.  So naturally Linda and I assumed that they were someone's donkey's who happened to be free-ranging.  Note the one on the far left crossing the road. . .

. . .as we drove past he decided that I looked friendly and thought he'd stick his head in the car through my open window.   Anyways, we came home and read up on the town and discovered the burros are really wild - descendent's of the original miners donkey's who used to keep the miners company.  Now the town feeds and waters them and they're like little citizens just like everyone else.

Driving down shelf road we came around a corner and Linda screamed.  Scared me half to death since once again I was paying more attention to a motorcycle in front of us than I was at the scenery. . .I really need to get a motorcycle if I'm going to end up staying here in Colorado, cars are so limiting. . .so Linda screamed and scared me all for the window in the rock. 

This is how I spent most of the hour 1/2 drive down shelf road, hanging outside of the car.   Linda did great for her first car trip down a 4-wheel drive road.  The road was very narrow - one lane - and had a cliff on one side and a drop off on the other - hence the shelf part of the name.   She was a little nervous about on-coming traffic but thanks to her prayers, all the cars came where there was plenty of room for two cars to pass on the road.

It's time for baby cows!  The end of Shelf road is open range so we saw lots of cows.

Going around a corner on shelf road.

The shelf.

Where we came from.

Then we ended our day driving down Ridge Road.  A road down by Royal Gorge that goes along the top of a ridge with drop offs on both sides.  If you'd like to experience it from the comfort of your home there are several youtube movies of people driving down it. 

And that concludes a brief overview of a weekend - day with Jenica. 

Part two of this particular weekend was waking up at 5:30am to a surprise visit from my parents.  We then spend the day with them exploring El Dorado Canyon Park, shopping, drinking excellent Chai in Nederlands, and spending time with Wheezer. 

THE END!

Molly Brown House Museum

 Last Friday, April 27th, Linda and I went to the Molly Brown House Museum and took their Titanic tour.  We got there around 2:45pm after I got back from work and made it just in time for the 3:00 tour.   It ended up there were only three of us on the tour, which was good because the tour guide was loosing her voice.   Unfortunately you can't take pictures in the museum but we got some from the outside.  The house is dimly lit and has been refurnished to look like pictures of the original Brown house.  It has several pieces of original decorations, furniture, and photographs/paintings that were actually Margaret Brown's (apparently she was never called Molly until the show The Unsinkable Molly Brown came out).   They also had a special exhibit of pictures and rosters, etc. from the Titanic.  Supposedly Margaret Brown's house was decorated in a similar fashion as the Titanic's 1st class areas would have been.  
The house overall was kind of small.  They wouldn't let us go to the third floor where the servant's quarters and ballroom were because it's "only used for special occasions". 
Some things I found interesting were the popular parlor games - one of which was Phrenology.  They actually had a phrenology head with gold lettering in their family parlor which was interesting.  Let's see. . .they also had a very large silver plated punch bowl with cranberry glass inlay which was really pretty.
There were the period fainting and napping couches in the his and hers bedrooms.  Apparently when you took the corset off it made all your organs go back to their natural resting places and caused the ladies to faint, hence the fainting couches.  Also the napping couches were important because, at the time, after your bed was made you were not supposed to touch it again until you were ready to go to bed.  No sitting, lying, reading, etc. it was only for sleeping.
The house also had the original bathroom with toilet, claw-foot tub and sink on the second floor.  As we ended the tour we went down the servant's stairs which were very narrow.  The tour guide told us stairs were narrow so that if the servants tripped carrying something, they could smash their elbows into the sides, breaking their elbows/arms, and keeping whatever they were carrying safe (i.e china, crystal, expensive brandy, etc.).

 After the tour we looked through the Titanic exhibit, tried on some hats, and then took our pictures out front of the house.  It was a good tour.  I had taken the tour once when I was younger with my family but didn't remember much.   All in all a good day.

Sunday Funday

 Lookout Mountain Nature Preserve

 So, We started our day by driving to Lookout Mountain Nature Preserve and doing the short one-something mile hike around the preserve.

 Then we went to Buffalo Bill's Grave - and took Ikea Flat Stanley since Linda and I have been taking him all over for one of her friend's little girls.

 Ikea Flat Stanley on a 100 year old buffalo.

 Buffalo Linda

 Buffalo Jenica

 Flat Stanley and the Mountains

 Linda's House

 Snowy Mountains

 More fun with hats

 My new hat.  The little old man who ran the store was so cute.

When I asked him if he had one he laughed and laughed.

 Someone - something's - water wheel at Idaho Springs

 Riding the Train

 Watch out Linda! Coming through!

Then we took Ikea Flat Stanley to Ikea.

Castlewood Canyon

Yesterday we went for an afternoon hike at Castlewood Canyon State Park.  We took way to many pictures to just post so...here they are.  Insert your own background music as desired.   

After the park we went to Street Kitchen Asian Bistro and had AMAZING food! So good! 

Rocky Mountain National Park

Hidden Valley - Snow is coming!!!

Beaver Ponds

Overlooking the sheep lakes but. . .where are they?

Amy taking pictures. . .snowing more!

The trail.

It looks like spring but it's snowing!

4-15-2012   Snow on my car!

I LOVE SNOW!!!!

Elk in the valley.