Adventure Travel Photography Blog
Another segment of the Colorado Trail is marked off the list…Segment 14 (20.4 miles) with a 3-mile side hike to Browns Creek Falls that is definitely worth the detour!
Just about every weekend I am in town this summer is dedicated to finishing up the 484.6 mile trail. Thus far I have completed 292.7 miles over the past few years.
HAPPY HIKING!I enjoyed a wonderful weekend in Estabrook with some of my tennis crew. It was our first time to spend more than a few hours on the tennis courts together and was a blast! Ellen, Marissa and her dog Beans carpooled up on Friday after work as did Sue and Nicole.
I was up the day prior, so I had happy hour ready…Margaritas, guacamole and mexican dip from the dry cleaners! Shortly after came ground turkey tacos and we finished off with S’mores while playing Trivial Pursuit the fast way…any question answered correctly gets a wedge!
Saturday we took a hike on our property to Johnson’s Gulch. We followed Craig Creek along the relatively flat trail. The path hasn’t been used much this year so it was rather overgrown with a few fallen trees in the way. In addition, two bridges were out, so had to do a decent amount of wading! Fortunately, the creek was rather low for June and easily traversable, but the hike was more of an adventure than a leisurely stroll.
The meadow at Johnson’s Gulch was lovely. The cows must have been in a different area for a while now as no mean, biting flies were around which allowed us to linger for a bit. We crossed the creek once more to follow the logging road back atop the mountain behind the house, but we found the cows with babies. The cows, dogs, and my guests didn’t thrilled with one another, so we turned around and followed the creek back. This gave us more time to play on the hanging bridge anyway, so it was fine by me to soak my feet a bit more.
That afternoon included cards, Settlers of Catan, reading and hammock time. Nicole and Sue brought a lovely spread of meats and cheese for Happy Hour before Marissa whipped up a gourmet pork dish that rested on wilted kale and farro. We rematched in Trivial Pursuit as we roasted a few more marshmallows for the rest of the evening.
Ellen provided great breakfast spread. We dug in before taking a short hike up to Eagle Rock. We only had to climb over one tree on this hike do despite the incline up to a nice view, the hike was probably easier! After a nice lunch (or two or three), we headed back to town. The weekend felt too short…what fun! ETB
Check out the photographic note cards and key chains at my shop. Each card has a travel story associated with it. 20% of proceeds are donated to charity.
We arrived in Boulder City, Nevada on Thursday morning to compete in a triathlon at Lake Mead Recreation Area on Saturday. Not leaving until Monday evening, we had time for a mini-vacation, and found a variety of attractions in Boulder City and the surrounding area.
First, we visited Hoover Dam, which was only a few miles away from the Hoover Dam Lodge where we were staying for the event. This was my third time to Hoover Dam, though Steve’s first. We paid $10 park and walked down to the dam to take in the view of Lake Mead, the water intake towers, as well as the Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. Then we wandered into the visitor’s center where we paid for the shortened tour of just the power plant that took place every half hour.
In the power plant, we were shown the water tunnels that transfer nearly 90,000 gallons of water each second to the dam’s hydroelectric generators. Next, we visited the 17 generators on the Nevada side of the dam. These generators are held in a wing 650 feet long which is about the depth of the dam at its base. I marvel at the construction of this dam in the 1930s every time I hear about it. Amazingly, it was built ahead of schedule and under budget. If only the government could do that now!
After visiting the dam, we stopped for a walk along the Pat Tillman Bridge as well as for a lovely view of Lake Mead from a nearby overlook. From the overlook, we could see the marina near where the race start would be. It was approaching lunch time, so we tried The Bighorn Cafe at the lodge. It was sustenance.
While we spent much of our time hiking over the weekend, we tried hard to limit our mileage in order to keep our legs rested before the race and stretched afterward. As such, we stopped at the Nevada State Railroad Museum. We were pleasantly surprised. A variety of rail cars and engines were on display under a pavilion. We could explore at our leisure. I personally liked the mail car and learning about mail-on-the-fly. The Railway Post Office would use mail cranes and catchers to retrieve mail without stopping! Then mail was sorted (very quickly at times) so it could be ready to drop off.
Dinner came early at Southwest Diner. We both order pasta. The portions were enormous! I got three meals out of my chicken, artichoke, mushroom alfredo. They must have cooked a whole box of angel hair per plate! I think they may be better known for their Mexican food, however.
The following day, we drove over to Lake Mead Recreational Area. We stopped at Boulder Beach and then drove thirteen miles along Lakeshore Drive to check out the bike course and enjoyed spectacular views of hills peppered in a medley of colors including different shades of reds, browns, oranges, and greens. Along the way, we enjoyed a nice hike at St. Thomas Town Site and a quick stop at the Redstone Picnic Area where red boulders peppered the region.
We wanted a simple dinner and early night before our race, so we went to Chilly Jilly’z. They really should change the name! It sounds like a yogurt shop, which it is, but it has fantastic broasted chicken. The chicken, fried in a pressure cooker was so tender and tasty. We went back on Monday for our last meal in Boulder City, but they were out of breasts, so that was disappointing, but their sandwiches were good too!
After we competed in our race Saturday, we wandered through an art festival which was taking place in town. A variety of photographers, painters, and handicraft artists displayed their wares. Having strolled around town for a few days now, we noticed that Milo’s Cellar and Inn had a very popular restaurant with a patio so we treated ourselves to nice a dinner before stopping at Grandma Daisy’s Candy Store and Ice Cream Parlor for dessert. We tried the ice cream which was mediocre, but the shop was cute. Perhaps the candy was better!
We saved Sunday for a visit to Las Vegas. Boulder City is only about a half hour away. Before we headed out, however, we had to try breakfast at the Coffee Cup Cafe, which was featured on Guy’s Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. Guy Fieri suggested the pork chili verde omelette which is highlighted on the menu. Steve ordered it while I stuck with good ole bacon eggs. One good thing about competing in a triathlon is I can eat whatever I want!
We finished off our visit to Nevada with another hike in Lake Mead Recreation Area, though we had to cross the border into Arizona to do it. The hike to Liberty Bell Arch offered spectacular views of the Colorado River and canyon. Who knew there was so much to do in Boulder City! We didn’t even get to ziplining, kayaking, or four-wheeling. Boulder City is a great town for those interested in the outdoors! ETB
Download it here with this GPSMyCity Travel App Link: Things to do Around Boulder City, Nevada
Check out the photographic note cards and key chains at my shop. Each card has a travel story associated with it. 20% of proceeds are donated to charity.
It is our final day in Cuba. Our tour had a few stops planned for our drive from Trinidad to Havana for our last day in Cuba. Upon departing Trinidad, we drove through the Valle de los Ingenios which is a series of three valleys that was the center for sugar production from the late 18th century until the late 19th century. Continue reading “From Trinidad to Havana and What Falls in Between”
To continue with the Valentine’s Day theme from last night, our hosts’ two-year old son picked some flowers in the courtyard and proudly presented them to me at breakfast…so cute! We enjoyed our breakfast on the veranda outside our room which was decorated in pottery. The house was home to grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, and their little one. Our room may have been the largest we’ve stay in on the trip thus far. It included to queen size beds, a large wardrobe with many hangers, coat hooks, and even Cuban shampoo and shower gel, not to mention cups wrapped in plastic like a US hotel. Continue reading “Treasures of Trinidad”
We enjoyed our breakfast on the upstairs terrace as we looked on the horse drawn taxis. From our balcony view, the large City of Cienfuegos with a population of 110,000, still seemed like a quiet ghost town. Our breakfast was much of the same…egg, papaya, pineapple, bread, juice and coffee. Here the pineapples were larger and not as good as the tiny ones in Viñales. We enjoyed our time at Eliza y Miguel Angel’s house, but it was time to pack up and keep touring.
EXPLORE!
Our evening ended early, and we planned to awake at 6:30 for breakfast and our 8am departure. The loud diesel trucks were the first alarm, and the barking dogs and rooster were the second. Page’s phone alarm was the third. Our bus drove us back toward Havana past fog covered farm land to our next stops: a break at rest stop, lunch at a paladar, a cultural visit to an arts project, a swim in a sink hole, and history lesson at a museum about the Bay of Pigs. Continue reading “Korimakao Cultural Project and the Bay of Pigs Invasion”
Mirta prepared our breakfast for 7am. It included a variety of fruits, eggs made to order, coffee and homemade juice. We didn’t have to leave until 9am today, so I took advantage of the late start and went for a run. I aimed to go off the beaten path and succeeded. I climbed up the small hill as I left town toward the northeast. The concrete roads turned to a combination of crumbled asphalt and dirt. I got to the highest point I could for a nice view before I dropped down just slightly to run on a dirt road past small horse farms before I ended up on a busy road as children walked to school in their red uniforms. At this point, I didn’t know where I was and was surprised to feel lost in a three road town! Continue reading “Cuban Farms…How to Roll a Habano!”
We ate our final breakfast at Casa Obrapía before loading on the bus to drive west for 1.5 hours to Las Terrazas, a very interesting community. A reforestation project was designed around the community which provided countless jobs and government housing to many. The hills, once full of trees were left almost barren after timber logging by the Spanish and Cubans, and coffee planting by the French. Only 14% of the forest remained in 1957. A 12,000 acre reserve was created in the Sierra del Rosario Mountains where trees were replanted and in 1984 it was named a biosphere Reserve by UNESCO. Continue reading “Las Terrazas and Viñales…A Treat for Nature Lovers”
I was so excited to see the forecast…no snow and temperatures warming to the mid-50’s in Denver. As such, I planned a snowshoe with Tanya (and Ellie the dog) at Lake Isabelle in the Indian Peaks Wilderness. Little did I know that the high in the area was only going to be 18 degrees. And that doesn’t include any windchill above the treeline. Fortunately, Tanya was open to adjusting the location.
Instead, we headed out to Apex Park, part of Jefferson County Open Space. The 700 acre park provides 9.4 miles of multi-use trails. We arrived at the parking area around 9:30. We were the only car in the lot aside from one other that pulled in simultaneously. It seemed odd that on this clear, sunny day only a few of us would be enjoying the trail, but at 9:30 it was still bitter cold at a mile high!
We grabbed a map, bundled up, and prepared for a hike around five-miles. We hadn’t decided on which route to take, but we knew from perusing the map we connect a few loops to get in a decent walk for the day. We started out Apex Trail where we quickly came to a trail junction.
Since much of Apex Trail caters to mountain bikers, we turned right onto Pick-N-Sledge Trail and gained close to 900 feet over the next 1.5 miles. Depending on which side of the mountain slope we were on, we either trekked along an orange path lined by golden grasses or a frozen path of snow. While I doubt this is true, frozen ground feels harder than pavement! At least we weren’t walking through slush.
From Pick-N-Sledge Trail we began to descend down Grubstake Trail. In the shade of the forest, however, Ellie’s feet started getting cold, so we turned around and took a half-mile short cut on Bonanza. From Bonanza we connected with Grubstake and soon retraced our steps back to the trailhead.
We found our steps along the frozen side of the slope to be beautiful. The pine trees and succulents were covered in frost, like a sprinkler system went off while it was below freezing. In places, we could see the shapes of the individual snowflakes.
While the landscape was pretty and the view of Golden was nice, what I think we liked the most was spotting a large herd of elk! I was surprised to see them so close to town. Usually, we are only blessed with deer sightings. They were quite grand and certainly cautious of our hunting dog! Overall, I think our jaunt turned out to be four miles…no big feat, but a nice way to spend a sunny day that eventually warmed up. I suppose we’ll get out there and snowshoe at some point, but I’ll be headed to warmer weather first…Cuba! ETB
Check out the photographic note cards and key chains at my shop. Each card has a travel story associated with it. 20% of proceeds are donated to charity.
