The Summer of the Bronco (07-01-26)

 The spring of 2026 was filled with  our usual events and a lot of working on the new house. And, of course, making plans for the summer. Paul and I both have doctor appointments in early July in Phoenix, which affects our summer plans, since we can’t go as far as we usually do. Taking the camper and Bronco instead of the 5th wheel makes travel more flexible, and Paul really wanted to revisit some 4x4 trails in Colorado that we did with the Jeep.

The summer was divided in two sections essentially. Pre July 4 and post July 4. 

When we bought our Bronco, we did a full day “off-roadeo” training session, learning about the capabilities of the vehicle. That was done in Nevada but Paul wanted to take the class that they teach in Moab as well. It’s a different class, a half day class called Extreme Offroading. 

 

We left Havasu in early June, with a goal to get out of the heat. We headed to nearby Prescott, which is only a 3 hour drive, but sits at a higher elevation, so is cooler. We have been here before but didn’t have much chance to hike, so we rectified that this time.

Our first adventure was a trail that goes part way around Willow Lake. Everyone raves about this trail and I can see why.

The sky was incredibly blue that day…

Our second hike was also around a lake- this one was the Flume Trail at Watson lake, and it was just as pretty.

While plotting our course to Moab, we realized that Dolores, Colorado is not too far out of our way- so that was one of our stops on the way to Moab. Why? Because our friends Liz and Randy are there.

In addition to just hanging out, we went to an evening of music in town, and took some scenic drives.

Arriving in Moab a few days before our class, we had time to do some exploring. We wanted to do some trails with the Bronco so that we (he) would have the vehicle’s capabilities fresh in his mind.

The first trail we drove is called Chicken Corners. It’s only 48 miles long but took us 6 hours.

Like a lot of these drives, the roads are what they call shelf roads, which usually means there is quite a drop off on one side.

I am kind of a fair weather Trail passenger and there was one spot where Paul just kept saying “breathe”.  We made it through ok but I was not a fan. To me it looked like the tires were going off the edge. This is and out and back trail,  so we had to come this way again. Since I figured we would live through it, I video taped it the second time through.

The following day was the Bronco ride, which started after lunch, about 1:15. Once we were all gathered, we drove into the desert to the trail we were going to do.

Being an Extreme Off-roading class, it was more technical than the original class we took. It was all about how to handle obstacles, and where to place your tires.

I didn’t get much footage of our Bronco because I was either in it or directing Paul as to how to get over an obstacle.

Unfortunately the Bronco in front of us got extremely stuck trying to make it up over some boulders. It took 45 minutes, lots of rock moving, and a winch, to get him out of there. By then it was time to go back. So although we learned a few things, it wasn’t as good as it could have been. What it did do is give both Paul and I a little more confidence, because we had no issues figuring out how we wanted to tackle the obstacles.

The other trail we did in Moab is Onion Creek trail. This trail had all the beauty of Chicken Corners Trail, but none of the hair raising drop offs.

Unfortunately  this picture, in addition to showing the gorgeous countryside, also shows one of the things we have had to dodge this summer. Wildfires. This is the beginning of the Snyder Fire, which ultimately burned 28,000 acres. We have changed plans several times this summer due to the Colorado wildfires.

Our final day in Utah was really hot. We had planned on repeating a hike we have enjoyed before, but realized a) it’s too hot and b) we have never been to nearby (ish) Goblin Valley State Park.

We drove out there, not having a specific plan, other than to check it out.

As hot as it was, we still managed to hike the 3 mile trail to Goblin’s Lair. Luckily, there was a little bit (not much though) of shade along the way.

We stayed off the trail that was completely in the sun…

On the way back we elected to take the scenic route (ie gravel road).

Although the views were great…

…The rocks were apparently sharp, because the Bronco got a flat tire. Luckily Paul carries no less than 3 options for taking care of that type of problem. 

S '23, Episode 7, Manitou Springs, CO (08-11-23)

 For the past few weeks we have been staying for a week at each destination we had. That part of our summer is over. At this point we are headed towards El Paso to spend time with Paul’s mom for her 93rd birthday. We have time to stop a few places along the way, but not for a week, and we have no reservations.

We discovered that with the heatwave that has hit most of the country, RV spots in cooler areas are hard to come by. We finally found an RV spot in Manitou Springs- it was recommended by a park that had no availability (“they are so expensive, they might have a spot open still”) –and so they did.

It seems like whenever we look at a map of Colorado, our eyes skim over Florrisant Fossil Beds National Monument, and we say some day we need to go there. Well, today was that day. We realized our rig would fit in the parking lot and it was on our way to Manitou Springs. Perfect.

This is one of the largest fossil beds in the world. They were created when nearby volcanoes erupted, covering the entire area with massive mudflows.

Our original intent was to just walk one of the short trails and check out the most impressive fossils, but we arrived just as a tour was starting, so we joined it.

The fossils in this area are all permineralized- created when an animal or tree is buried quickly. Over time, water seeps into the dead organism, and leaves minerals behind- essentially making a stone replica of whatever was there.

After an hour or so, we were on our way again.

The Manitou Springs/Colorado Springs area has an incredible amount of hiking available, and that's what we were focused on.

We first headed to Red Rock Canyon Open Space area- a place where we have never hiked.

We chose the Red Rock Canyon trail (very original) and ended up hiking almost 4 miles.

Since our hike was reasonably short, we felt fine looking for another hike the following day. This time we headed back to Garden of the Gods Park. We have hiked here before, but we took a different trail this time.

Along the way we passed by, among other things,  the Siamese Twins Rock formation. 

 

The bright green foliage against the red rock is a really spectacular sight.

This park is very popular so you are never really alone. We ended up hiking about 3 miles.

Our final day in the area we went a slightly different way. We drove to Seven Falls, which is a privately owned park, and therefore, has a cost associated with it.

There are two ways to get to the top- the stairs….

…and the elevator. Yes, elevator. We originally took the elevator up, but realized it didn’t go where we wanted,  which was the top of the waterfall.  Turns out there are TWO sets of stairs.

So we came back down and headed up the other stairs- 224 stairs up to the top.

Once there, there are a couple of hiking trails that lead to other waterfalls and some viewpoints. 

 

We hiked both of them. They aren’t very long trails.

Once we were done, we felt like we deserved some ice cream, so that’s what we had for lunch.

We could easily spend a month in this area, but 3 days is all we had, and then it was time to move on, closer to El Paso. At the pace we are moving at, it took us a few days more to get there.

After the success we had visiting Florrisant while towing the rig, we looked at doing the same thing at Pecos Pueblo National Historic Park, which was along our route to El Paso. It worked out very well.

The site of Pecos Pueblo was settled in the 1400s, and was inhabited until the mid 1800s when the last of the Pecos people relocated to nearby Jemez. 

In the 1600s the Spanish arrived, looking to convert the natives to their religion. In the process, their treatment of the Pecos people got worse and worse (oh, the irony) and in 1680 the people in several of the surrounding pueblos banded together to take their lives back. They planned a successful revolt, pushing the Spaniards out of the area. This is what is left of the church that was built.

We took a one hour tour of the ruins, and one of the things the ranger talked about was different ways of viewing “trash”. We, as modern people, view trash as things that have no value, that aren’t needed anymore. The Pecos people say that the piles of “discarded” items are halfway along their journey back to dust, and so, didn’t necessarily bury their loved ones separately from anything else.

A few days later we were hiking a trail somewhere else, and came across a rotting tree that really reminded me of that idea. You can clearly see that the top part of the tree trunk is essentially dissolving.

Soon enough, we were in El Paso.

S '23, Ep. 6 Leadville, CO (08-05-23)

 At 10,152 feet, Leadville is the highest city in Colorado. I was a little nervous about staying at that high an elevation, but we both did pretty good. Once in a while, for no apparent reason, we would feel short of breath, but it passed pretty fast.

Leadville is surrounded by the highest peaks in Colorado- Mount Elbert and Mount Massive. A local woman was telling me that her friends from Washington are surprised the mountains aren’t taller- they seem shorter than the peaks in Washington. To which she replied “Ah yes, but we are already standing at over 10,000 feet, and still looking up”.

We started out slowly by heading to the National Mining Hall of Fame and Museum. With such a small town having a mining museum, it gives an indication as to the origins of the town.

Indeed, gold was discovered in Leadville in 1860, but the town came into being during the silver boom of the 1870s. The population grew to a record 30,000 (compared to 3000 right now). Many of the people living here today are descendants of the original families.

Before the California, or even the Colorado Gold Rush, the southeastern states were producing gold at such a fast rate that the Philadelphia Mint couldn’t handle it all, and 3 other Mints had to be created to turn all the gold into coins. Even so, when large deposits of gold were discovered in California, The California Gold Rush became the greatest mass migration in United States history.

The first section of the museum focused on industrial minerals- the every day minerals that we don’t think about.

Another section of the museum was similar to a fun house, in my mind.

 I walked through a tunnel , staying “on the tracks” and it took me through a “mine”, showing what I presumed I would see if I was in a real mine. It was actually well done.

There is a “fun facts” display that insists that nearly all of the gold found in the last 6000 years is still in use, and that an ounce of gold can be hammered into a 100 square foot sheet. Obviously gold is very malleable, so it can spread itself very thin but I guess that explains why it can be used in printed circuit boards.

Our first hike in the area took us to the back side of nearby Turquoise Lake. I admit I was excited to see this lake in the sunshine, so it could “light up”, but it turns out it got its name from the fact that there are so many turquoise deposits nearby. The lake was pretty, but certainly not turquoise.

Our hike took us past the ruins of Douglass City, an old, abandoned mining town, to the Hagerman Tunnel.

Along the way we passed by pretty ponds, and several small waterfalls. The hike was a good one, about 6 miles long and 700 ft of gain.

I did not venture into the tunnel- I was happy to sun myself on a nearby rock while I waited for Paul. As it turns out, he didn’t go too far into the tunnel because the entrance is a sheet of ice. Good Call.

Of course, the major history of the area is mining, so we looked for things we could do related to that. We had already toured the nearby Molly Kathleen Mine (one of my favorite mine tours) but Tripadvisor says that the Capital Prize Gold Mine tour is one of the best. It’s in Georgetown, about an hour drive from where we are staying, so, off we went.

The entrance to the property gave me a sinking feeling about the quality of the tour because it was basically a yard full of old cars and junk that no one bothered to get rid of. The entrance to the mine is barely noticeable. However, the tour itself was really good. It was different from any other mine tour we had taken.

 

Our guide is from Slovakia, and comes from a long line of miners. She was personable, knowledgeable, and fun. 

This is what is called an “active mine”. I assumed that meant they are fully mining and are making money at it. What it actually means is that there is definitely gold here, and they are actively looking for “the mother lode”. If they had already found it, it would be a “producing mine”. So, now I know.

Putting on our helmets, we went underground- our first stop being the “Shaker Table”. It is actually one of the last steps once gold ore is found. After being crushed, the gold containing rock is shaken. The heavier minerals settle out on the bottom, leaving everything else behind. Gold “nuggets” would not be found in this environment- they would be found in a stream, where small pieces of gold sink and because they are so soft, adhere to other pieces of gold, creating a nugget.

I learned a lot on this tour ( and wrote an appropriate review) in a way that was anything but boring. One of the things I learned was the differences between an Adit, a tunnel, and a shaft. A tunnel has an opening at both ends, an Adit goes horizontally into a hill, and a shaft is vertical.

As we walked further into the mine, we passed by a shaft and she asked us how deep it looked. After we all gave our answers, she laughed and said its about 2 feet deep. The effect is done with mirrors.

One of the “fun facts” we learned is that the “honey wagon” was brought in on the same rail tracks that loaded the ore and took it out. Because the tracks were put in at a slope to make it easier for full ore cars to leave the mine, a chain was put across the tracks to keep the cars in place. As a joke, sometimes someone would “remove/yank” the chain, and the car would move down the track. Not great for the person who was using it as a commode. So, the term “don’t yank my chain” was coined. True story- look it up.

As we walked further into the mine, we were able to see veins that contain a lot of gold in them.

After our tour, and lunch, we continued up the scenic drive high up above Georgetown to Guanella Pass. We got out and admired the scenery several times, but this wasn’t our day for hiking.

The other hike we Did do, was a trail around Turquoise Lake. There are several, and its a big lake, so our goal was to hike 2 or so miles to the historic lodge and then turn around- and that’s what we did. By the time we finished the sky was spitting out water, so we were glad we hadn’t gone further.

Apparently we did a lot of things in Leadville, because I am not finished.

There is a train ride you can take from Leadville –it calls itself a scenic ride, and it was.

It didn’t feel like it had the historic value of other train rides we have taken, but once in a while the scenery was good.

We were glad were sitting inside when the heavens opened on our way back. I admit, I walked outside just to see what the hail felt like.

Being a historic town, we of course wanted to walk the historic downtown. The Silver Dollar Saloon opened in 1875 and still serves drinks, but we decided to pass.

As we walked along the boardwalk, we passed a store called Melanzana Outdoor Clothing. This is a custom made clothing store- all of the clothes are made here in Leadville. When we entered, we were assured that they were happy to show us around, but there is nothing we can buy. Literally nothing. The way it works is that you make an appointment for a fitting. At that time you are allowed to order two articles of clothing. They specialize in hoodies, and inner/outer layers. The next available appointment? January. I said Kudos to them for finding a niche.

Along the same quirky lines was the restaurant we chose for dinner, Quincy Steak and Spirits. As we entered and requested a table for 2, the hostess replied “certainly…and are you familiar with our menu?”  We were. The menu has 3 entrees on it. Filet Mignon (3 sizes), lasagna, and Mac and Cheese. There is no choice of vegetable- you get a salad. The meal also comes with a baked potato- no other choice.

The meal was incredible, as was the ambiance. Comfortable seating in a lounge type setting. We thoroughly enjoyed it.

In our downtime in Leadville, we made friends with the mountain bikers who were here for a race, and we sat by the fire while watching the hail and rain fall.

As a side note- driving around this area of Colorado, we several times drove north or south on Rte 9. This area has taken part in a wildlife study since 2016.. Along the highway, a variety of escape routes and wildlife overpasses and underpasses were created. This area had a large amount of wildlife-vehicle collisions, mostly involving deer, but also elk and moose etc. Over the course of the study they determined that there was a 96% reduction in collisions.

In addition to deer, at least 15 other species, including bears and  mountain lions, have been recorded using the overpasses.