Tue, May 31, 2011

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

The high Wednesday in Meridian will be 98 degrees with high humidity; the high here in Gunnison today was 72 degrees with low humidity. I think we will wait until Fall to return home. – Donna Downey

Charles and I talk about the wonderful weather out here often.  After talking to a friend from home today we cringed at the thought of returning to near 100 degree temperatures when today the high here was about 72.  Let’s don’t even talk about the humidity.  If you’ve looked at any of the photos of us you saw we have not even had a short sleeve shirt on yet.  And sweating is prohibited out here I believe.  We check the weather in our favorite Oregon coast towns periodically and laugh about the fact that the high is more often than not 55 degrees 365 days a year.  I did check the high there today and it was… you guessed it… 55 degrees.  So it will not be easy to make the weather transition to Mississippi for us or the dogs!

Today was an easy day for us.  We planned to make a short drive from Creede almost entirely on dirt roads to Gunnison, CO.  We would travel thru some of the most remote areas of Colorado and would spend almost the entire day above 9000 feet.  We would travel thru at least two mountain passes in excess of 10,000 feet and one that was over 11,000 feet. There would be some of the most beautiful creeks and streams to be found anywhere and a nice long stop at the most photographed falls in Colorado, North Clear Creek Falls.  It also happens to be one of the prettiest. 

And the plan worked without a hitch.  The weather was perfect, all the roads and passes were open and it seemed most other tourists had returned home after Memorial Day.   At North Clear Creek Falls, where we spent a good deal of time, we only saw three people which is a record.  There was a tremendous amount of water going over the falls and the backdrop of a gorgeous blue sky made the scene something right out of a dream. 

From there we traveled about six miles up another dirt road to Continental Reservoir.  Definitely a higher elevation lake it sits at a little over 10,200 feet. There were two trucks with trailers at the boat launch but the lake is large and we never caught a glimpse of anyone.

North Clear Creek flows thru the Continental Reservoir so as we headed out we saw an ideal spot on the creek for our picnic lunch.  It was another picture perfect setting to enjoy a nice lunch and relax.  The water level was too swift and deep for the pups to play in but they enjoyed hunting for varmints under every rock. 

After our picnic we headed to the Slumgullion road going thru Spring Creek Pass at 10,901 feet before turning off on the Slumgullion dirt road.  Just a few miles down the road we broke the elevation record of our entire trip in Slumgullion Pass at 11,361 feet.  Many of the valleys in this area have an abundance of beaver dams and of course beavers.  The complexity of their dam systems is amazing and we marveled thru the day how such a small mammal can control such large amounts of water.  These narrow valleys go on for miles and can often contain numerous dams and the resulting waterfalls.  We stopped at one dam near the road that we could get over to with just a little wading.  The dam system was intricate and controlling perfectly a portion of Brush Creek creating a peaceful pond from a fast flowing creek.  This little side trip was worth it but will require some cleaning on our hiking boots tonight.

As we found on many of our previous days we spent another day near water of varying sizes and shapes.  The pups had ample opportunities for water play and also for baths as needed.  Paris found another varmint to pursue when we stumbled upon a couple of Marmots.  When she finally located the hole where they disappeared they let her know verbally they were not thrilled with her behavior.   She seemed confused with all the chatter pulling back from the hole and looking back at us for support then peering down into the hole again.  We then called her back to save her the embarrassment of being beaten up by a Marmot.

We saw several female Rocky Mountain Sheep high up in a meadow but their larger male counterparts were nowhere to be seen.  We also caught a fleeting glimpse of a couple of female elk but again no males around. 

We got into Gunnison about 4:00 and have a wonderful room.  Paris and Dodger crashed as soon as we got in the room because with all of the activity today they had not had time for their usual naps. Because of the convenience of services here we made the decision to do a major cleanup.  After several weeks of traveling on numerous dirt roads the Jeep was filthy and with only minor wiping down inside it was time for some major cleaning.  We took almost everything out and Charles took it to a car wash and then wiped down the entire interior when he got back to the motel.  I cleaned all of the photography equipment, computer and associated containers. We did laundry and then Charles finished removing the dust from the rest of our “stuff” while I sat down to do the journal and photos. We are much cleaner now and ready to do it all over again!

We are well tonight and hope that y’all are too.

Peace, Hope & Love,

Donna, Charles, Paris & Dodger

PS  Even after unloading the Jeep, washing it, completely wiping down the interior and loading everything (except what we needed in the room) back into the Jeep Charles never broke a sweat… not even a little perspiration.  If he had done this at home he would have needed a shower and a clean set of dry clothes!  As a large sign over main street in Grants, Oregon says:  “It’s The Climate!”