Living one of my dreams-the latest adventure

It is a good thing that most people are more reliable about writing in their blogs on a regular basis than I am. I seem to have trouble finding time to sit down and put the thoughts to paper as regularly as I should. My last entry was the start of our vacation this month and so I will try to follow up and outline the good times we enjoyed.
The scenery from the train was beautiful and the experience was all that I had hoped it would be. The chilly morning was a bit of a drawback since it made operating the camera with numb fingers a bit of a problem. It is a spectacular stretch of countryside that is still pretty much the same as it was when the train first started making the journey. Since we were entitled to all the hot drinks that we wanted, I decided to make the trek forward to the concessions car. Now that was a real journey in and of itself. As the train is lurching down the tracks I was lurching through the cars and hoping that I didn't wind up in some lady's lap. It was even more exciting on the way back when I had two full mugs of hot chocolate to balance as I bounced from side to side and made my way back to the seat. In all we drank about 6 cups of the delicious brew but by the end of the trip we had gotten our fill of hot chocolate. It took us about 2 1/2 hours to get to Silverton, which is just a very small town nestled in a mountain valley. It probably only survives in large part due to the tourist traffic from the train. Once there we wandered around for a few minutes until we found a restaurant that was set up in an old Bordello and went in for a warm meal and to thaw out our hands. I found a plug on the wall where I could charge my camera battery and so we sat down to order. I had chicken fried steak which was good and brenda had some hot soup. Then I had to have a piece of their fresh baked fruit pie for dessert.
After shopping for a while it was time to climb back aboard the train for the ride home. By this time the clouds had settled in around the mountains and there was a light mist falling. At times it looked as if the clouds were lifting and the storm would clear up and so I chose to take the optimistic point of view that it would only get better. But unfortunately as we climbed the mountain on the train, it only settled in more until we had a pretty steady downpour around us. With the train moving some of the rain blew in the open sides of the car and so after a while we found it neccessary to get out the blanket and cover up to shield us from the rain. It was a bit harder to try and get good pictures but I continued to try and wound up with better results than I thought that I might have. The ride home seemed a little longer because of the weather but it certainly gave us an idea of what early travelers might have felt as they journeyed on the train. When you get to the top of the climb the view is pretty dramatic since you are looking out the train window straight down hundreds of feet to the river below. They literally blasted a ledge on the side of the mountain for the train to sit on and you have rock wall on one side and a deep chasm on the other. That part of the ride alone made the trip in the bad weather all worth while.
When we arrived back at the station it was still raining a little as we walked back over to the truck. By this time Brenda had about had all the fun she could take and so wanted to head back to the Motel and bundle up in a nice warm room. We stopped by Wendy's on the way home for some supper and called it a day. We both agreed that we had a good time on the train but would like to come back again on a better day and perhaps bring some family to enjoy the excursion with. Since we were going to be heading for Mesa Verde in the morning and needed to be there to catch an 8:30 tour bus, we needed to get up early and drive about 1 1/2 hours to get there. We decided to retire early and hope that the weather tomorrow would improve.
We woke up early and headed for Cortez, Colorado, the nearest town to Mesa Verde. As the sun began to come up it was still pretty cloudy although they hadn't really settled in. By the time we actually arrived at the gate to the park it had turned into fog and as we started the climb up the mountain the fog made the drive a little more exciting. We managed to find the lodge where we were to board the tour bus and after a pit stop we climbed aboard. As we settled in and introduced ourselves we found that there was a couple from Australia aboard and then we met the couple sitting next to us. They were from Oregon and as we talked we found out that they knew exactly where Layton was since they had a son living in South Ogden. He was a teacher at Weber State and as luck would have it Brenda knew the son and had interacted with him at the testing center. The tour turned out to be a good idea since it exposed us to most of the aspects of the park and provided us with a good deal of info that we would not have known otherwise.
The first stop was at one of the ancient pit houses that archeaologists had uncovered and preserved for posterity. It appeared that the inhabitants of the park lived there in the period from 900 to 1200 BC. As the tour proceeded they pointed out numerous instances of the dwellings built into the cliffs around the area. Most of the view points required a little walking to access and I was apprehensive about my ability to do the hiking but as the day continued my confidence increased and I found that the hardest part of the day was climbing back aboard the bus. As part of our tour they took us to the single largest dwelling which is called the cliff palace. It included an actual hands on tour of the site. The only glitch was that it was built into the side of a cliff and required a climb down the mountainside to get there; once there we needed to climb up the cliff to get back to the bus. They tried hard to discourage those who may not be able to handle the hike. By this time my confidence was high and my desire to actually be there encouraged me to give it a try. The trip down involved a number of rather steep steel stairs that had been built by the park service and some stone steps carved into the mountainside. Then the last distance was covered by a rustic wooden ladder about 12 feet in length. I actually found it easier than I thought it might be to make the trip down since handrails were plentiful.
Once there it was great to be able to view the construction up close. The tour guide indicated that the site had included about 150 rooms and that perhaps 100 inhabitants lived there. Some of the buildings were used for storage and some for ceremonial purposes besides the living quarters there. It is amazing that they have been there for over 1000 years and are still in as good a shape as they are. I am sure the location helped to shield them from the weather but the construction techniques must have been good enough to last. The ranger asked if I thought I could make it up the ladders and told me that he was the last one out and would prefer not to carry me with him. There were a series of three ladders about 10-12 feet in height to get back to the top. I only dwell on the issue because I have been having a little difficulty getting back up to speed after getting both my knees surgically replaced. So I started up the ladders and a young couple were nice enough to hang back in case I needed an extra boost. It was a pull but I managed to make it all the way to the top at my own pace and felt a good sense of accomplishment at being able to make the journey.
I thoroughly enjoyed the morning and even though I had seen most of it before I still wanted to make sure that I didn't miss a thing. The tour ended about noon and we were dropped off at the visitors center and cafeteria. The special of the day was a delicious Navajo Taco including about everything that you could want except that the guacamole was way too runny for my taste. Then to top it off they had delicious brownies and choclate chip cookie bars with lots of nuts. They must have known that I was going to be there. I neglected to mention that by the time we got to the first stop on the tour the fog had lifted and it turned out to be a great day for our activities. The funny part was that while we were sitting in the cafeteria it rained real hard for about 15 minutes and then cleared up again; we were grateful that the weather had been so obliging.
The trip back down the mountain was enjoyable because now we could see the beautiful scenery. On the way back, the road took us to the highest point on the mountain and there was a fire lookout there along we a chance to see into four states from the top. By this time Brenda had gotten in all the walking she wanted but I hiked to the top of the knoll to get a few pictures. While I was standing there a little storm formed in the low clouds that were passing by and I could see the rain falling just off the edge of the hill in front of me. Then in a matter of a few minutes the sun started to come out and a rainbow appeared right there in front of me. It was definitely worth the effort to climb the little hill. Then it was also interesting to see the damage the fires they have had recently caused and the new growth has made a tremendous effort to cover up the remaining burnt stumps.
By the time we arrived in Cortez and the motel Brenda was ready to call it a day and the big lunch had taken care of her for the day. I was feeling a need for something more and so I drove through town and decided on Dairy Queen for some chicken strips and a nice Pepsi freeze. I had a great time and it felt good to have been able to get in a little extra physical exertion for a change. Cortez is a very pretty area and Brenda and I both decided that it would be a nice place to live if we were looking for a change of scenery. Then all the family could come to visit us and we could take them to Mesa Verde and for a ride on the train. It was a vacation that I have wanted to take for a long time and I certainly wasn't disappointed when we finally made it down there. But we still had a couple of days and more adventures to go. Too bad we can't just go on one adventure after another instead of having to show up at work on occassion to generate enough money for financing the trips. Work isn't so bad but it definitely is more demanding than a nice adventure. Stay tuned for our ongoing adventure if I haven't already bored you to tears. I will try to post again sooner this next time.

Full steam ahead- - - - - -

Now that we are on our way back from our most recent great adventure, I suppose that it is time to update my documented thoughts. We decided to take a long weekend before it got too cold and try to see a little more of this beautiful country. Our plan was to head south to Durango Colorado so that we could ride on the old narrow gauge steam railroad that goes from there to Silverton Colorado. We thought that perhaps the leaves would still be in full color which would add to the majestic mountain scenery. I have wanted to go on the train for over 40 years but it took me until now to be able to make it happen. I had been on the highway that connects the two towns but never the train, I had also visited Mesa Verde when our oldest kids were still quite young and wanted to go back ever since. Anything else that we were able to do would just be a bonus.

Unfortunately the weekend we picked decided to bring in a storm that cooled things down quite a bit and even snowed in the higher elevations. We were determined though and headed out on Friday morning. We arrived in Durango about 5:30 that evening just as the passengers were getting off of the train from their return trip. You could ride the train both ways or ride the train one way and the bus the other. We chose to ride the train in both directions to get the maximum benefit. You keep the same seat on both trips but the train turns around in Silverton so that you can see both sides of the scenery by the time you arrive back where you came from. Brenda dropped me off at the station and went around the block while I went in and got our tickets. Then we headed through town to find our motel. It certainly wasn’t the Taj Mahal but it served the purpose and met our needs for two nights. When you reserve online and are dealing with an unknown entity then you have to settle for the luck of the draw. I suppose that is especially the case when you use price of the room as one of your more important criteria.

The desk clerk was helpful and told us that the city trolley line ran right in front of the motel so we could ride it down to the train station and leave our truck parked at the motel. What he forgot to tell us was that on Saturday it didn’t come to our stop until 10:30 in the morning. Not knowing that ahead of time we arose at 5:30 and after getting ready for the day headed out to the bus stop. It was a nice little enclosure with a bench to sit on and so we took up our position and waited for the 7:13 bus to arrive. We watched the street lights go off one by one and saw the clouds turn pink from the rising sun. When 7:15 came and still no bus we decided to check the sign just to make sure our time was right. That was when we discovered our wait was in vain. Since we were supposed to catch the train no later than 7:45 we decided to hurry and head back to the Motel and pick up the truck for the ride down. Arriving there we found that the parking lot charged $7.00 to park and so we got nicked again but at least the truck wasn’t going to be towed. It was pretty crisp, about 45-50 degrees so we walked quickly to the station. When getting dressed that morning we weren’t sure how warm to dress and I settled on a tee shirt with a flannel shirt to help keep the chill off of my arms. Brenda opted to wear a shirt and slacks with a sweatshirt jacket to keep her warm.

We arrived at the station in time and soon found the car that we would be riding on. I had specifically opted for our type of car because it offered what I saw as some definite advantages. The seats were like sitting on a couch or in an overstuffed loveseat and faced the side of the train car so that you had an unobstructed view of the scenery and the ability to easily take pictures with no obstacles in the way. The car had a roof but no windows on the sides which would be great on a warm day but presented a drawback on a day when the temperature was not supposed to get above 47 degrees. It was not the cheapest spot on the train but it was not the most expensive either. Our seats did come with one special perk though, they gave us each an insulated mug which was infinitely refillable at the concession car with your beverage of choice. They offered hot coffee which we don’t drink, hot cider and hot chocolate along with a spiced tea. We opted for the hot chocolate which tasted great but by the time we wanted a change they had run out of hot cider. As we sat waiting for the train to take off, people were snuggling down into their seats. One couple were wrapping up in a burgundy blanket with a Durango / Silverton logo and once she saw that Brenda suggested that perhaps we should invest in one also. Since we still had a few minutes I hopped off the train and found the gift shop where they were selling the blankets. Then Brenda decided that she was going to get a warmer coat in addition to the blanket. She visited the gift shop and came back with a nice warm coat that had a hood on it. I felt confident that as the day progressed it would warm up a little and so I wasn’t too worried about one for me. By this time the train blew it’s whistle and we were finally off on our journey for the day.
In order to hopefully avoid reader fatigue I will continue in future episodes. Hope that all is well with those of you who may choose to read my ramblings and you are all in our thoughts and prayers. Life is good, life is great, so choose the right before it is too late.