Canyonlands national park

Canyonlands National Park is at the heart of the Colorado Plateau. It was carved by the Green and Colorado Rivers. Surrounding the rivers are three very differnt regions, Island in the sky (north), the Maze (west), and the Needles (east). Gary and I toured Island in the Sky. It was a rainy afternoon so wasn't able to get very many pictures of part of the park. Gary and enjoyed our tour and plan on going again. We would like to see the Needles section. We stayed at Archview Campground in Moab, Utah.


This formataion is known as the Monitor and Merrimac named after two civil war ships.

A home in the rocks

Gary and I took the tour of a 14 room home made in the rocks. Very interesting tour. Cost $5 for adults. No pictures allowed. If you are traveling down the road and see this, it is worth stopping for the tour.


This started out as a restaurant but ended up being the home of a couple who blasted and made 14 rooms to live in.


Interesting work of art.


Bet this guy never has a flat.


Rock formation at nearby rest stop.

Silverton, Colorado

We really enjoyed our stay in Silverton. Quite a drive from Durango to Silverton. We went over 2 high passes. The scenery was just beautiful. Gary fished a couple of days and caught trout out of the stream. We toured the city, ate out a lot, took the gold mine tour, Mayflower mill tour, saw a gun fight, went to a ghost town, drove a jeep road, drove over to Ouray, and toured the museum.


This is the Animas River, which flows through Silverton.


Wyatt Earp dealt cards in this establishment when it was a saloon way back when.

This was the Imperial Grand Hotel. The bottom left is now a restaurant called Grumpy's. We had lunch there. They have a piano player there and we enjoyed the music and the food.


The Silverton-Durango railroad is right in front of our campground. We get to watch it arrive and leave.

Mining Heritage Museum

Great museum. We enjoyed all of the displays. They are working on the jail section so we did not get to see all of the many displays they had there.


Coffin Skip. So called because there was no way of stopping if something went wrong.


Stope drill used to drill upwards.


They had a great display of how the miners hats evolved.


Wooden mining car

Christ of the Mines Shrine

Perched on the side of the hill is the Christ of the Mines Shrine. Gary and I took a drive up the hill for a closer look.

Info about the shrine.






View of Silverton from the Shrine.

Mayflower Gold Mill Tour

After the Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour, Gary and I toured the Mayflower Gold mill Tour. This is a self-guided tour so you can spend as little or as much time as you want. We began the tour by watching a 33 minute dvd which helped us to understand how the mill worked. We even got to push a button to make a couple of the machines work.


Mayflower Mill


This is the aerial tram house. Some of the ore to be processed was sent from the mine via the buckets you see. Some the miners rode to the mines in the buckets.


These balls were used in the ball mill. They started out like the large ones and ended up like the small ones. The balls helped to crush the ore.


This mine used the floation system to seperate the different ores. These are the vats where that process took place.

Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour

Gary and I always like the tours that we can find in the places we visit. We took the Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour. We went 1/3 mile underground. Our miner-guide walked us through original tunnels where we saw the vein and learned how mining was done. Our miner-guide also demonstrated the way mining was done. He used the authentic San Juan mining equipment such as the hand steels, drifter and jack-leg drills. He also got on the air-powered mucking machine and showed how they worked. Our guide was really great. After the tour, you can pan for gold. If you're in Silverton, be sure to tour the mine. Be sure to wear a light jacket or sweat-shirt. It is cold in the mine.


Gary is putting on the hard hat and slicker getting ready for the tour.


We rode the miner's mantrip train.


The beginning of our journey. Lots of water dripping from the ceiling but our gear kept us dry.


This is the Old Hundred Boarding House. The miners lived here year-round. They never had to go outside to get to work. The house is clinging to the cliffs 2000 feet above the mine. It was built in 1904.

Silverton, Co to Ouray, Co

We drove from Silverton to Ouray. Beautiful drive over a high pass with switch backs. Ouray is another mining town. Lots of buildings built in the 1800s. We had lunch and then visited the shops.




Looking across at the old Idarado mine.


Looking down into Ouray.


The old opera house.

Silverton, Co to Animas Forks, Colorado

We drove jeep trail from Silverton to the Ghost town of Animas Forks. Beautiful scenery along the way. Well worth the trip.


Passed quite a few abandoned mines along the way.


Saw at least three marmouts during our journey.


Lots of waterfalls. Notice the cabin near the foot of the falls.


View from Animas Forks.

Animas Forks, Colorado

Animas Forks, at 11,200' in elevation, was built in 1873. By 1883, the population was nearly 450 people. You can walk around and through some of the buildings. Interesting place to visit.




This is the Duncan house.


Jail house.


This two-room house was built in 1898. Later other rooms and a two-seat outhouse were added.

Treasure Falls, Wolf Creek pass, Continental Divide

Treasure Falls is 105'. Water from this falls makes it to the Sea of Cortez. When this part of Colorado belonged to the Spanish, 300 Frenchmen secretly entered the territory searching for gold. Only 2 made it out and they talked about a treasure that was buried close to the falls. Is it still hidden somewhere? Were the 2 Frenchmen really telling the truth?

There is a trail that allows you to get closer to the falls. It is 1/4 mile and increases 200' in elevation. Great view.


To get to Creede, Co from Pagosa Springs, Co. you have to go over Wolf Creek Pass. 8 miles of over 8% grade. Beautiful views.


You cross the Continental Divide at the top of Wolf Creek Pass. This is a view of the east side of the Continental Divide.


This is the west side of the Continental Divide. The Continental Divide trail starts in Mexico and finishes in Montana, over 3000 miles.

Creede, Co to Lake City, Co

Gary and I took a drive over route 149 from Creede, Co to Lake City, Co. We stopped a few places to take a few pictures. Very enjoyable drive. We arrived in Lake City and walked into a few stores. Had lunch at Poker Alice's.



This is the Weminuche Wilderness.


North Cedar Creek falls, the most photographed falls of Colorado.


Lake San Cristobal, second largest natural lake in Colorado. Water sure was beautiful.

Bachelor Historic Tour, Creede, Colorado

Sherri is taking a basket class and woodburning class while we are here in Creede. Gary and I have been enjoying the mining town and taking some driving tours. We took the mine tour, $6 per person, and really enjoyed it. Sherri, Gary, and I have been to the Creede Repertory Theatre two times. We enjoyed both shows. Sherri and I have really enjoyed the homemade fudge. A couple more visits and we will have enjoyed every flavor they make. Gary has been fishing but has to drive about 20 miles in order to bait fish as most of the places on the Rio Grande River are artificial lures only. The pictures below were taken on our drive of the Bachelor Historic Tour. Beautiful drive.





Beaver dam.

Tough leaved iris

Mesa Verde national park

Wow is about the best word I can find to describe Mesa Verde National Park. We spent 2 days in the park and could have spent more time. Once you pass the entrance point, it is 15 miles to the visitor center where you can purchase tickets for 3 tours that are offered. We chose to take the Cliff Palace and Long House Tours. We did the Cliff Palace tour the first day and the Long House Tour the second day. Cost of tours was $3 per person. There are lots of things to see that do not cost you anything. There is a restaurant at the Spruce Tree House location, other than that, you should plan on a picnic. No place to buy gas, so make sure your tank is full before you go. Be sure to wear good shoes if you plan on going on the tours, as you will encounter steps and some steep paths.


This is Spruce Tree House. You walk a steep path down to visit the area. This is free.


The upper rooms were for food storage.


These vessels are canteens.


Took this from the entrance booth while Gary was purchasing his Senior pass. Yes, Gary is now 62. We will now be able to visit all the national parks for free and camp for half price in the national forest campgrounds. Of course, I took lots of pictures which you can see by clicking here.

Cliff Palace, House of many Windows

View of Cliff Palace from tour starting point.


Cliff Palace. We climbed the two ladders you can see on the right.


We climbed the ladder to get out of the canyon.


House of many windows.

Square Tower House


Navajo Canyon


Pit House


Heman Way House

Mesa Verde

Mummy House

Fire House

Oak tree house

Sun Temple

Far View Community, Mesa Verde

Stone houses






As you can see, the Far House Community is still inhabited.

This is the Kodak House.

View of Long House from turn out.

This is the path we took to get to the long house.


Looking down into a Kiva. The Kiva had a roof over it. On the left you will see the ventilator (hole). In front of the ventilator, you can see the air deflector. Behind the air deflector is the fire pit. Behind the fire pit is the sipapu, or symbolic entrance to the underworld. Kiva is a Hopi word for ceremonial room.

Long House Tour, Mesa Verde

Gary and I took the Long House guided tour. The cost for the tour was $3 per person. To reach Long House, you take a tram then walk down stairs and then switch back paths to the House. The walk is 3/4 of a mile. Once you get to the Long House you actually get to go behind the walls. We thought that this was the best tour to take.


This is a view of the Long House from one of the overlooks.


We climbed these ladders to view some of the rooms.


This was their water collection system. The water would flow from the rocks then fill up the holes.

Views from Mesa Verde

We enjoyed pulling over at the various turn-outs to look at the valleys around Mesa Verde.







This was our campgound.

Flowers in Mesa Verde

Desert Mariposa Tulip


Crimson Wooly Pod


Prickly Pear Cactus

Mesa Verde museum items

The musem is worth seeing. Many artifacts for you to see. They also have a movie that is very good. Very good bookstore.

Telluride, Colorado

While we were camped at Dolores, Co, Gary and I took a ride to see the town of Telluride. Beautiful drive across Lizard Pass. Telluride has lots of small shops to see. We drove through the town to see the falls at the end of the road.








What a view these people have.

Anasazi heritage Center

The Anasazi Heritage Center is located between Dolores and Cortez, Colorado. Besides all the exhibits, there are hands-on activities. You can grind corn, weave, and use various microscopes to see items up-close. After touring the center, you can walk up to the Escalante Pueblo at the top of the hill behind the center. From there, you can get a great view of the McPhee Reservior. You can also get material about the Canyons of the Ancients Monuments. We used the information we gained to view the Lowry Pueblo, Painted Hand Pueblo, and the Hoovenweep National Monument.


Yucca sandals.


Feather bowls.


Dutra jar.


Zuni Canteen. Really beautiful.

Lowry Pueblo

This Pueblo dates back to AD 1060 and inhabited for 165 years. The pueblo stood two or three stories high, with rooftop entrances reached by ladders. The small rooms suggest that most activity took place on top of the roofs and along the east side of the building. By the time the last families left the pueblo, it had grown to 40 rooms, eight Kivas, and a Great Kiva. The people who lived here farmed corn, beans, and squash. The average height was about 5' 1" for females and 5'3" for males. Half of all children may have died before the age of 6. The average life span was 30 years. The Pueblo is part of the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument.


Lowry Pueblo. A cover was built to protect the Pueblo from the elements.


This is the Kiva that can be found inside the Pueblo. When this first excavated, this Kiva had a beautiful painted mural on its walls. A section of the mural was removed and can be seen at the Anasazi Heritage Center.


The Great Kiva is 47 feet in diameter, one of the largest kiva found in the Great Sage Plains. This Kiva was built around AD 1086. It was probably accessed by a ladder through a central opening.


Some of the wild flowers next to the Kiva.

Painted Hand Pueblo

This is the view of Painted Hand Pueblo from the parking area. The Pueblo is about 1/4 mile from the parking area. To get to the pueblo, we had to drive down a rutted dirt road. The Pueblo was built in the 1200s. It was a small village of about 20 rooms. What a view from the Pueblo. Gary was wondering where they got their water as no water source was apparent.

If you look towards the center of the picture, you can see the tower.


This is part of the path down to the pueblo.


View of the Pueblo from the trail.


We made it to the area below the pueblo.