Aeonscope » Adventures

South Park Basin

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sat, 21 Aug 2010 20:12:09 +0000

As announced earlier, we road through the South Park Basin to South Park City (located in southern Fairplay, CO) for breakfast. This might possibly be my second favorite basin area where you can see mountains for miles (besides Highway 17 which runs by the Great Sand Dunes National Park). In the case of the South Park Basin, you can at least count 8+ 14′ers from the summit overlook. The following is a panorama from the summit:

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Just beyond the summit and into the basin itself, we encountered some hot air balloons:

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…and finally we landed in South Park City:

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As for breakfast, stopped at the Brown Burro Cafe just off of main street in Fairplay. The food wasn’t outstanding but also wasn’t bad either. Definitely hit the spot, though.

The ride home was the same as the one up. Had I been feeling better, I would have been tempted to loop up through Breckenridge, Leadville, and Buena Vista back into the Springs. Some other time.

Once again, another great ride.

Protected: Dinosaur National Monument - Extras

Brooke Kuhlmann — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 18:00:44 +0000

Dinosaur National Monument - Day 2

Brooke Kuhlmann — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 17:30:45 +0000

Upon waking in our campsite (setup the day before), we ate breakfast and jumped on the bike to ride down some dirt paths deep in the national monument to get a glimpse of what life was like for Josie Bassett Morris. She was a tough gal that set up residence and a ranch in the natural box canyons located in the area where she raised pigs and cattle.

Afterwards, we caught the 9am shuttle from the visitor center to take a peak at the dinosaur fossils. The following are only a few pictures from the morning adventure (probably somewhat hard to view):

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We packed up the bike and were back on the road around 10:30am headed towards Aspen, CO. From Aspen we took Highway 82 over Independence Pass (awesome road, BTW), through Buena Vista, past the collegiate peaks (three 14′ers) and into Colorado Springs to get home around 8pm.

Good trip despite the circumstances. Sad to be home. Could have keep on riding.

Dinosaur National Monument - Day 1

Brooke Kuhlmann — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 06:00:46 +0000

We reached Dinosaur National Monument around 4pm after riding all day from Cody, WY. Total miles for the day: 420.

Normally, we pack cooking equipment when camping. However, since we didn’t have room for cooking equipment this trip, we had to pick food up while on the road. We stopped for food at the Dinosaur Brew Haus in Vernal, UT for some BBQ. I definitely recommend stopping by if in the area.

From Vernal, we headed to the temporary visitor center outside of Jenson, UT (roughly 10 miles from Vernal) to pick up information and proceed to the Green River Campgrounds where we set up our tent for the night.

Once the tent was propped and we changed out of our riding gear, we opted to hike the Sound of Silence trail (3 mile hike). Absolutely loved it. The landscape changes constantly on the hike and not to long after beginning the hike, the sound goes silent for the rest of the hike. Nothing stirs, just your own footsteps and breathing. The following are pictures of the campgrounds (first two pictures) and the rest are all photos from the hike itself:

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It is recommended that this hike be done in the early morning or late afternoon. We were lucky enough to do it in the evening when the lighting and the weather was perfect. After finishing the hike we headed back to the campsite, rested, and then set out for the astronomy show where three telescopes were setup for viewing the night sky (started around 9:30pm). The night was clear and we were able to view many stars. Even saw a couple comets burn up in the atmosphere.

Pretty amazing day.

Ride to Dinosaur National Monument

Brooke Kuhlmann — Mon, 09 Aug 2010 04:00:58 +0000

The plan, after the funeral, was to ride through Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park into Dinosaur National Monument. However, after talking with family members who came up through the park, we learned that there was construction and the park was packed with activity. We were also looking at a 600+ mile day. It was just too much to accomplish in one day. Besides, we’ve been to the former two parks before so best to skip them and get more time in a national monument which we hadn’t seen yet.

Here is the map of our trip to back home. In this case, we split the trip into two days where we could arrive in Dinosaur National Monument on Day 1 and drive the rest of the way home on Day 2. The following are pictures from the ride:

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I do, however, regret not getting to ride Highway 20/16/14 out of Cody into Yellowstone though.

Protected: Day of Funeral

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sun, 08 Aug 2010 04:00:27 +0000

Angels Keep

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 06:00:06 +0000

After our ride to Cody, we ended up staying at Angels’ Keep for two nights because we prefer Bed and Breakfasts when possible. However, I must say this was the nuttiest place we’ve ever stayed at. We ended up here because accommodations were slim due to all the biker traffic for Sturgis and it wasn’t outrageously priced. Of course, that leads to the following:

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Embarrassing and a little freaky, yes, but also rather amusing. All-in-all, we slept well and the hosts were an interesting, pleasant, and amusing bunch. I swear that the husband was Ned Flanders in real life (voice and all).

Ride to Cody

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sat, 07 Aug 2010 05:00:11 +0000

We spent the day riding to Cody, WY on the motorcycle in order to attend a funeral service for Kate’s grandmother. While the reason for our departure was a sad one, I was determined to keep things upbeat and interesting. So why not make a road trip out of the event? This is what I would want for others when my flame finally burns out. So we did just that. We packed the camping equipment, funeral clothes, and set out on the road to make it in time for dinner with the family.

Here is the map of our trip from Colorado Springs, CO to Cody, WY. The best part of the trip was traveling up Highway 24 over Wilkerson’s Pass and then Hoosier’s Pass via Highway 9 into Breckenridge during the wee hours of the morning. Highway 120 from the South into Cody, WY is a fun ride as well. Here are some photos from the day on the road (615 miles total):

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Memorial Park

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sun, 11 Jul 2010 18:30:09 +0000

After our adventures yesterday at the Bear Creek Dog Park and spending time in Old Colorado City and Manitou Springs, we attempted to head out to the Cheyenne Mountain State Park to hike but there were two problems: a major bike race was consuming most of the park trails and dogs are not allowed. We ended up goofing around in Memorial Park instead. Here are a few random shots from our time there:

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Afterwards we headed off to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo for the afternoon. This was mom’s first time there and the second time for me as I had been there almost four years ago (crazy to think its been that long).

Protected: Jake and Tellys

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 21:30:18 +0000

Protected: Bear Creek Dog Park (Extras)

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 18:10:19 +0000

Bear Creek Dog Park

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sat, 10 Jul 2010 18:00:13 +0000

Bear Creek Dog Park is probably the best dog park the city has to offer. It is large and it has space for large and small dogs. We took Ein out for the morning to play with the other dogs. Here are a few shots from our morning adventure:

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Protected: Rocky Mountain National Park - Day 2 (Extras)

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:10:50 +0000

Rocky Mountain National Park - Day 2

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 20:00:24 +0000

Our second day in the park where the weather was sunny and nothing like the previous day. This time we headed to the Bear Creek Lake trail entrance and hiked up to Emerald Lake. The following are pictures from our hike:

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Estes Park - Day 2

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 15:00:22 +0000

We awoke in our condo (as mentioned earlier), to the sound of a chirping marmot. He was heading to the lower balcony to bask in the sun as you can see here (the river is roughly 30 meters away):

Here is a short video (31 seconds, 61MB, right-click to save and download) of the crazy critter chirping.

Protected: Estes Park - Day 1

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 04:00:49 +0000

Protected: The Stanley Hotel

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 03:00:40 +0000

Protected: Rocky Mountain National Park - Day 1 (Extras)

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 00:10:29 +0000

Rocky Mountain National Park - Day 1

Brooke Kuhlmann — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 00:00:24 +0000

We arrived in Estes Park just before lunch, ate, and then continued on to the Rocky Mountain National Park. We ended up going through the gate near the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center. From there, we headed up the Old Fall River Road which is a narrow, one-way, dirt road (not for the faint of heart). Unfortunately, the weather took a turn for the worse as a heavy thunderstorm rolled in. By the time we reached the Alpine Visitor Center, it was sleeting. The Trail Ridge Road, which is paved, is how we looped back out of the park to the exit near the Moraine Park Visitor Center. We probably would have attempted more hiking if the weather wasn’t so wet but getting a partial scan of the park from the car was interesting at least (despite the pictures, below, being rather gloomy).

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Protected: Colorado College Campus Branch Sculpture - Extras

Brooke Kuhlmann — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 22:10:56 +0000

Colorado College Campus Branch Sculpture

Brooke Kuhlmann — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 22:00:25 +0000

My mom flew into the Colorado Springs Airport to spend some time with us and meet Ein for the first time (although he’s much bigger now). Upon arrival we took her to eat at Wooglins and then take a quick tour of the Colorado College campus branch sculptures before heading to our place. The following are few shots via the iPhone 4:

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Protected: Bear Creek Canyon Park - Extras

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 01:11:13 +0000

Bear Creek Canyon Park

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sun, 20 Jun 2010 01:08:43 +0000

In celebration of a few family members birthdays (not to mention the upcoming Father’s Day), we spent the day at Bear Creek Canyon Park eating and drinking. The Bear Creek Canyon Park is also catacorner to the Red Rocks Amplitheater (of which I have not been yet but will later this year for the RUSH concert). We also played frisbee, volleyball, and other games. Craig, who is a homebrewer, brought in a rather tasty coconut porter. Nicely done, Craig! The rest of us brought homemade side dishes, extra drinks, deserts, etc.

For a day in the sun with excellent weather and hardly any additional traffic through the park, I can’t complain. I ended up in the trees and bushes a few times while chasing after an errant frisbee. Good fun all around. The following are a few pictures from the area:

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Protected: Bishop Castle - Extras

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sun, 23 May 2010 01:40:59 +0000

Bishop Castle

Brooke Kuhlmann — Sun, 23 May 2010 01:37:11 +0000

Overview

A few days ago, I wrote about planning a trip to Greenhorn Acres but as chance would have it, we ended up traveling to Bishop Castle instead (additional details here). Yes, believe it or not, there is a castle in Colorado and built by one man with his bare hands! Crazy but true.

This was also a motorcycle trip that included Kevin and Kristen. We left town around 9am and got back around 4:30pm. Total miles traveled: 173 miles. It was a great day for riding minus some pretty strong side-winds.

Map

The following is a rough map of the trip route. Missing from the map are the details of leaving Colorado Springs south via I-25 and then returning back to the Springs via Highway 115. Anyway, here it is:

I do want to point out that there is a 5 to 10 mile stretch of land on Highway 78 just south of Beulah that is all dirt road. Not a big deal for a bike like mine but for those with more plastic, you might want to consider heading further south through Rye in order to reach the castle.

Photos

Here are a few pictures taken while traveling:

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I will say that high winds, uncertain construction of the castle, and traversing precious heights definitely does make for an unsettling feeling in those upper towers. Jim Bishop is a rather interesting character as well but definitely dedicated to his endeavor. Somehow, I don’t think he’s going to finish it all before he’s too old to lift stone again.