Steamboat Springs

Friday, August 24, 2012

After picking up postcards while we explored the town, I wanted to find this barn. There are postcards with this barn pictured in all the seasons with the ski mountain in the background. I couldn't quite get the same angle due to tall weeds but this is close. This barn sits on what was the More family ranch and was featured on the iconic 1971-72 Steamboat ski company poster showing a cowboy and a cowgirl, with skis across the saddles, riding horses through deep snow coming away from the barn with the ski runs in the background. It's a great poster! It's a great historic barn!

That evening we drove up Fish Falls Creek and took the path up to Fish Falls. I think Rich may have gotten better photos the next afternoon when the light was better.

This was the scene as we hiked back to the parking lot.

Earlier on Friday we had washed the car. It's amazing how dirty a tow vehicle gets!

So naturally it rained that afternoon...with some hail too! See, real life happens wherever we happen to be! haha

Saturday, August 25, 2012

It's been a while since I've posted any photos of flowers but since poppies are a favorite of ours and the bee on the purple coneflower made me smile, here are two that were taken when we went to the post office.

From there we went out to the ski area to check it out...Aspen it's not. Period. There was a fundraiser underway so there was a band and things for kids to do which certainly livened the area and I'm sure it's lovely in the winter. The mountain looks fabulous and Rich would love to ski here. The density of huge condominium complexes was shocking though. Steamboat is a historic ski town and many famous skiers have called this home. Here are sculptures of two.

Billy Kidd

Carl Howelsen

It occurred to me while we were here that throughout the west we see lots of bronze sculptures; sculptures representing a large array of local interests. This next one is now a favorite of mine; the manner in which ranching, skiing, and mining are represented on this sculpture is brilliant and amusing. 

"Sandy Graves was commissioned by the Steamboat Springs Chamber Resort Association to create a bronze sculpture for the Routt County Courthouse lawn in downtown Steamboat. Named "Steamboat Legacy," the life-size work features three children...on a homemade teeter-totter, playing dress up. One girl is wearing an old mining hat with big work boots while another dons a cowgirl hat and boots complete with snowflake spurs. The small boy has on ski goggles and leather telemark ski boots."

If you visit Steamboat, treat yourself to lunch at Carl's Tavern. Yes, it is named after Carl Howelsen and is located on Yampa Street which parallels the Yampa River through the town. Here is a section of the menu.

The food is delicious and then you just walk a couple of blocks to this walking bridge that crosses the Yampa River to Howelsen Hill...where many Olympic ski jumpers have trained. They even jump here in the summer on a plastic surface but no one was jumping whenever we went by.

We stopped at the center of the bridge to watch all the folks tubing on the river...that looks like fun!

When we got to the other side, a young guy coming from the skateboard park asked if we would like for him to take our picture...yes, please!

There was access to the river on that side so I waded in a little ways. The water was shallow, cold, and clear; I never met a Colorado river I didn't fall in love with!

We did drive back out to Fish Creek Falls where Rich took these. The falls are beautiful but wedged so deeply into the rock canyon walls that the lack of light, coupled with the distance, makes them tough to shoot. He did get shots of people in the creek at the bottom of the falls...see them down there?

After we got back to the RV Park, Rich took the girls for a walk and discovered a bridge over the Yampa River. We haven't spent enough time in the Park to even know it was there. We went back to enjoy the sun on the river this last evening in Steamboat Springs.

Lovin' Life ~~ And the Yampa River