I Meant To Do That

I was going for a statement with this one. Framed and signed copies are limited. Order now.

I'll Take Colorado for $1000, Alex

OK, you asked for it. This is as close to elk as I got all week. As a matter of fact this is 4 out of the 5 elk I saw all week. This was Monday evening. They were 500-600 yards across a wide and deep drainage. Four o'clock in the afternoon and more that an hour and a half away. I watched them for, maybe a half hour until a 4 point bull came out looking for love and broke up the party. The deer was feeding along side the trail near camp. And that white hose tower is attached to the Alpine Hose Company in Georgetown, Colorado. Georgetown was the scene of one of Philo Beddoe's fist fights in Every Which Way But Loose or was it Any Which Way You Can. It was Clint and Clyde's second movie, I think. In the street fight you can see this hose tower. (I tried Googling a movie still that showed it but couldn't find one)

And in conclusion... No I did not get an elk. Of the six of us we did manage to pack out one bull, so the freezer isn't completely empty. I'm going to go back to posting more of a mish-mash of pictures, I believe I may be losing your interest by sticking to one subject this long. Bear with me, in the past month I've shot 200 soccer pictures, 700 at the beach and 450 out west. And probably less than 20 other pictures. Maybe I can now get back to my old routine.

And next week we'll be back with 'Name That Station' with a throwback/guest post edition.

Hotel Colorado

Continuing with the Colorado theme this week, this is the Hotel Colorado in Glenwood Springs, Colorado. The Hotel sits just across the street from the famous Glenwood Hot Springs. Did you know the Hotel Colorado was 'Base Camp' for an unsuccessful bear hunt by Theodore Roosevelt? When he returned the maids gave him a stuffed bear, which he gave to his daughter, who called it Teddy. Was this the birthplace of the Teddy Bear?

Argo Gold Mine, Idaho Springs, Co. (PG 156)

Holy cow, it's been since September 22nd since I've posted a new Painted Gentleman. I have a few new ones saved up, so, here we go. This one was shot through the side window as we were heading west along Interstate 70 in Idaho Springs, Colorado. This is the Argo Gold Mine, obviously. They offer tours of the mine and the mine buildings. I remember my Dad taking pictures of this building back in the early seventies. It still looks the same. I could go on about the significance of the Argo Tunnel, about how they dug this tunnel to drain the water out of other tunnels,or that it is over 4 miles long, but I'll let you read all about it on their website. When you get there hit the HISTORY icon. Very interesting.

The Pack Train

Unless you're willing to put in a lot of time and shoe leather, life in the high country is solely dependant on the back of a horse and a string of mules. While this is how we and all of our gear got to our camp, they all headed back down, not to return for six days. A two hour twenty minutes trip up the hill turned into a two hour a forty five minute trek back down. The downhill ride interrupted by repacking shifted loads and a near epic wreck that left one mule stretching her neck and prancing on her tip toes. By the time we made it back down to the pack station I was mildly unsure my left knee would every work again. Before long I regained my land legs.

The Secret of the Stump

This is a fallen pine tree. It is the underside of the stump. Everyday while hunting the mountains of Colorado I would stop and rest near this stump. It was half way up hill number 3. (of the 7 to get back to the tent) Every time I stopped to allow the blood to fully circulate through my legs and to gulp the thin air into my lungs I would stare at this stump. There was just something intriguing about it. Something I couldn't put my finger on. Until one day.... (See post below)

The Beast Within

OK, a little trickery there, I posted this 1 minute before the other one. But besides that this is totally legit. Can you see it? Is it a bear? A dog? A temple dog? A gargoyle? I saw a TV show one time where the old Indian was talking to his grandson about carving ducks. He said look for a piece of wood that has a duck in it already. Then take a knife and carve away everything that isn't part of the duck. Well, for sure, this stump already has the bear in it.