Vacation! [1st in a series] Colorado Springs

Ah, vacation.

In Colorado, no less. Who doesn't love Colorado? We stayed just a couple days in a remote cabin outside Cripple Creek. This was our view.

You've seen hundreds of pictures of beautiful Colorado, so I think I'll post some that might be a little different. There will be a few of the area's standard spots and a few artsified ones.

After a rest day in the cabin, we ventured out to nearby Cripple Creek.

And discovered a train excursion!

It was more like a choo-choo, but we never pass up the opportunity to take a train ride.

It was a cloudy day, but nice to escape the heat of Oklahoma.

And a very pleasant way to see the countryside!

Our route wound around, giving us another view of the town,
glimpses of abandoned mine shafts and an actual working gold mine off in the distance [not pictured].

These old cars were in a gully downhill from another old mine. Don't know if they were abandoned or just artfully placed here for aesthetics.

After the ride, we browsed the museum. It was stuffed with vintage pictures, tools, train paraphernalia, newspaper & magazines clippings - just tons of stuff from a bygone era.

Steps.
After last year's tumble down some cabin stairs, I look askance at steps. On top of that, I was really missing the oxygen of the lowlands! Every time I visit Colorado, it takes longer to acclimate to the altitude. (Could that possibly have something to do with a few years going by between visits??)

As we were riding around, we saw a place where you could tour an actual mine. It was really neat! Those pix will be in the next post.

In the meantime, back at the cabin...

I tried my hand at crystal sphere photography. These are my first attempts.

Scroll down to see the mine tour!

Vacation [pt 2] The Mine Tour

 So we found this neat tour of a real gold mine.

It's called the Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine. If you're in the area, it's a really neat experience led by knowledgeable guides.

Our guide was a little spit of a woman who said she grew up in mining. Her grandfather was a miner and she became a miner. She was full of information and stories.

But first, some artsy shots from around the mine while we were waiting our turn to go down.

And here's the cage. We donned hard hats and they squeezed about 8 adults & 2 kids into that cage. We were literally crushed in together and not many of us were petite people. Somehow the cage door still shut and down we plunged 1,000 ft below ground.

Read this sign carefully. They're very strict about the rules.

This was not one of those Disney rides, where they trick you into thinking you went somewhere but you're still on the ride. We really did get in an old steel cage elevator kind of contraption and went underground. Way underground. Neither the cage nor the cave are for the claustrophobic.

I'll admit, when the cage went back up, I kinda wondered "what if we get stuck here?"

We learned all about gold, what it looks like, how they discover and follow the veins, tools, drifts, and a dozen other terms I don't remember.

We even got to ride in a mine car!

Our guide fired up some old jackhammers and played audio of blasts. You can't imagine the sounds!

It's incredible how those men worked. Backbreaking, dangerous work. Young teens worked in the mines, too. I imagine they all had short lives.

 At the end, we were able to choose from a crate of rocks with gold flecks in them. By the way, real gold looks like silver when it's mined!

Scroll down to see the donkeys and read a sad tale.

Vacation [pt 3] Donkeys & Llamas

 We heard a sad tale during the gold mine tour.

Back in the day, donkeys (mules or burros - I don't remember which) were used in the mines to haul supplies. But they didn't get to ride up & down in the cage-elevators. Once underground, they lived out their lives there, eventually going blind from never seeing sunlight. Their offspring would be born blind.

When technology replaced the donkeys, they were retired. But in gratitude for their service, they and their descendants ever after, were allowed to roam free in Cripple Creek and their eyesight has returned.

 I asked a local where they might be found and he said, "oh they usually hang out up around the post office!"

It was just a couple blocks away, so off we went in search of donkeys.

And sure enough, a small herd was grazing on an empty lot by the post office.

After taking some pictures, we drove off in search of lunch. On our way home, a couple of the cute beasties were cruising the street.

Another little fun discovery was coming upon a llama ranch on the way back to our cabin.

A llama ranch! I'd never seen or heard of one. Of course, we had to go back so I could snap some pictures.

Their expressive faces crack me up!

Sometimes, it's those little serendipities in life that are the best. I smiled every time we drove past the llama ranch :)

I recently saw a funny video on Facebook of Alpacas bounding & bouncing around. I always got llamas & alpacas mixed up, but now I understand the difference. In my next life (jk), I want to have an alpaca farm! I'll have alpacas, afghan hounds, and an art studio on some rolling ground with mountains in the distance. And enough money to pay ranch hands to do all the work. Coz as my husband likes to remind me, I don't even pull weeds in the flower bed.

But doesn't that sound like a bit of heaven?

There's one more post, scroll down or click on "older posts" to view.