August 16, 2019
Natalie and daughter, Ellen decided to take a short break from triple digit heat in Houston, Texas and come visit me a few days. Natalie has an injured foot and Ellen is not much for hiking, so we mostly did auto tours.
I had been wanting to go on the Bachelor Loop tour of historical mines in Creede. We decided that would be fun and that we would pay to go underground at the Last Chance Mine. Natalie was tired from the long drive, so we made a leisurely start.
Creede has lots of mines, most of them for silver. In fact, we found that amethyst was a byproduct in some of the mines. The mining boom was between 1889 to 1893, although some mines stayed open until 1985.
Upon the advice of the Creede Visitor Center, we ran the tour backwards to make it easier to traverse the sometimes steep and rough dirt road in our car. This made our first stop the cemetery. There we learned good people were buried facing east, while the criminal types were buried north-south. We looked for north oriented graves but didn't find any before a few cold sprinkles drove us back to our cars.
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As soon as we left the church and made the turn up the hill, we were into a steep climb with switchbacks. We got to the rim of mountains above the town of Creede with a huge view of the valley.
We wound through woods and meadows, with long views long and short, before getting to the Last Chance Mine, where we planned to go on the underground tour. However, the man who owned it and led the tours was called away on an emergency. His daughter was the only one around, so tours had been canceled. We enjoyed wandering around and talking to the lady.
Not far after the Last Chance Mine, the road took a sharp turn to come down the other side of the valley. There we saw ruins of several other mines.
Our other tour was to Great Sand Dunes National Park where we walked in the creek - now at least a quarter of an inch deep, hiked the short nature trail, and drove up to Zapata falls to enjoy the views and eat lunch in the day use area. Natalie also helped me clear more weeds from my yard.
I wrote this blog August 24 while I also edited pictures from my first adventures in Rocky Mountain National ParkStay tuned for several adventures with my friends who I'll pick up in Denver Sunday evening.
Natalie and daughter, Ellen decided to take a short break from triple digit heat in Houston, Texas and come visit me a few days. Natalie has an injured foot and Ellen is not much for hiking, so we mostly did auto tours.
I had been wanting to go on the Bachelor Loop tour of historical mines in Creede. We decided that would be fun and that we would pay to go underground at the Last Chance Mine. Natalie was tired from the long drive, so we made a leisurely start.
Creede has lots of mines, most of them for silver. In fact, we found that amethyst was a byproduct in some of the mines. The mining boom was between 1889 to 1893, although some mines stayed open until 1985.
Upon the advice of the Creede Visitor Center, we ran the tour backwards to make it easier to traverse the sometimes steep and rough dirt road in our car. This made our first stop the cemetery. There we learned good people were buried facing east, while the criminal types were buried north-south. We looked for north oriented graves but didn't find any before a few cold sprinkles drove us back to our cars.
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| Natalie and I both enjoy taking pictures |
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| I enjoyed the wildflowers as much as the historical aspect of the grave yard. |
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| A beautiful site with interesting tombstones. |
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| The little church by the graveyard. |
As soon as we left the church and made the turn up the hill, we were into a steep climb with switchbacks. We got to the rim of mountains above the town of Creede with a huge view of the valley.
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| The Valley and the town of Creede |
We wound through woods and meadows, with long views long and short, before getting to the Last Chance Mine, where we planned to go on the underground tour. However, the man who owned it and led the tours was called away on an emergency. His daughter was the only one around, so tours had been canceled. We enjoyed wandering around and talking to the lady.
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| There was a little gift shop, of mostly rocks, in the top floor of this building |
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| View downhill to another mine |
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| Artifacts from the mine |
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| Displays of artifacts used in the mine and living quarters |
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| This little ground squirrel came begging then gave up and got a drink |
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| Ellen by the hard hats we would have had to wear had we gone underground |
Not far after the Last Chance Mine, the road took a sharp turn to come down the other side of the valley. There we saw ruins of several other mines.
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| This was the next place we stopped after we made our sharp turn. None of this can be seen from the road. It always amazes me that so many people seldom stop on these drives. |
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| A view across the valley of the Last Chance Mine |
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| We had to stop to see lots of stuff, including this little white water stream |
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| The road wound through the sometimes very narrow valley |
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| Derelict mine |
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| The dark brown "fences" are part of another mine |
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| Closer view of a mine |
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| Can you find the mine building clinging vertically to the rock face? |
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| I guess this helped hold something - maybe a bridge |
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| I had to take these lovely little flowers - please comment if you know them |
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| Ellen took our pictures in front of a HUGE bear - she didn't quite get all the bear |
Our other tour was to Great Sand Dunes National Park where we walked in the creek - now at least a quarter of an inch deep, hiked the short nature trail, and drove up to Zapata falls to enjoy the views and eat lunch in the day use area. Natalie also helped me clear more weeds from my yard.
I wrote this blog August 24 while I also edited pictures from my first adventures in Rocky Mountain National ParkStay tuned for several adventures with my friends who I'll pick up in Denver Sunday evening.
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