Standing Into Danger

Friday, November 15, 2024

A Storied Creek and Canyon

One really good thing that happened for Terry and me in the past month

is that we bought a new car, a pretty ice silver metallic Forester.

We very quickly tried it out on a drive up Clear Creek Canyon into the mountains.

Trying Out Our New Car on Interstate 470 Colorado

Littleton, Colorado, USA

October 27, 2024

We used to drive up Clear Creek Canyon to Black Hawk a lot.

It's an historic mining settlement that declined during the 20th century,

but revived when casino gambling was approved in Colorado in 1990.

We had lots of fun in Black Hawk and nearby Central City over the years,

exploring the history and hiking the trails around these two towns,

as well as enjoying some low-stakes gambling and great entertainment in their casinos.

But we hadn't been up there since years before the pandemic.

As we drove up into the foothills and by the town of Golden,

I realized that we've have flown over this area many more times

than we've driven through it in the past eight or nine years.

Approaching Red Rocks Amphitheatre

a Popular Open-Air Music Venue

(Red Rocks Just Above the Green Fairplay Sign)

Morrison, Colorado, USA

Colder Weather (Live) (feat. Little Big Town)

Zac Brown Band at Red Rocks Amphitheatre

YouTube

Heading into Clear Creek Canyon

Golden, Colorado, USA

We didn't make it to Black Hawk or Central City.

We were hungry to destress in nature after some challenging days.

Beautiful Clear Creek

A Fisherman's Delight

Evergreen, Colorado, USA

Fishing in Clear Creek Canyon

We pulled off the road at Big Easy Trailhead in Clear Creek Canyon Park,

because there was lots of room in the parking lot.

Terry did not want our new car scratched or dinged. Me neither!

Big Easy Trailhead in Clear Creek Canyon Park

Jefferson County Open Space, Colorado, USA

The park is part of the Peaks to Plains Trail (P2P) which is under construction.

One day this ambitious project will connect Denver's South Platte Trail

to Clear Creek's headwaters which rise at the continental divide in Loveland Pass.

The planned 65-mile P2P trail will link seven cities in four counties,

climb more than a mile in elevation (≈ 6747 ft. to 11,990 ft. or ≈ 2056 m. to 3635 m.),

and serve more than 3 million people who live in the Denver Metro Area.

Beautiful Clear Creek

Clear Creek Canyon Park

The geologist in me loves the rocks in Clear Creek Canyon!

Steep walls of Precambrian igneous and metamorphic rocks

confine the creek to a narrow canyon in the portion of the park we walked through.

A Gneiss Boulder Along the Creek

Evergreen, Colorado, USA

Gneiss is a foliated metamorphic rock

which forms under extremely high temperatures and pressures.

Because the pressure is greater in one direction than in the others,

the minerals in the original rock line up with the long and flat minerals

perpendicular to the direction of greatest pressure.

This gives the resulting coarse-grained rock a banded appearance

with alternating light and dark layers.

In early 1859 prospector John Gregory panned placer gold

from the water at the confluence of Ralston Creek and Clear Creek,

precipitating the 1859-1860s gold rush in Colorado.

John H. Gregory Trekked Upstream in Clear Creek and Struck It Rich

History Colorado

FaceBook

Shortly afterwards, the first major gold ore discovery in the Rocky Mountains

was found in "Gregory Gulch," and Black Hawk sprang up near the bottom of the gulch.

Central City, farther up Gregory Gulch, was founded at the same time

and was once called the "Richest Square Mile on Earth."

Today people can pan for gold in designated areas along Clear Creek.

Posted, Clear Creek Canyon Park

One thing that I really appreciate about Clear Creek Canyon Park

is that it is ADA compliant (The Americans with Disabilities Act, 1990).

This means that people who have disabilities can enjoy

the most pristine canyon along the Front Range,

via four miles of 10-foot-wide paved trail along Clear Creek.

I was once married to a paralyzed veteran,

and I understand the pain separation from nature can cause.

It was wonderful to see fishing areas with access to people in wheelchairs.

People can Access the Creek Bed in a Variety of Ways

Easily Accessible Fishing Spots

Enjoying the Walk

Terry Crosses Clear Creek Via Vasquez Bridge

The View Upstream from Vasquez Bridge

The View Downstream from Vasquez Bridge

Terry Checks the Peaks to Plains Trail Map

The Paved Portion of the Trail Allows Access to Wilderness Trails

Terry Walks Along Clear Creek

From big to small, there are endless things to observe and enjoy.

Cones and Needles

Autumn Leaves

Rough Bark

Trees and Rocks

Lichen Flourishing

Resilience

We paused for a welcome snack at our turn around point.

Terry in Leaves

Reflections of Autumn Colors

Listening to the Rushing Water

A Lush Forest

A Parting Look

I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Nicole's Friday Face Off.

For Rain: Perfect for Charcuterie ~ I love a good charcuterie plate!

Pasticceria Papa

‎⁨Bondi Beach⁩, ⁨Sydney⁩, ⁨Australia⁩

November 4, 2024

For Tom: The Spirit of Aloha

It's Getting Closer!!!

Honolulu, Hawaii, USA

January 18, 2023

For Nicole: Skittish Faces ~ Off My Deck This Morning

Two Does and A Buck

Aurora, Colorado, USA

November 14, 2024

Have a great weekend!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be

Friday, November 22nd 🤞

On the Bay of Fundy
© M. Louise (MacBeath) Barbour/Fundy Blue
All Rights Reserved

Wednesday, November 6, 2024

IWSG: Wednesday, November 6, 2024 ~ A Second Creative Passion

It's the first Wednesday of the month,
the day that members of the
Insecure Writer's Support Group
share their writing struggles
and writing successes
and offer their encouragement
and support to fellow writers.

To visit the IWSG website, click here.

To become a member of the IWSG, click here.

Our wonderful co-hosts who are volunteering today,
along with IWSG Founder Alex J. Cavanaugh are Diedre Knight,

Lisa Buie Collard, Kim Lajevardi, and JQ Rose!

I hope you have a chance to visit today's hosts and thank them for co-hosting.

I'm sure they would appreciate a visit and an encouraging comment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Every month the IWSG announces a question that members can answer
with advice, insight, a personal experience, or a story in their IWSG posts.

Or, the question can inspire members
if they aren't sure what to write about on IWSG Day.

Remember the question is optional.

This month's featured question is:

What creative activity do you engage in when you're not writing?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Happy November, Everyone!

An easy question ~ yay!

I am as passionate about photography as I am about writing,

and I indulge in photography almost every day.

I took my first photograph when I was four

and living in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, Canada.

I was visiting my Great Uncle Chester's home in St. Peter's Bay

and snapped a photo of some hens in his farmyard

with my father's Brownie Hawkeye camera.

I was thrilled when Dad showed me the developed photo.

I can see that photo clearly in my mind, but I have no idea where it went.

When I started Grade 9 in Sherbrooke, Nova Scotia, my father gave me his old Hawkeye

with the understanding that I would have to pay for any films I developed.

My babysitting and odd jobs supported my passion, and I never looked back.

This is the first photo I deliberately took containing a reflection.

The St. Mary's River had flooded our property in Stillwater just outside of Sherbrooke.

Stillwater, Nova Scotia, Canada

Spring 1965 or 1966

Now I use my iPhone as my camera, and I edit my photos with Apple's Photos.

I'm a generalist which means I'll photograph anything.

I like to joke that I'll photograph anything that's alive or isn't.

I especially enjoy editing my photos, because that is where my creativity comes in.

Yes, I can be creative in how I frame my shots,

but often I can't see the image on my iPhone when I'm shooting

or I'm snapping a quick, candid shot of something that's happening.

Unfortunately, I can no longer see with a single-lens reflex camera (SLR),

and a self-focusing lens has been a godsend.

When my vision was scrambled by thyroid strabismus,

I became very skilled at point-and-shoot photography,

and I could capture most of the things I wanted to photograph.

Some people say that I'm not a real photographer

because I rely on my iPhone to take photos and I edit them on my computer.

I disagree. It's the creative mind behind the tools that counts.

I consider their criticism of me as a photographer their problem.

What matters to me is the pleasure I experience with photography

and the joy I have when I share my photographs with others.

I have taken many photographs I am proud of.

I'm sharing one of thousands,

and I'm sharing it because of the intense fear I felt when taking it.

I do not like heights!

This Tourist Looks Down
from the top of the Duomo's Cupola

Florence, Italy

September 2018

It's been crazy at our place for several weeks,

and I had to take a brief break from blogging.

It's all good. Everything is resolved.

I feel like things are mostly under control again.

I am very excited about my new Forester!

(Well, it's both Terry's and mine, because we're going to make one car work for us.)

I haven't had a new car for me in about 45 years!!!

That pretty gray 2025 Forester above the fisherman across Clear Creek is mine! (Ours)

Our new Forester!
Clear Creek Canyon Park

Colorado USA

October 27, 2024

I have some catching up to do! I'm thinking of you, Rida!

Wishing each of you a fun IWSG Day.

A big thank you to our awesome co-hosts today.

Have a healthy, happy, and creative November!

Till next time ~

Fundy Blue

Standing Into Danger https://selkiegrey4.blogspot.com

My next post will be November 15th!🤞

Friday, October 18, 2024

A Brief Break

Happy Friday! I'm so glad that it's Friday!

I need to take a brief blog break.

Everything's okay. I just need to step aside for a couple of weeks.

I'll be back on Wednesday, November 6th for IWSG Day.

That's the day after our presidential election.

I hope everything goes smoothly, peacefully,

before, during, and after the voting.

If you celebrate Halloween, have fun!

I'm linking to Rain's Thursday Art and Dinner Date, Tom's Aloha Friday, and Nicole's Friday Face Off.

For Rain: Vampire ~ I searched my photo collection and came up with one image, an oldie and a favorite, the one and only Grumpy Cat, commenting on vampire movies. I truly miss this character who always made me laugh.