Promises Delivered. Part Two. Yankee Boy Basin, abandoned mines.

Here are more pictures. Aside from the wedding, these are, in my opinion, some of the best of the bunch. There are a huge amount of pictures, but again, I'm going to try to pick out the best ones. A little background story before the pictures though. Katie had rented a jeep for Dad, Tim (my brother) and myself to go out and ride the trails.

First off, here is a map that shows the route we took from Ouray to Yankee Boy Basin. There isn't enough detail here to show some of the places we saw, or to give a real appreciation for where we were, but it will give you a good geographic idea of where we started and where we ended.


View Larger Map

The next couple of pictures show the road we were on starting our trip. The road was literally cut into the side of the mountain in places like this.

The next few pictures are of an abandoned mine. The first one is one of the buildings that was collapsed, with my brother Tim standing in front. The next two were in front of the entrance to the mine itsself. The last one is actually inside the entrance. I was really hoping to get to go inside, however, the gate was welded. I know some are probably going to think 'Are you NUTS!? going inside a mine is STUPID!!' I just wanted a peek beyond the entrance, nothing beyond that. Just thought it would be cool :D

Here are some of the neat rock formations we found on the way to the basin.

This is a view back the way we came. We are at Yankee Boy Basin.

Some pics of the view around the basin.

The next couple of pics are of the signage that is at the trailhead that continues on deeper into the mountains. This is where the jeep trail ends, but certainly not where the adventure ends for those with the time and ability to continue on. We had to hurry back to dump my sister on poor old Scott... I mean watch her get married :)

(yes we were at 12,170' above sea level!)

The following pic I took on the way down. We stopped and crossed the stream to get a closer look at this ruins. It appears from a bit of research on the web that this is the Silver Trust mine. I can't be for sure, as there are several mines in the local area, and unfortunately they aren't well documented. There appears to have been a tram system set up as you can tell from the big wheels that are visible in the upper portion of the ruins. There is also a tower still standing off to the left of the picture (that I didn't get a good shot of) that had some cables that were laying on the ground. Very fascinating ruin.

This last picture is of an apparent foot bridge that crosses the ravine. No idea about the original purpose behind it other than that of the reason a chicken crosses the road. (to get to the other side!)

Next up: The Wedding! Stay tuned....

Promises delivered. Part One. Ouray Colorado, and Katies Wedding Rehersal

Where to begin. So many things to say, but I really want to make sure to not wear you out with overly long posts. So, I'll start with September 9, 2010 with my arrival at the beautiful Ouray, Co. The following pictures are taken from right on the main street in town. 

The following is the hot mineral spring behind the Box Canyon Lodge & Hot Springs that I was staying in, along with a sign that gave a brief history of the spring and its uses in the past. Absolutely fabulous for working out sore muscles!

From the hillside behind the bed and breakfast, past the spring, there is a picnic area with more mountain views, and some wildlife. This deer was probably pretty accustomed to being around humans, as I was able to get pretty close to it, and eventually, it just walked away, tired of me taking pictures of it.

And for the last few of the nature shots in Ouray, Cascade falls, which is in one of the mountains on the edge of town, and sunset.

This is the wedding rehersal. Not much to see here, since there are no decorations, but Katie and Scott are at the top of the stairs, with the groomsman, and the bridesmaids lined up where they are  supposed to be at. 

Thats it for today. Hopefully it wasn't too long of a post. Let me know what you think of the pics. Remember, you can click on them to get a full size view of them! Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!!

Sorry for the lateness of this post :P I found this in my drafts and figured I would get this one out of the way before I got to more 'recent' events


So, my first Christmas as a grandpa. Gotta love it. This little darling has been the light of my life since she came into the world. Sitting with grandpa, or scooting across the floor, chasing one another, growling like a couple of goofy monsters are some of her favorite past times. Oh, and taking naps. Yeah, thats what grandpas, and grand daughters do :D

So, we got all the kids together for Christmas. It was awesome! There could have been not one present under the tree, and I would have been perfectly content. It was a great Christmas.

How was your Christmas? I certainly hope you had a very wonderful Christmas, filled with family, laughter, and of course FOOD! Let me know how your holiday was!

Really sorry...Read on

Its been almost a year since I last posted a blog. Quite honestly, it has been a lack of inspiration that has been at the crux of the problem. The other thing is that it has been a long year, and a bit tough health-wise. But enough of the excuses, on to the good stuff!!

First and foremost, I got to enjoy this last summer more so than any other year. Why, you may ask? Of course you may ask! :D Its because I finally am on the day shift now at work. After so many years of working nights, I am finally working days. It has been refreshing, and quite honestly, its kind of like waking up out of a long sleep. Also, just this last Friday, my sister got married.

Words can't begin to describe how happy I am for her and her new husband. She had a destination wedding in a little town called Ouray, CO. I have to say, if your into the outdoors, this is the place! I have lots and lots of pictures, and many of them turned out really good.

So, what I plan to do is this: I will share some of the pictures ( if I shared all of them, it would be exhausting for you, the reader, and a somewhat unwieldy process for me, though I don't mind), and give a bit of a story behind the shot, but I will do it in parts, so it doesn't get too long. Im not sure how many parts are going to go into it, but hopefully it will be a benefit to you as well as me. And, as always, feel free to comment! I love to hear from folks that read this blog.

Swine Flu

So I found out this morning I have it. Started off with the cough, then chills, and aches, so off to the ER I went (It was about 9pm last night). The symptoms really started kicking in Friday night, and early yesterday, so I got it in time to be able to get the tamaflu and hopefully not be out of work for more than a week. They did a chest xray to make sure that I wasnt developing pneumonia, and that came out fine. Working in the public like I do, I was concerned that I wasnt going to be able to avoid it, and the H1N1 shots havent been available out here except for children, young mothers under 23 or 24( I cant remember the exact demographic there), the elderly, and those in very high risk groups. None of those included me. So I have had my fingers crossed all this time. I guess I should have relied on my lucky rabbits foot instead :) Anyhow, thanks to modern medicine, I should only be out of work with this for about a week or so.

lolcats

Have you seen that website? Its hilarious. Some of the pictures are only mildly amusing, but some have me literally loling. Anyhow This is the link to their website. Here are a few images that I found hilarious today:


see more Lolcats and funny pictures


see more Lolcats and funny pictures


see more Lolcats and funny pictures

Squash Time

I like squash. There are so many different ways to make it and make it taste good. Even steamed, its something that with some butter, salt and pepper that you cant ever do wrong. This time of year is kind of a transitional period between summer and winter squash, and both are pretty readily available for decent prices at the supermarket. So is cheese. And that is one way to make squash REALLY good! So Tillamook has a recipe on the back of one of their shredded cheese packs that Willa and I decided sounded good, and so in the kitchen she went with squash and cheese and Cheesy Zucchini Gratin came out of the oven. It made a really good side dish for some cherry glazed pork chops that she made along with it. This was yesterday. Today we are having stuffed acorn squash and mashed potatoes.

Tillamook Cheesy Zucchini Gratin
1 Tbsp oil
6 medium zucchini cut into 1/2 inch rounds
3/4 cup chopped onion
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup Tillamook Shredded Colby Jack cheese, divided (Or what ever brand your supermarket carries
1 cup fresh breadcrumbs (we use gluten free for Willa's allergys)
1 Tbsp butter, melted

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in large pan. Add zucchini, onion, garlic, salt, pepper, and water. Cook over medium, stirring occasionally for 10 minutes just until zucchini is tender. Remove from heat and let rest for 10 minutes. Combine 3/4 cup cheese with vegetable mixture and pour into 9 inch pie pan. In a small bowl, moisten breadcrumbs with butter; mix in remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Sprinkle evenly over top of pie.
Bake for 30 Min until golden brown and bubbling.

Stuffed Acorn Squash
2 Acorn Squash
2 chub of sausage
1/4 onion diced
butter
a handful of shredded cheese

Cut the squash in half, remove the seeds and membranes. Poke holes in the meat of the squash, and butter. Combine the sausage and onion, and fill the cavity with the mixture. Bake in a shallow dish with a small amount of water in the bottom at 375 for about an hour to an hour and a half. Before removing the squash, sprinkle with cheese and continue to bake until the squash is tender and meat is done.

Half of one of these is meal enough for one grown adult. It really ends up being a lot of food, esp when you add a side dish like mashed potatoes, or even some dinner rolls.

Another way to have winter squash is to take some cooked squash (like hubbard, or even acorn, but not the previous recipe) and butter it and sprinkle some brown sugar on it. Its quite a filling treat that will cure a sweet tooth.