Mountain ride 7-22-09

Beetle kill on Copper Mtn.

Fran and I took a day trip to the mountains yesterday to cop a free ride on the Copper Mountain chair lift and look (and photograph) some wildflowers. It was a wonderfully pleasant trip. The Prius scooted up the hill in style and didn't seem to mind the return trip over Loveland Pass.

Before the chairlift ride we had lunch at the Incline Grill. It was a bit cool (low 60s) outside; we ate by a window looking out on the plaza. It was a nice place with a fair beer selection, heavy on New Belgium brews. Though the lunch was good, the price, $38 with tip, nearly had me gasping for air.

To ride the lift, you first had to sign away all your legal rights at Guest Services before getting your ticket. The ride up lasted around ten minutes. It left us about two thirds the way up the mountain. An adjacent lift at our drop off point wasn't in operation. You could walk the service road to the top if you wanted to but you had to be back to the lift by 4:30p or continue your walk to the base. The last time I rode the lift, again in the summer, I took my mountain bike up. The only way down then was the service road -- an exciting ride if you went a bit fast into a washboarded section. They now have many trails of varying skill levels for bikes. It would be a temptation to return with the right equipment. The bike haul on the lift is $10 for a whole day. You could easily get five or six rides in and not repeat a trail.

On the way home we drove by the campground we stayed in at Lake Dillon. When we last saw it it was a mix of brown with a little green mixed in (pine bark beetles doing the forest in). Yesterday the campground could actually be seen from the road. It is nearly all in the open with only a few trees still standing. When we camped all the sites were pretty much in the shade all day. You had the feel of actually being in the mountains. Now, without the tree cover, I'm not so sure that feeling could be sustained. The camera was in the back seat as we passed, so I have no pictures. Another reason for a return trip, I guess. Next time I'd like to get a place for the night so we could look around the area a bit more.

Some pictures will soon be up on Shutterfly.

(This was written on 7/23. I guess I "saved" it instead of "publishing" it. My bad.)