June-2 2007

June 2007
Another area we explored was near Fairplay where we went up to Four Mile to find the Limber Grove. Limber Pines and Bristlecone Pines can live at high altitude along the tree line and often have tortured shapes. They are hard to tell apart but close inspection of the needles tells all.
At this time of the year all the wild flowers are coming out and they look incredible. At 11-12,000 feet they have a very short season before the frosts return at night. We tread carefully to try and avoid damaging them.
Further up the road from the limber grove you start to meet with old mining structures which are slowly disintegrating. The road goes to nearly 12,000 feet on the old railroad grade and then you have to walk - a big struggle for ocean dwellers at 12,500 feet but the views are truly spectacular. The Rockies may be still rising but their tops are also rapidly crumbling away.

The cirque at the top of this road is one of the most perfect in the world. It sits just below and to one side of Mount Sherman which is just over 14,000 feet. We could not imagine going up another 1,500 feet in air that thin without training.
The mines were working in the early part of the 20th century until silver prices plummeted. The rail car we saw looked to have electric motor parts in it. The mines worked all year and conditions in winter must have been quite intolerable. Ore went down the valley on an aerial tramway to the stamp mill.

The railroad stopped being viable before the mine and then there was no means of getting ore from the stamp mill to the smelters.
Back with family we went up to St Elmo ghost town to feed the chipmunks and ground squirrels and then hiking in sweltering heat up to a waterfall.
Our plans for the following week included more camping, hiking and visits to old railroads and mining areas above Turquoise Lake near Leadville.