These are the Days of our lives...

A little black bear (looks brown) has been coming to the campground the last couple of days hunting for food. The story I heard is that they found a mother bear dead on the highway and they think that this is her cub. The bear is probably a yearling. If you think that it is snowing in the second picture, it is fuzz from the Cottonwood trees. Remember, the name of our campground is "Cottonwood Cove." They say the fuzz will only last a couple of weeks. With a full belly, the bear went back into the woods.

We went for a car ride to Lake City which is about 40 miles north of Creede. It is absolutely beautiful. We were surprised to see so much snow still on the mountains. Everthing is turning green. We went over Slumgullion Pass. I can image how difficult it was for the wagon trains to go over these mountain passes. You can click on a picture to enlarge it. This is very interesting.

We cannot get a cell signal at our camp ground. We travel 1 mile up river through "Wagon Wheel Gap" to a scenic turn out to get a cell signal. There are usually several cars parked there. It is also an entry point for rafters. The Rio Grande River runs beside Highway 149. Creede is 7 miles north west of here and South Fork is 14 miles south east of here. The views are spectacular. I labeled the pictures north, east, south and west, although, I really do not know where I am at. The road goes north/south, but the river at that point is going east/west. So, I am confused.... As you talk, you can watch the wild life. There are two blue birds that flit around. A golden eagle flys over the north rock wall. I need to bring Mike with me to get some better pictures. If you call us, we will return your call the next time we go to the "Phone Booth." This picture is looking south at the "phone booth." The picture below this one is look ing north, directly...

Mike surprised the group with entertainment Saturday night when we gathered at 5:00 for snacks. None of them knew Mike played the guitar. He sang and harassed the crowd. It was fantastic! Mike joked with the crowd. They laughed, sang and some even danced . Do you see the horses rear end? Ooops, there is the rest of the horse. Well done Mike. I am so proud of you! We are living the dream.

Most of the people that come to Cottonwood Cove have been coming back for years. Some over 30 years. They have established a "Wreck" Hall. It is a three sided building with a dirt floor. But it does have class. Most of it is carpeted. We have two refrigerators, a coffee pot, and a roaster. We have some out pot lucks there. Someone is playing games there most every night. We usually have 4 to 6 people playing dominos. Mike does not like to sit by Sharon (Blue) or Jean (white) as they always take his next play. We do alot of laughing. Usually 6 of us play a game called Hand and Foot. It is like Canasta. I must say, that I have not been very lucky at cards.

Today Mike with fishing with 4 other men up to a lake in the mountains. He caught the biggest fish of the day. A trout almost 17 inches. They also saw a moose on the way back. Mike got out of the truck and chased is up a hill to get a closer picture. With the high altitude and running, Mike thought he would need CPR.

It amazes me that the effect the high altitude makes on sealed packages. When you look at the packages in the grocery store, they are all puffed up. I bought marshmallows and chips. The cleaning squirt bottles under the sink in the motor home were empty when we arrive at South Fork. The first time I opened my squeeze bottle of mayo, it exploded all over me and the kitchen. High altitude does strange things. I still am out of breath if I walk fast.

When we arrived two weeks ago, most of the trees did not have any leaves. After the moisture we have had the trees are beginning to turn green. If you look closely at the pictures, you can see the lighter green line of trees. Those are Aspens. The Aspens at the bottom have not leafed out yet. The river is the Rio Grande. The river originates not too far from here.

Sunday afternoon the sun was out and it was beautiful. The neighbors stopped by while I was using Mike's knife to peel the bark off of my stick. Mike noticed that I was not even paying attention to the knife as I was cutting. Scarey. When they are dry, we will wood burn designs and the date on them. Now, I will need to go hiking to use the stick.

We went up a mountain road to cut down two little Aspen trees to make walking sticks. It is a tradition that the regular campers do every year. We went into Creede to the Ranger Station and got a permit. It was for three days and it had been snowing for two. So we had to brave the snow and forge up the mountain. We could only get about half way up. Mike and our friend, Mike, walked into the woods and found perfect little trees. The snow was about a foot deep. This picture above is probably about 9,000 feet looking down.

Mike's fire truck had snow and ice on it last night. It has been snowing for two days. It is wet and fluffy. I think it is wonderful. Those of you who know Mike Day are probably laughing. He never wanted to see snow again and his goal in life is to follow the sun. Look at the pictures on May 15th, our 2nd day here. It was a "freak" snow storm. They have been having an unusual winter and spring here. It is in the low 30's, but we are cozy and warm in the motor home. Perfect weather for chili. The neighbors are coming over tonight to play dominos. Last night, I took a picture looking south toward the mountain. If you click on the picture it will enlarge. You can see an outline of the mountain. This morning, you could see the wet snow on the pines. I think it is absolutely beautiful!

We went with Mike, Pat, David and Sharon on a drive. If you did not know where this water fall was, you would never know it was there. If you click on the picture, you will see a rainbow.

These are people from Oklahoma who have been coming to Cottonwood Cove every summer for years. They love to fish. This morning the men left at 7:00 am to go fishing. When they got to the mountain lake, they had to wait for the ice to melt so they could cast their line down a hole in the ice. Crazy. David and Sharon are on the left. Mike, is on the right. Pat, Mike's wife is not in the picture. As you know I love to eat! They invited us to share their fish with them. Pat made corn bread, Sharon fried potatoes with onions and I made baked beans. Eating outside looking at the mountains, with great people...who could ask for anything more? They are really neat people and we look forward to spending the summer with them. There will be several more couples that will be arriving next week. Let the fun begin!

Oh No, It is snowing. This is the first time that our motor home has seen snow. Mike is looking for a hospital to get his head examined. He tries to avoid cold weather. The horses loved the snow. We can watch them from the front of the motor home.

Wolf Creek Pass is over 10,000 feet in elevation. We had stayed an extra night in Cortez waiting for it to quit snowing in the pass. It was beautiful. You could see snow mobile tracks everywhere. This is a "snow shed" that is over the road to prevent snow from blocking the highway. If you click on the picture, you can see water running off of the roof.

Yesterday and today have been exciting...................... the pass that we need to cross to get to Durango is getting snow and possibly impassable. We decided to wait it out on this side of the pass. These pictures are of the storm. Did I tell you it is May 13th and it's snowing........... go figure!!!!!

I really missed being with my Mother and my childrent on Mother's Day. Mike took me on a hike and we had a picnic at a natural window in the rocks. Mike took the long way. He has no fear and climbed to the top of the rock formations. We had to walk along a ledge to get to the natural window in the rock. If you click on the picture, that little dot under the window is me.