Barneløpet

Barneløpet means “children’s races” in Norwegian. The event is sponsored by the Sons of Norway and held each February near Winter Park. Many happy events of my childhood took place at the Sons of Norway events…at Valhalla Hall, the lodge in Jersey City, running around with my cousins, listening to my Uncle Tom’s band, dancing with my relatives. No one, as I recall, ever mentioned skiing. So here I was back with the Sons of Norway on a day with snow in the morning, sun in the afternoon, setting up and taking down a 7 K orienteering course as part of the event. But the enjoyment of the children in their 1, 2.5, or 5 K race…receiving medals and Norwegian flags and cookies at the finish line…clearly so equal to the fun I had as a child. And my joy in the day, finishing off this ski trip in the Colorado Mountains, was quite as great as that of the children.

Another Day, Another Mountain Pass, Another Valley

Leaving the Land Trust, I turned on the radio. The station was from Taos. Spanish speaking announcer playing rancheros. But then a pause for "noticias locales," local news and the announcer switched to English. And read a series of obituaries. Sometimes it is easy to forget how really local, local is...the names of these community members who have passed on.

After skiing at Monarch, I rode into the Arkansas Valley to Mt. Princeton Hot Springs.




This was a first visit to these large pools for swimming and for soaking. Along the creek, the hot springs bubble from under those pools and mix with the water flowing down from the snow fields of the mountain. People have created their own small pools. Snow was falling....a rare sensation to feel snow falling on the head while the hot springs warm the rest of the body.

Orient Land Trust

Left Wolf Creek around 2:00 and drove down the canyon and across the San Luis Valley to the Orient Land Trust where I rented a great cabin (bed in the loft under a large skylight to watch the stars in the evening and dawn in the morning). It’s probably about 200 square feet, just perfect for me and my gear. Spent the evening moving between the hot springs, the sauna, and the pool…its steam rising in the cold night air.

There's a rhythm to the Sangre de Cristo Mountains which tower above the Land Trust. With just snow and dark trees, they create a kind of music...like Twelve Cents?




Today, well, I worked in the morning, using the reception building’s internet. Did some cross country up to the Orient mine. More folks arrived: several families with small kids, a few musicians from Denver, a few isolates like myself…an insurance agent on his way to Hot Sulphur Springs, a retired geologist on his way to the Grand Canyon. Several people play the guitar, others the piano….looks like there will be a jam session in Oak House tonight. But for the moment, I’m glad I have my own cabin.

Hot Springs and Wolf Creek

On Monday morning, I did some work (Aspen hydroelectric consulting) downtown in Durango and then rode over to Pagosa Springs. I found a place to stay across from the springs and, instead of heading out for the snow, spent much of the day walking around town and soaking in the hot springs. Pagosa uses the geothermal energy from the hot springs to heat its whole downtown. But the main visual impression is the steam rising from the springs and people enjoying the pools that have been built along the banks of the San Juan River.

On Tuesday, I drove out early from Pagosa Springs to Wolf Creek Pass and its ski area (on the east side of the pass). Thus far the ski area received 454 inches of snow, though there was not much fresh powder on the runs I did. I hired a ski instructor to give me pointers on doing moguls, but he had more of a mind to reprogram my overall approach to skiing…all of which was good and I have much to learn, but I’d rather have come away with more experience on the moguls. Still I did come away with a lot to practice.

Purgatory Shows

Red Mountain Pass was open on Saturday. The road is sketchy on the north side; big drop offs with no guard rails. But the sun was out and much of the road, the parts out from the morning shadows, was covered with snow melt instead of ice. I got to Purgatory in time for the setting up of Twelve Cents’ first show. Tom had flown in from Miami the night before, had done a show at Keystone, and then driven seven hours over Wolf Creek Pass. The band had arrived a few hours before set up.
Their show was great….they remain “tight” in spite of having no practice time. I’d done a bit of cross country skiing before their show, so it was good to relax with a beer, a burger and listen to the beat.

Mountain Passes

Red Mountain Pass

Drove up to Aspen yesterday for a meeting on their plans for a small hydroelectric plant. Rode I-70 over the highest pass (Vail Pass) on the country's interstate system. The snow was falling; trucks were stopped on the shoulders; the roadway slippery. Driving past Vail and then Buttermilk and then Aspen, you could see the skiers coming down the slopes. Sweet.

After the meeting and lunch in Carbondale, I drove west and over McClure Pass, through Paonia, then Delta, Montrose to Ridgeway where I spent the night. Red Mountain Pass to Silverton and Durango was closed due to snow and avalanche danger, but it looks like it's open this morning. If not, the road over Lizard Head Pass is open. Ridgeway is a small town, but it has a classic hot springs (Orvis).

When we first moved to Colorado, I was struck by the manner in which people described their road trips not in terms of highway numbers but in terms of the passes over which the roads were built. Now I see why....the passes, not the roads, determine whether or not you will get to your destination. They are the gateways, the openings to new lands.