DJ's Journal: Fourth of July in the "Vail-ly"

Around the Fourth of July 2013

On the way out of Rocky Mountain National Park I stopped in at the pretty little lake town of Grand Lake and took on some coffee for the drive down to Winter Park, CO. Actually, I wouldn't get quite all the way down to Winter Park because 5 miles north of it lies Fraser. A little town with a few highly recommended eateries and mountain bike trails. I wanted to put the supposedly "out of this world pizza" by Elevation Pizza to this Jerzey Boy's taste buds, but they were closed. So I ducked into local breakfast/lunch haunt "Sharkey's" for a sandwich and on the way out wished I had a duck's waterproof coating to weather the cool afternoon downpour.

Grand Lake Portal

Later, I took Mage up to explore the winding dirt roads of the area's mountain forests. The infestation of Pine Beetles is clearly evident everywhere you look. The combination of short mild winters which don't kill off enough larvae and the continuing drought conditions which weaken the forests is a cyclic concoction of doom for the pine trees. Downed trees are innumerable and piled up everywhere ready for bonfires which will be seen from space, but still it was hard to find a clear view off in to the distant peaks and valleys from the forest roads.

Grand Lake Fire Truck

So, even though I spent the night camped out up there I didn't get lucky enough to catch a brilliant lightning storm or any other photographic opportunities other than a weak rainbow. But I did get some rest and in the morning I found the trailhead for "Chainsaw" which is part of a fairly famous mountain bike race course known as the Tipperary Creek Loop. If the rest of the course is anything like the section I did it must be a heck of a race because other than the climb it was some really fun singletrack.

After a van shower I took the scenic route to Vail (via Rt. 40 then Rt. 9 south to I-70) where I met up with my hometown buddy, Dino. He suggested we check out the free concert happening down in the village. I expected a "concert in the park" type of atmosphere, but was surprised to walk into a large beautiful amphitheater. The band was okay, but the people watching was excellent. Afterwards we kept the party rolling by strolling down to the underground "Shakedown Bar" which has live music 7 days a week.

I spent the next afternoon adding a Facebook "Like" button to this blog (don't forget to "Like" Me, please) and that evening we went into Avon. Since it was the 3rd and not the 4th, I can only assume that they decided to put on a fireworks display to honor my visit! Not only do Avon's fireworks deserve at least an honorable mention in the "Best Fireworks" department, but they brought the Dirty Dozen Brass Band to kick off the evening all the way from New Orleans.

A good time was had by all, but the evening didn't just end with the fireworks finale. In fact, after wetting our whistles at one of Avon's finer establishments our designated driver, Nika was kind enough to get us back to Vail safely for a continued pub crawl through "The George", "Red Lion" and once again "Shakedown".

To soak up the undigested suds of the previous evening we hit the "Westside" for breakfast and exerted just enough energy to set ourselves up for a lazy day sunning poolside and relaxing in the hot tub. As night descended we strolled into Vail for their Fourth of July fireworks. They were definitely nothing to write home about. In fact, they aren't even worth mentioning in a blog, so forget I mentioned it! None the less, we still had a great night and probably a celebratory drink or two too many.

Another neighborhood friend who I hadn't seen in over 20 years wasn't taking any excuses though the next morning. George pried me loose from bed and mushed me up a breathtaking ride ascending Vail Mountain. It is pretty up there, but when I say breathtaking, I mean I was "out of breath" the entire ride up! The downhill makes it worth it though, as does a few cold ones down in the village as reward for all those calories burned.

At this point the national holiday is over and I figure it's time for me to move on also. After saying goodbye to the Vail crew I headed south to have a look at one of the more odd landscapes you will see. Odd in the sense that if I asked you, "Where are the tallest sand dunes in North America?", you probably wouldn't answer "Colorado". That is, in fact, the case. So I had to have a look at the "Great Sand Dunes National Park" and parked at "The Point of No Return" to explore a little. At upwards of 750 feet the dunes are impressive, but I must admit that having climbed my share of dunes I could not think of any serious pay off to climbing to the top of these giants, so I admired them from afar.

A bit lazy, yes, but there will be plenty of other hills to climb as I continue west........and perhaps even a dinosaur!?