Happy Valentine’s Day! We’re having a quiet Friday here. It’s relatively temperate, starting at a chilly 23°F, but with a forecast high of 55°. 

First ride of 2025

I took a chance on this warmer Monday, with a high of 69°, to try my first bike ride in 2025. I felt pretty dumb, after I realized I’d left my bottles of water and Gatorade behind on the kitchen counter. I found myself riding through several ice cold puddles, and some slush and ice on the trails. When the wind came up, the chill factor felt pretty low, and hypothermia seemed like a possibility, so I put on the one extra layer I always carry, and that got me home safe. There were some unusual sights — a hardy soul standing out on Chatfield Lake, drilling holes for ice-fishing, a trail closure due to a helicopter clearing some trees in the middle of the lake, and a small herd of deer by the trail.

Update: Apparently the temperature here dropped 25° while I was out on my ride. No wonder I felt like an ice cube. 

Chatfield Lake mostly iced over. 

Ice fisherman drilling holes all by himself out there. Brave soul, as the ice doesn’t look very thick to me. He’d moved to the other side of the lake, by the time I’d pedaled around. 

Helicopter carrying a tree to a collection area across the lake. I was curious about why they’d closed an extensive section of the bike trail around the lake, when I saw this. I was glad to have an alternative route around the lake, on the park’s perimeter road. 

Helicopter cutting down trees in the lake. I’m not sure I’ve seen a chopper carrying a saw and clamp like this. 

Small herd of deer by the trail. They barely looked up, when I stopped to snap a photo. 

The trails were mostly clear, although I encountered several icy puddles, some slush and ice, some sections still snowy, and lots of barely-passable sections of mud.

AA5342 Midair

My heart goes out to the families of the 64 people who lost their lives in the AA5342 midair last night. Aircraft crashes always hit me hard, with my Dad and I having been active in aviation for decades. This accident was especially traumatic for me, as the circumstances are eerily reminiscent of the PSA182 crash in San Diego, one month after I earned my private pilot license 47 years ago. This is the first fatal US airline crash in 16 years, after several additional changes were made to improve airline safety. So sad. 

Snowy Saturday

Chilly 27°F Saturday, and heading down to 9° tonight. It’s been snowing lightly for most of the day. The kitties enjoyed the view from the breakfast nook door out to the deck, which was busy with squirrels and birds. 

I enjoyed today’s snow from the comfort of the DC-3 cockpit while flying in Alaska, on my way from Cold Bay to Dutch Harbor. The overcast and visibility in Dutch Harbor were both too low to safely complete the instrument approach. I gave it a couple of tries, then resolved to head somewhere else, when suddenly the simulator retrieved a weather update…

Suddenly the sky cleared, which made the approach and landing a piece of cake. Good flying karma today… Then I went out and shoveled some of the light fluffy stuff off of the driveway…

Wednesday walk

Chilly but sunny Wednesday walk. We left from the Carson Nature Center, and walked down to Highway C-470 and the South Platte Reservoir. 

 

The snow on the deck still looks nice. 

Just a few other people using the trail on this brisk day. Mostly empty. 

Most of Redtail Lake is frozen over. 

Shoveler ducks in a big circle

Shiny ice on a log chair by the trail

Slippery ice on the bridges

Pretty coating of snow on the rocks by the river

Little Kestrel Hawk on a wire

“That’s no moon…”

Snow on the grass by Eaglewatch Lake. Our fun-to-view half-submerged log has no Cormorants on it today. 

Lots of different waterfowl on the lakes today. 

Fun view of snow on the trail, and some interesting structures out there

New Years Eve day walk

Cold 34° and windy Tuesday afternoon walk at South Platte Reservoir. I had numb hands and cheeks after just a minute or two. Happy New Year’s Eve day!

We think we saw a Common Goldeneye on the reservoir. Fun! 

Beginning of decorating

We started decorating the house for the Christmas holiday today. The kitties have been paying close attention to all the changes. Here’s Rufus exploring the tree skirt. 

Bean checking out the nutcrackers

Rufus getting in the way in the kitchen

Rufus in an ornament box

Christmas tree with lights in the breakfast nook

Christmas tree closeup - needles and lights

Christmas tree in the front yard with lights and snow

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving 2024! I took “the girls” out to a Thanksgiving buffet, at the Garden Terrace Café, in the Inverness Hotel, about 20 minutes from here. We had a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner! And no cleanup! No leftovers, either...

Saturday bike ride

 

With cold weather and snow in the forecast, this might be my last bike ride of the winter season. I am hoping to sneak out whenever it gets sunny enough to dry out the trails. We’ll see…

Friday ride

Fun to get back in the saddle for a Friday ride, after being away for awhile. l had a chance encounter with a squirrel running through my front wheel, or maybe just behind it. It happened so fast, I barely caught a flash of movement out of the corner of my left eye, then heard/felt some frantic activity underneath me, before everything quieted down and I continued with my ride. I’ve heard of this kind of thing resulting in serious injury and worse, so I’m feeling pretty lucky. 🤷‍♂️ 

Sharing a few photos from today…

Fall colors have arrived in our view from the breakfast table. 

Snowy Egret on a rock in the South Platte River. 

Cormorant on a rock by rapids in the South Platte River. 

Cycling event organizers taking down some of their signs after an event. 

Railroad tracks curving toward Denver, with the Rocky Mountains in the background. 

I’m seeing more red leaves along my bike rides. 

Purple and green colors along the Highline Canal Trail. 

Pleasant view of fence and fall color along the Lee Gulch trail. 

A little flash of red beside the Highline Canal Trail. 

Pretty reflections on the lake at Sterne Park during an after-dinner walk with our neighbors. 

Crested Butte

We drove to the little town of Crested Butte this week, and did a little exploring and fall color viewing. 

The town is nestled in the shadow of Mt Crested Butte, 

A photo from our delightful Monday scenic Colorado drive through Kenosha Pass…

Spectacular view from Cottonwood Pass. 

We tried a shortcut that put us on a rutted dirt road for a dozen or so miles. Not expected, but also not too bad. 

Saw some more colorful flora and some striking mountain peaks. 

Finished our Monday with a short walk to Secret Stash Pizza for a pesto pizza for dinner, and a great sunset.

Cool 35° Tuesday morning walk in Crested Butte

Tuesday afternoon drive over Kebler Pass to Paonia, for some great views and a delicious late lunch at Rio Brava.

Wednesday afternoon hike on Mt Crested Butte — we got some exercise, checked out the ski area, and saw lots of the Colorado Fall color!