Tying up loose ends...

 Before we say good-bye (temporarily, as we will be returning to this area before we head home in the fall) to this special place, I have a few odds and ends photos I have to share!

 The first is from an ice cream shoppe in the nearby town.  Look closely at the offering board.  Or, more specifically, check out the various serving sizes...   I have to say I like a place that includes prices for ice cream dog treats!!

 My kinda place.  And boy, they are SO right with that one message!  Although Tractor has a bone to pick with them... (and no, he doesn't get ice cream from us either - he seems to be allergic to dairy.  It always comes right back up and out!!)

 I felt I should blur out their names, but I love their sign!!!

 While visiting with our good friends, Bill and Mar (Marilyn), Zou made friends with their ragdoll, Theo.

 A reservoir was established several years ago, in the town just north of "our town" (and actually east of where my grandparents used to live).  I wasn't keen on the idea, esp. since they moved one of my uncles out of his home because it would ultimately be underwater!  I'm sure he was well-compensated, and I've adapted to the 'new' reality.  The water is pretty...

 A lovely old house (and pretty backdrop) on the road in between the two towns.

 And looking south off the side of said road.

The view of my favoritest mountain range from our friends' house (who live just a mile or so from where my 'Gamma and Gampa' lived).

Another cool peak, part of a different range to the east.  At sunset.  I've been on top of this "12er" a couple times over the years.

Y.B.

So, as a reminder, this was all still in late June...

And on this day, Zou and I drove to a now well-known spot.  Only we didn't make it all the way - snow stopped us.  But that's OK, it was plenty fun and pretty right up till there anyways.

 There's a section of the road that's more exciting - at least it used to be.  It's still neato, but it used to be a bit more challenging.  With the increased popularity and travel of late, some of the more attention-getting lumps and bumps have apparently been smoothed out.  Bummer.

 If you're really stupid, you can still get yourself killed here (there's still a good enough drop-off into the creek below), but what used to be the more nervy part of this road is gone now.

 And do you know why all these cool roads exist in the first place?  Almost all of them were created to access mining claims/operations.  But that was pretty long ago - as this tattered old building can attest...

 The road to adventure...

 It still throws me, how these used to be secret, hidden gems.  Then, with the internet, they became known.  Now, as I've mentioned, with Facebook and youtube, not only is virtually everyone familiar with them, they've most of them been there, done that!!!  :(

Yes, a double waterfall. 

 It's a pretty powerful current on a steep slope with slippery rocks under all that gushing water, but fortunately Zouey is listening to me - this is not the place to go wading!!

 Our pretty primrose again...

 Beautiful field of corn lilies.

 And that's where we parked.

 And this is why.  You can see the evidence of other folks who either skied or snowmobiled up, but most walked like we did!  And I'm sure there were more good-sized patches of snow up and around the bend!

 Zouey flying through the corn lilies!

 It's pretty downstream...

 and upstream too!

Can you see the snow squiggles?  Yep, extreme sports folks are hiking up and skiing down almost all these peaks nowadays...

 Just one part demonstrating why good clearance is recommended...  This is a bit reminiscent of our driveway though...

 Oh look!  Who's that?!  It's one of my marmot friends, running off to greener pastures - it IS greener on the other side, you know.

 Hey Marmie!  Don't run away, it's only me!  (they're so cute when they run though, they flap their tails up and down - maybe that helps them build up speed   ;)

 OK, I know you can see one guy here easily, but can you spot the other?  And you think that fellow blends - try to find the 40 pikas in the picture!  (just kidding, but they have even better camo and are tiny!  It's almost impossible to locate them unless you see movement - and of course, hearing all these critters' high-pitched voices helps!  The marmots are also called 'whistle pigs'...)

 

And once again, the road back down.  In the used-to-be fun section...

Out on a mosquito-studded evening...

This area is so beautiful and so familiar to me.  I love to just drive the back roads, esp. around sunset (which, yes, can mean you pay the price in blood to hoards of hungry mosquitoes!!).

 These wonderful dirt roads are better after a little rain...  Otherwise, they can be VERY dusty with any traffic!

 And this is where I REALLY got chewed on by those little buzzing b**tards!  It was past sunset, but I just had to get photos of these bucks - even if it was too low light and I ended up with West Nile virus!!

So here is my Ungulate Oddities collection...  This one titled "Head above the Rest."

 And "Two Heads are Better than One."

 Most of my subjects don't seem to mind being photographed, but once in awhile one will give me a hard time.  Like this fellow, who's giving me a piece of his mind.

 Guess they must have gotten a bit hacked-off because they left.

 But not before they gave me one last dirty look.

 But then I ran into this duo.  I'm thinking of calling this one "Where you end, and I begin," or "Coming and Going?" or "Seven Legs are Better than Four."

 I lost an entire arm and a leg to those blood-stealing marauders while trying to capture this scene!!  It really sucked... 

but it was pretty.  Almost even worth it!  Almost.

Campground walks, strolls, & perambulations

A few more entries to wind up our stay in my favorite area - and then...I'll only be about 2 months behind on my blog!!  Oh well...

So here we catch up on the cat walk (and dog trot).  First, up the little hill trail...

 As you can see, Bill has recovered remarkably well!  He's in the lead - even ahead of Tractor!!!

 Zou samples Tractor's tail.  She must not have cared for it - he still has all of it.  Ha-ha!  Nah, it's just in front of her mouth.

 It's not always easy managing two cats at once...  And, as usual, Tractor is, once again, in front.

 Tracky thinks he sees a snack...

Heading back from our long (maybe 0.01 mile?) trek.

Now, on to our second complete family outing.  This time, just around the campground.

 Surprised to see the somewhat rare sighting of an orchid (rein or bog?) right alongside a stream-canal within the park!

 Maybe they should give this little path a name?  Orchid Loop or something like that?

 Inevitably, we end up at the playground.  There's a sign that says no pets, but we've seen others who've ignored the sign - successfully - so we venture in as well!  Scratty shows off for a few on-lookers.

 Scratty continues to perform for fellow campers with her skilled fence-walking act.

 Walking the line!

Tractor finally gets into the act, entertaining the younger crowd.

And one more:

 Stormy skies but no action, so we all head out for another round.

 We meet some more neighbors, and Zouey makes friends with their older pooch.

 Tractor tries to make friends too but is ignored (he's maybe pushing the dog's comfort level just a wee bit).

 But all generally enjoy the hanging out-getting to know each other experience.

Like the way they have painted some of their walls/fences!

OK, so now we return to our regular programming - of sightseeing drives and hikes!