Victor (Part 1)

I got a little off track the last couple of posts, so please allow me to steer you back to our drive on Phantom Canyon Road last month. After enjoying some truly beautiful scenery for many miles, we eventually ended up in historic Victor, an old gold mining town. Victor is still inhabited (population about 400 +/-)  and it still has mines, both old and modern. The economy there is supported by the Cripple Creek and Victor Mine, gambling in nearby Cripple Creek, and tourism. It's really a lovely little mountain town that has retained its old frontier look and feel, and its setting is incredibly beautiful. I took lots of pictures, which I'll spread out over the next several posts.

Some of the buildings in Victor are restored, and others, like this one, are a work in progress.

A cute bus stop for the Gold Camp Connector, the shuttle service that runs between Victor and Cripple Creek. This is a cheap or even free transportation option for local residents. What an excellent amenity!

More on Victor tomorrow!

Look! Up in the sky!

This weekend was the Perseid meteor shower, and I took a stab at astrophotography. After all, the conditions were perfect: a cloudless, moonless sky. Pat, my brother Chuck (who's an amateur astronomer) and I drove up past Deckers to a favorite spot, and were pleasantly surprised to find a handful of cars parked there. We weren't the only ones interested in meteors! There was another guy there who was trying to get pictures too, and we had a nice chat. I even let him borrow my 10.5mm lens for a few shots. I'm no astrophotographer, so I was really happy to get any decent pictures at all. The Milky Way was indescribably beautiful and my pictures simply don't do it justice. You can see, though, that it was incredibly bright and clear from our vantage point. I didn't think I captured a single meteor in all the pictures I took, so I was happy to see after closer inspection that there's one in this photo. Can you find it? I'll cheat and post the same photo below with a little hint.

Sunday Style!

Sunday Style is coming a little late in the evening today! Sorry about that -- our day was full of errands and ticking things off the to-do list. No time for blogging until now. Check out this gorgeous pair I spied out and about in Old Colorado City yesterday afternoon. It must have been date night for them. They both look great!

Phantom Canyon Road (Part 3)

A final few images from our drive on Phantom Canyon Road a couple of weekends ago. As you drive it, there's an elevation gain of 4,000 feet through a national forest, and by the time you get to the end, you're in Victor at nearly 10,000 feet above sea level. As you can imagine, the drive only gets prettier and prettier. Next I'll share a few pictures of Victor.

Phantom Canyon Road (Part 2)

More from our drive on Phantom Canyon Road. Lovely, lovely scenery. You should go sometime.

Phantom Canyon Road (Part 1)

Pat and I took a drive down this scenic byway on July 29th, and I took a lot of pictures so I'll spread them out over several posts. Part of Colorado's Gold Belt Tour, this historic road follows a gold mining era railroad route between roughly Cañon City and Cripple Creek/Victor. We don't have a four wheel drive and did just fine, just be advised that it'll take you a while to get from one end of Phantom Canyon Road to the other; it's not a short drive but it's VERY scenic. There are a few old tunnels and bridges -- not to mention jaw dropping views -- that are worth getting out of the car for. Bring a camera!

More pictures tomorrow!

I have no idea

I haven't finished editing my July 29th Phantom Canyon Road images yet, so please enjoy this odd little vignette that we found in Acacia Park before we hit the road that day. I have no idea what these folks are up to (are they furries?) but they make for an interesting picture. Whatever floats your boat, people!