Colorado October 2019 - Getting to Vail

Every two years, we travel to Colorado for a meeting of the BeadforLife Community Partners.   These are people from all regions of the country who represent BeadforLife through selling the stunningly beautiful jewelry made from recycled paper by women in Uganda and who tell the BeadforLife story to groups, large and small.  We have been Community Partners for six years and it has become a major part of our personal social ministry.  In a later post, we will sahre more of its work and success in eliminating extreme poverty.

But for now, we want to share our time in Colorado.  The meetings lasted a day and half but we arrived a day early and stayed  three days after to enjoy some of what Colorado has to offer.  We arrived in Denver just as the first snow storm of the season was ending.  We had spent almost two hours on the ground waiting for the Denver airport to reopen.  It has closed due to snow, blowing snow, and only quarter mile visibility.  Our bags were delayed almost an hour due to the snow and wind on the field and then there were delays at the rental car agency.  When we got the car, I noticed that it was showing a low tire rpessure warning so there was another delay while that was fixed.  Finally under way, we hit the peak of rush hour traffic.  Not what you would call a good beginning.

We arrived at our hotel in time to check in, drop our bags and get on the road for our reservations at The Fort in Morrison.  That is when our time in Colorado really began.  While the structure is on the National Register of Historic Places, it was constructed in 1961 as an adobe replica of Bent's Fort that operated on the Santa Fe Trail from 1833 to 1849.  " A company owned by Charles Bent and William Bent and Ceran St. Vrain built the fort to trade with Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Plains Indians and trappers for buffalo robes. For much of its 16-year history, the fort was the only major white

American permanent settlement on the Santa Fe Trail between Missouri and the Mexican settlements." (Wikipedia)  In 1960 Sam'l and Bay Arnold, amateur historians, wanted to build a home in the country outside Denver so their two children could experience a "weastern" life.  A restaurant was created in the lower level with the family living above.  Having seen photos and drawings of Old Bent Fort, they decide to build an adobe replica.  When the costs became excessive, their banker suggested they open a business to recoup some of the investment.  Thus, The Fort Restaurant was born and continues to thrive today.  The menu features the cuisine of the Santa Fe Trail:  buffalo, elk, quail along with more modern dishes.  Each year The Fort serves more than 80,000 buffalo entrees.  We certainly enjoyed our buffalo filets.

The next morning we got on the road for Vail.  It was cold but the roads were clear.  We got such an early start that I decided to drive up to Lookout Mountain just above Golden to visit the Buffalo Bill gravesite and museum and, of course, gift shop.  The distant views were not that great and the footing around the site was tricky but seeing the snow and ice on the evergreens was worth the trip.  As we toured the museum, we learned about an interesting connection to Rochester.  From 1874 to 1876, Cody rented a house at 10 New York Street in Rochester.  His wife Louise lived there with their children and Cody returned after his stage shows to be with the fmaily.  In 1876 their only son, Kit Carson Cody, died of rheumatic fever and was buired in Mt. Hope Cemetery.  The codys left Rochester and located in North Platte Nebraska.  However when their other children died, they returned to Rochester to bury them in the plot in Mt. Hope.  10 New York Street is just a block off West Main and Jefferson Ave and within two blocks of the home of Susan B. Anthony.  You can view more photos of our visit to Lookout Mountain by clicking here.

Marilyn at the summit of Loveland Pass with the Continental Divide in the background

We headed west on I70 toward Vail.  We had time so I did not use the Eisenhower Tunnel on I70 under the Continental Divide but decided to get on US 6 and take it over Loveland Pass.  The road was mostly clear and dry and we arrived at the summit, just 10 feet shy of 12,000.

 We didn't spend a lot time here given the cold and wind but the view were awesome.  I took some pleasure in wearing my KC Chiefs cap in the home of the Broncos.  Little did I know that the Chiefs would easily handle the horses the following Thursday night in Denver.

You can see more photos of our time at Loveland Pass by clicking here.

After a\stop for lunch in Dillon, we arrived in Vail and checked into the Manor Vail Lodge and we ready for our meetings to begin.  On Sunday we planned on continuing our vacation by exploring Vail and then meeting our friends Brendan and Maria White for a day in Aspen.