Hubbard Mesa

TIME has gotten away from me! All day I thought it was Wednesday but it's not! YIKES so I had to spend a day of preparation for travel...I needed one rear tire so got that purchased and put on...had to get an oil change, and they did a 202 point check...omg yeah I'm teasing but really?? I frowned when I got the bill!! Even if they do put a pink carnation on your dashboard for that price I expected a bag of fresh Colorado grown produce!!  And it comes with a free car wash...but my van won't fit...in hindsight I should've gone to Walmart to get the oil changed! Not many choices of places to go close by.  Regular mechanics don't have time to deal with oil changes (come back on Saturday) so I guess you pay for the immediate service.  Back home I get the same service for $34.  Today it was $94.  I'm pretty sure my oil change guy would laugh if I asked him for a carnation!  He started his small business back before I closed mine, and he has been very successful just changing oil! An industrious guy or gal could make a good living here doing the same thing. 

this mornings full moon 

 sooooo I had to wash it myself...and dust the inside, and change the air filter (they don't open clam shells) and prepare the inside for the next leg of this sojourn...if I stay much longer I may NOT want to go home..it's just so splendid here... I gotta go home AT SOME POINT!

another smoky haze sunrise

Lately the sun and moon have looked like this is a changing planet, hey you know what... it IS! This Earth is constantly evolving and when our sun goes Super Nova we will be no more!

morning's sunrise with the smokey haze 

Yesterday was such a busy day for me.  I got up early and headed over to Hubbard Mesa.  There's tons of roads to explore there...

                                             the road soon turns to gravel and dirt

I took the right fork in the road....the burning question is what's up on the left fork??

I believe you could get lost here really easy....the views are sweet and the trees are too, twisted Junipers, Cedars, and some Pinyon Pine too...

If you look for the Juniper Titmouse look low, all the ones I've seen so far are always down low or on the ground...

Hard to spot these little drab (but gorgeous) birds in this sun-burnt landscape...

It's not all drab tho...the fall wildflowers are blooming...

checkered skipper

I found at least one Oasis! Amazing it seems to have no source but water plants are established...

Stupid people drive their 4 wheelers thru this water...*sigh* don't they realize animals depend on this spot?

Birds were all around it too...saw many more Vesper Sparrows, a few Say's Phoebe, Rock Wrens, and one Yellow Rumped Warbler  I snapped a shot of him but he was too well hidden so I scraped it. 

vesper sparrow

rock wren

say's phoebe

I checked Fravet Reservoir on my way out the waterfowl are soooo far on the other side and there is only one viewing area...I saw again Mallards, Ring Necked Ducks, Pied Billed Grebes, Gadwall, and American Coot. 

mallards n coots in this shot

None lifers but I was able to add all of these except Mallard that was already on it to my Garfield County List, as the Hubbard Mesa is only 10 mins away from the house! Cool Beans.  

 You can camp out on Hubbard Mesa... if you don't mind lots of broken glass all around your feet, why do people have to be that way??  I'm kinda down on ATV'rs at this point. 

Next Post we finally made it up to Maroon Bells Wilderness Area. 

PEACE

Every day is a new Adventure.

Grizzly Creek Hike

I love hiking! I'm no spring chicken any longer so we chose a couple hikes that were enough of a challenge to satisfy our adventurous spirits, but we could easily get out of bed the next day!  I hiked Wednesday with my younger sis and Thursday with my older sis...so one of us could stay with Mom.  I was the lucky one who got to go on both hikes!  Grizzly creek trailhead is just off a rest area along I-70 east of Glenwood Springs.  Glenwood Springs is located along the Colorado river, and the Grizzly Creek empties into the Colorado, so this hike is right alongside a mountain creek full of the song of rushing water. It was not too crowded although we did not have the place to ourselves by any means...every one was spread out far enough to not be a bother to each other. 

The trail flows right up this canyon, it is 4 miles in length if you hike to the connection of No Name trail, but we turned after about 1.5 miles for about a 3 mile hike round trip.  

trailhead parking 

sis on the trail

Grizzly Creek

Lots of Berries of various kinds along the trail...white ones

red ones

blue ones

Yellow ones, 

And where's my photo of the purple ones? Must of forget that one.  

At one point we found this American Dipper hunting, 

...and he caught something dragged it up on the rock to eat...see the "creature" on the rock just in front of the bird?

Maybe one of you can ID this insect/creature...it has a longish tail 

lots of nice little "drops" of the creek we didn't spot any big falls...

 

at one point a group of younger people, late 20's, passed us and when we came upon them again 2 of the men, who were fully clothed were sitting in the creek...LoL...nature has a way of turning men back into little boys...they frolicked as their friends laughed...totally loved this hike...

...and it ended way too soon!! 

I had intended to combine the 2 hikes into one post....but I think I will split them up

...to be continued... 

PEACE

Eleanor Roosevelt: You must do the thing you think you can not.