Monday morning we headed west, from Denver, towards the Rockies.
Not far out of Denver we passed a bison herd on the south side of the road.
Tunnels help avoid climbing over some of the steeper slopes.
Our third crossing of the continental divide is over Vail Pass.
By 1030 we reached the Georgetown Visitor’s Center. Clean restrooms, friendly guides…
…and interesting t-shirts.
We drive a Ram van, so have been on a quest to see a Ram (male Bighorn sheep) in the wild. Georgetown has a “Bighorn Sheep Viewing Area” set-up specifically to look for sheep.
Bring some quarters because the spotting scopes really helped scan the mountainsides for sheep. Alas, the only ram we sighted was the one we parked.
Less elusive, we found narrow gauge trains, at the next highway exit.
This steam powered train was backing out just as we arrived.
Running since 1884, this 3 foot narrow gauge railway runs through tight curves, over trestles and bridges to make it from here to Georgetown.
A variety of motive power, passenger, and freight cars are preserved by the Georgetown Loop Railroad.
The Silver Plume station sits very close to I-77. This and the yard are worth a stop, even if you don’t have time for the 2.5 hour round-trip train ride.
On the North side of the freeway we found the George Rowe museum.
The old school has one classroom preserved as if it was still in use. Slate was the iPad of that era.
We were allowed to open and examine the raised relief maps contained in this huge wooden case. Who knew that raised relief was a thing before plastic was invented?
Tourism has a long history in Silver Plume. From 1907 to 1914, the Sunrise Peak Aerial Tramway lifted tourists 3,300 feet from the railroad station to Sunrise Peak. I wonder what OSHA would think of these gondolas.
The museum had an interesting collection of items from households from the late 1800 and early 1900’s. Beth like the painted decorations on this vintage sewing machine.
Sited on a hillside, the museum gave us a good look at the top of our van. The solar panels looked clean and were putting out 16 amps in full sun.
Constructed from rock gathered from the mountainside, the Silver Plume jail blends into its surroundings. Opened in 1875, the jail operated until 1915.
Driving around the town, Silver Plume seems to have had better days.
Back on the road, our next stop was Silverthorne, Colorado where another good Visitor’s Center provided information for our trip. Located in an outlet mall, they also had fresh coffee and clean restrooms.
Sopris Alpaca Farm was our destination for the night. After meeting Kim in her gift shop, we were directed to a field where we had this view all to ourselves. In support of the Harvest Hosts, Beth bought some cute alpaca puppets to use as gifts.
Once parked, we had to go visit the Alpacas. This dam (mom) and cria (baby) were checking us out.
Only 12 days old, Sprinkles, came over to meet Beth.
Sprinkles was curious about all visitors, even the farm cat.
Comfy adirondack chairs invited visitors to relax and watch the herd.
A variety of colors, all of the Alpacas shared a curiosity for whatever activity was going on.
* If you are interested in joining Harvest Hosts, please click on this referral link to save 15% on your membership. We receive a small incentive.
