Lake City and Creede, CO

We set off on a little road trip to Lake City and Creede.  The drive found us driving along the scenic Lake Fork of the Gunnison as we headed to Lake City.  On the north side of Lake City sits a pretty lake called Lake San Cristobal.  The area is known to have moose but alas, no sightings were seen by us.  We would have to get up to that area way to early for any possible sightings LOL.  As a matter of fact, the only wildlife seen was a marmot and a doe.

We were told about a beautiful waterfall south of Lake City.  We pulled up to the area to discover that the area was under reconstruction and they weren't letting anyone in. Darn it - I so enjoy the sights and sounds of a waterfall.

We even got to see the headwaters for the Rio Grande which makes it winding way down to the Gulf of Mexico.  The Rio Grande is the third longest river in the US.  The first is the Mississippi and the second is the Missouri.

As we proceeded to Creed, we drove through an area that was badly dying due to bug infestation.  What a shame to see all those beautiful conifers dead or dying. The area reminded us the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park where so much of the forest was destroyed by beetles.

Not sure what we expected going to Creede but I guess it was safe to say that we weren't impressed.  The town does have the Creede Repertory Theater which draws good reviews.  As we drove through the town, we recalled the suggestion to keep driving and we would see the remnants of a large mining town.  The road up to the mine was closed so we hiked up to get a closer look.  From there we headed into town and picked Tips Grill for lunch where we had a good lunch.

After being fortified, we headed back home.  As is typical, we got sprinkled on.  However, none of what we've experienced compares to what the Denver area is being bombarded with: 8 days of hail, wind, lightning, rain, and lots of flooding.  Right now Denver is about 3.2 inches above normal for the month of July and more rain on the horizon.  To bad some of this rain couldn't be shared with other areas that so badly need the moisture.