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Put camping in Colorado on your activity list this summer! There are thousands of campsites in Colorado ready to help visitors experience the beauty of the state’s wilderness areas. Colorado has thousands of campsites, so it’s easy to find a tranquil spot to get back to basics and enjoy the simplicity of nature.  Basic Info to Know About Summer Camping in Colorado: 1) Colorado State Parks administers forty-two parks throughout the state. This system alone has more than 4,000 campsites. 2) In addition, the US Forest Service manages 14 million acres of land in the state’s 11 National Forests and two National Grasslands. 3) The Bureau of Land Management oversees an additional 8.4 million acres. 4) Both of the above agencies have campsites that range from developed areas with restrooms, fire rings, water and other amenities to remote areas. They have no amenities and are reached only by horse, mountain bike or backpacking. Reservations can be made at recreation.gov. 5) There are many privately owned campsites in Colorado which have perks you may not find on public lands. These include playgrounds, hot tubs, laundry facilities and Wi-Fi. 6) One caveat for camping in Colorado is that the weather can change quickly, even in the summer months. It’s best to wear layered clothing. 7) You may be required to purchase a pass or permit depending on your location. Plan ahead by visiting the website listed below and the information posted at campground entrances.  Packing Essentials for Summer Camping in Colorado: (Courtesy of Camping in Colorado: The Basics) • Tent with a rain cover • Down sleeping bag (even in summer, it can get below freezing in Colorado’s higher altitudes) • Pillow and sleeping pad (keeps you warmer than just sleepin’ on the ground) • Camp stove and/or matches to use your campsite’s fire pit • Plenty of drinking water and food • Can opener, aluminum foil, paper plates, cups/mugs, utensils, multipurpose knife, trash bags, paper towels • Layers of clothing, including water-resistant coat, wool socks and long underwear • Flashlights/headlamps/lanterns • Sunscreen, bug spray, first-aid kit, toilet paper (Above Photo Courtesy of: Palisade Basecamp RV Resort) Camping in Colorado…A Camper’s Paradise!
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 The town of Victor, Colorado is known as the City of Gold Mines. It is located at nearly an elevation of 10,000 feet on the southwest side of Pikes Peak in the Cripple Creek Victor Mining District. Victor is central to the Gold Belt National Scenic Byway and designated as a National Historic District. This well-preserved gold mining town is 45 minutes from Colorado Springs and Pikes Peak. Victor is a unique setting of 1890's mine structures and turn-of-the-century buildings, unique shops and restaurants, as well as hiking trails, museums, and gold mining experiences. You will find clean, cool mountain air and plenty of year-round sunshine. Victor prides itself in not having stoplights, chair stores, traffic, or anything resembling the "rat race"! Source... Battle Mountain which is located just above Victor had the largest, most prolific mines in the mining district. Thus, the town became known as the "City of Mines." The Mt. Rosa Mining, Milling and Land Company was founded in 1892 by Harry, Frank and Warren Woods. In 1894 the Woods brothers discovered gold when they began digging the foundation for a building, which resulted in the creation of the Gold Coin Mine. At that time 8,000 people lived in Victor. Check Out Our Membership Business Directory - Click Here In recent years mining has resumed in the area. The Cripple Creek & Victor Gold Mining Company formed in 1976 as a joint venture to restart mining in the district. From 1976 to 1989, the company produced 150,000 troy ounces (4,600 kg) of gold by reprocessing tailings and mining two small surface deposits. The Cripple Creek & Victor Gold Mining Company began the first large-scale open pit mining in the district in 1994. In 1995 an open pit gold mining operation, which taps into "legendary" mines, began on Battle Mountain. Mining continued at the Cripple Creek & Victor Gold Mine, under the ownership of AngloGold Ashanti which produced about 250,000 troy ounces of gold in 2012, in addition to several locally owned mines, all of which provide employment and revenue for the community. Ownership has recently changed from Anglo Gold to Newmont mining. See below, an historic gold mine near Victor, Colorado...   The Cumbres and Toltec Railroad is a National Historic Landmark. It's a 64-mile day trip that you will thoroughly enjoy and never forget. The narrow-gauge heritage railroad operates between Antonito, Colorado and Chama, New Mexico. It crosses the borders of Colorado and New Mexico 11 times as it chugs its way up and over the 10,015′ high Cumbres Pass.
The Cumbres & Toltec goes where no automobile can go. Most of the route is through “off-the-grid” wilderness, so you’ll experience views into canyons and over ridges that can’t be seen in any other way. The train travels at a top speed of 12 miles an hour, and that’s the beauty of it! You won’t miss the aspen groves, the wildflowers, the steep mountain canyons, or the plentiful wildlife. The steam engine is coal fired and carries you through steep mountain canyons, high desert, and lush meadows as you zig zag between the Colorado and New Mexico borders. There is, indeed, spectacular and rare Western scenery which can only be viewed from the train's unique route. The Cumbres and Toltec Railroad has steamed through history and across the Rocky Mountains since 1880, when first tracks were laid across Cumbres Pass. This unique experience will take you back in time and off of the grid so you can experience the sounds, steam and steel of bygone years. Your daily grind can’t follow you into the great, unspoiled West. Originally part of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad's narrow-gauge network, the line has been jointly owned by the states of Colorado and New Mexico since 1970. In 1988, a nonprofit organization called the Friends of the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad was established to preserve the history of the railroad and help maintain infrastructure and rolling stock. The Friends of the C&TSRR also participates in various education programs and provides the railroad guides, known as docents, who inform passengers about historical aspects of the railroad as well as locations of interest. A recent honor: USA Today - "Best Train Ride in America” Cumbres & Toltec Scenic Railroad ranks among the most authentic steam-operated railroads still in existence. Passengers aboard this National Historic Landmark travel along a track laid in 1880 between Chama, N.M. and Antonito, Colo. Source... Related Travel Info... Your humor for today! This is a great video of what creative, retired guys do in their spare time! This is your dose of humor for today…hope you enjoyed it! Looking for Creative Bookshelves? Look no more! Here are several DIY very creative bookshelves that offer much needed storage for books as well as for displays. They are, indeed, functional as well as attractive! These bookshelves also add a touch of character to your home. The best part is that these are beginner projects. Which one is your favorite?  READ Creative Bookshelf  Stepladder Bookshelf  Circular Bookshelf  Bookshelves with Wine Bottles All of these bookshelves have a unique twist which is sure to please you and the other book readers in your life! They are a good way to give your decor a little twist. Nothing outlandish, but making DIY projects that are just a little different creates a home with personality. For more engaging bookshelves... Source… Enjoy These Creative Bookshelves DIY Projects! This is such a good depiction of the Expectations vs. Realities of Winter and what really happens in life. Don’t we all have great expectations of how things should be? And, then reality sets in but, hopefully, we can laugh and move on! Can you identify with any of these?  The Expectations vs. Realities of Winter
 Are you Ready? Santa Claus is coming to town. You can track him coming into your city! NORAD Deploys their NORAD Santa Tracker! NORAD will be tracking Santa (like they do every year) so get on board and watch when and where Santa Claus arrives in various parts of the world. Go to the NORAD Santa Tracker web page and watch Santa in real time: http://www.noradsanta.org  Background info… The NORAD Tracks Santa program began as an annual event on December 24, 1955. According to legend, a Sears department store placed an advertisement in a Colorado Springs, Colorado, newspaper which told children that they could place a call to Santa Claus. It included the number ME 2-6681. A call allegedly came through to Colorado Springs’ Continental Air Defense Command (CONAD) Center as one digit was misprinted. In some versions of the story, the calls were coming in to the “red telephone” hotline that connected CONAD directly to command authorities at the Strategic Air Command. Colonel Harry Shoup, who was a Crew Commander on duty, answered the first call and supposedly told his staff to give all children who called in later a “current location” for Santa Claus. NORAD Santa Tracker, it’s Fun! Merry Christmas! A Thanksgiving tradition for some families and a soon-to-be tradition for others…a Thankful Tree! After all, the meaning of Thanksgiving is to give thanks for the many blessings in our lives. This is an activity that all ages can participate in and will be a topic of conversation for your Thanksgiving gathering. We have chosen three trees that are fairly easy DIY projects. You can get started on them this week and have them ready for Thanksgiving day. Thankful Tree #1 (Pinterest)  Start with some tall branches — either gather them from outside, or purchase a bunch of craft branches. For an even more festive look, consider lighted branches. Add them to a simple glass vase. You may have some of the supplies on hand… if not, they are reasonable in cost and can be used year after year! Before guests arrive, attach ribbon to paper leaves. Using a dark colored Sharpie, write what you are thankful for on a few of the leaves and hang them on the tree. Encourage your guests to do the same as they arrive. Thankful Tree #2 (Pinterest)  You will need the following supplies for this Thankful Tree: Glass Vase, Tree Branches, Pinecones, Autumn Leaves, Ribbon, Scrapbook Paper, and Leaf Pattern This is a low-cost Tree that can be used year after year. Thankful Tree #3  This Tree is nature themed. It uses unshelled nuts in the vase with autumn leaves decoration surrounding the vase. The medallions are wooden with chalk paint so they can be used again next Thanksgiving. Be creative and use supplies that you have on hand. If you need to purchase some of them, remember that you can use this Thankful Tree year after year! You don’t want to miss our suggestions for Over 50 hobbies and activities that are fun and engaging. Baby boomers are unlike any prior generation because of their attitudes and lifestyles. As research shows, in terms of their hobbies and interests, baby boomers are not going to settle for your usual bingo night as they get older. They enjoy a wide variety of activities ranging from sports and workouts to enjoying their rock ‘n’ roll music. Even though many boomers care for aging parents as well as children, they still find time for their favorite activities. So what are popular baby boomer pastimes? Source… 1) Social and Spiritual Experiences 2) Exploring Tech 3) Home Improvement and DIY 4) Dating 5) Aqua Activities 6) Volunteering 7) Extreme Sports 8) Enjoying Music 9) Career Changes 10) Staying Fit  During retirement each day allows for the freedom of choice. It also allows the retiree to explore new things as a well-deserved reward for all of the hard work accomplished after years of employment. However, it can be quite a challenge to keep things interesting during those long periods of time every day. There are, of course, those occasional projects and tasks around the house. But, when you think about filling 20 to 30 years of significant and worthwhile things to do, the task may seem a bit overwhelming. An example of a specific activity is taking a trip to someplace you and your spouse/friend have never been before. The fun is actually in the planning. This is a great way to create memories that will be with you forever. Another example is to join a sporting group or team. You will not only get into shape, but you will also make new friends. Here is a list of fun and entertaining ideas to keep retirement anything but mundane: Fun in Retirement What would you add to this Over 50 Hobbies and Activities?
Petunias are a great Colorado summer flower. They are tolerant of heat so they require less water. However, we check ours every day to see if they need a drink. Wave petunias are especially nice because they create gorgeous cascades of color in hanging baskets and decorative pots. However, it’s important that these vigorous flowers get their space. Don’t over pack them…just a few plants go a long way in a container. You want to encourage them to trail over the sides which they will do if they aren’t “fighting” for root space and nutrition.  Planting Petunias
Care of Petunias
Container Plants When planting petunias in containers, be sure not to crowd your plants. Limit yourself to three per 12-inch pot. If they start to flag or grow leggy, cut them back and fertilize them. They should branch out with vigor. Cut flowers for bouquets frequently to encourage new growth and remove dead flower heads as soon as they appear.Every few days, give them a long, slow drink. Wetting the flowers and foliage can promote disease, so water either from below or close to the surface of the soil. In order to not waterlog the roots, make sure your container has very good drainage. Petunias are heavy feeders. Apply a slow release fertilizer at the time of planting. Follow up with a liquid fertilizer every week or two throughout the season. Source… Related Post Summer Activities: Summer Camping |
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