--- Laws 2 ---

So, what's the difference between a rule and a regulation. I looked it up.

A regulation is created by an authoritative governmental body who has the delegated authority to enforce it. A rule is not.

I still get confused because rules can be enforced, usually not as strictly as a regulation. It's against the law to hold up a grocery store and you can expect serious repercussions for doing so. Walking into a grocery store barefoot, even when there are signs forbidding it on the entrance, is not, I think, against the law, but many grocery stores hold it as a rule, and they can kick you out if they catch you doing it. My confusion stems from the fact that, in documents that list rules and regulations, they don't often distinguish the rules from the regulations. I guess you just have to guess.

Anyway -

                                                                  Triangle sign

Ever played rock-paper-scissors? Well, on Bear Creek Trail, horses trump bicycles and hikers, and hikers trump bikers. Actually, it makes sense. Horses can be spooked by things coming up beside them. Their peripheral vision isn't that great to start with. Everybody loses if you spook a horse. Same goes for a bicyclist running over a hiker. And bicyclists can move a lot faster than a hiker to get out of the way.

Bikers can go faster here, though. That would be because it's in the middle of a prairie dog town and you can see what's around you for a long way.

Most of the bikers on Bear Creek, when they are coming up behind you, will say, "On the right." I've gotten over the urge to jump right.


And there's who I contacted to tell me about the rules and regulations thing. If you're traveling to Denver and you want to know about Bear Creek Trail, Lakewood Regional Parks manage the western half. They also have a website, here:

http://www.lakewood.org/Community_Resources/Parks,_Forestry_and_Open_Space/Parks,_Forestry_and_Open_Space.aspx

                                                           Map of the western half

                                                                     The rules

Traffic signs happen on trails, too. Some of the topography can be surprising if you're not familiar with your surroundings.

                                                             Curve and downgrade

Honestly, I see the need for people to pick up after their pets (they certainly can't do it for themselves) and providing doggie bags for the purpose is a great thing, but keeping poop (or, sorry, poo) before the public's eye - I wonder if anyone has done research to see if displays like this really does any good.

                                                                 poo signs

A cursory examination of Google Scholar citations on "pet feces" indicate that it's not a good thing to let pet feces just lie around, but I could not find a study on the effectiveness of different programs to change the behavior of pet owners. That sounds like a great graduate study to me.

Here are some of the pictures I took on that alternative trail I wanted to check out. It sorta looks like a desert trail and, technically, Denver is high desert, but it has it's interesting points, including some beautiful views of the Rockies and the countryside to the east. But it didn't turn out to be any easier or quicker. As you can see, it's all up and down.

The trail parallels Morrison Road, which is what gave me the idea that it might offer a straighter shot to Morrison. At one point, it runs alongside a small canal, and connects in several places to the North Park Trail.

                                                                Canal

But it does ultimately lead to Morrison where I noticed this old fire engine on display for the first time.

                                                        Fire engine in Morrison

And I stopped in at the Mill Street eats for a great burger and shake before returning to the trail.

These two ducks were completely ignoring the signs emphasizing how dangerous this dam across Bear Creek is.

On the way back, clouds were building up in back of the Front Range and there was thunder. Normally, I wouldn't have been that bothered except that this was where I was and the nearest shelter was on top of that hill (Mount Carbon). So I double timed it up the mountain and got to the top just about when the wind hit. The worst of the storm went around to the north, though.

                                                             Mount Carbon

I did stop in at the Visitor Center earlier and found out how Mount Carbon got it's name. It seems that coal and clay for ceramics was, in fact, mined there for a short time. There was even a small town named Cowen and a railroad spur line in the big depression now occupied by Bear Creek Lakes Park. The area where mining took place can still be seen as a trench in the top of the mountain. The Robinson brick company started up in 1910. It closed in 1912. Mt. Carbon school was built earlier in 1878 and taught grades 1 through 8. It closed in 1920.

The mining operation quickly played out and the town was abandoned. The flood of 2013 took out the rest of Cowen and now it really is a ghost of a town.

It sorta reminds me of the Old Cahaba Archaeological Park near Selma, Alabama. I used to call it "the only park where you have to imagine what you see." So, maybe it's not the only place like that. Both places have their draws. You just have to use your imagination if you want to see the towns.

Bear Creek Trail itself runs through two golf courses on the eastern side of Mount Carbon and signs bear witness to the fact that golfers and hikers are mixing, and that golf courses are sometimes private property.

                                                                 golf course signs

I made my way back along the way I came to Wadsworth Boulevard and buses to where the storm finally caught me waiting for a bus at Englewood station. Suddenly very cold and getting wet - I called a Lyft cab and got myself to home.

The moral of that story is: always have alternatives.

--- Snow business ---
(2016)

There's no business like snow business

Most of my life, I lived in a place (the southeast US) where snow was a rare commodity. Up to the 70s, we would get at least one good snow a year but things changed when I was in college. The snow went away and the armadillos and coyotes moved into Alabama. Now there are capybara in Georgia. Things change.

Now, a light dusting of snow in the southeast will shut everything down.

The year I moved to Colorado was the snowiest year since. When I left Selma, it started snowing on me just south of Birmingham and it snowed on me all the way to Broomfield and continued snowing until well into the spring months.

So I've had three good snow hikes in my life. I'm not counting the walks to work when I was a tutor in Broomfield or the many grocery runs in the snow. There was one SEHowl at Mount Cheaha in Alabama where a snow storm covered the area in March, followed by a tornado that blacked out Anniston and went on to hit Atlanta.

I learned to wear socks when I slept in cold weather. Being the host, I was the first person at the Howl and the only Howler the first night. I went to sleep listening to rain on my tent and woke up to a strangely dark morning. When I unzipped the tent fly, snow cascaded in. I also noticed that I couldn't feel my feet. I didn't even look at them. I put my clothes on and drove to the developed campground up the road. When I got to the showers I examined my feet and was relieved to find that I would not lose any toes.

After my morning ritual, I hiked up the mountain to the country store at the top.

I love snow.

I've also hiked twice to Mount Carbon in the snow. On the first hike, the snow had melted from the paved path and I still considered Mount Carbon to be a necessary evil that stood between me and Morrison. I've walked to Morrison several times and there's no way around the two hundred foot rise on the path. I either take the trail over Mount Carbon or I take the road over the shoulder of Green Mountain. Neither are very pleasant and I had always considered both to be rather ugly - until I tried the Mount Carbon Loop Trail.

This trail shows Mount Carbon at it's best, following a series of switchbacks along the flanks of the hill to the summit. On the way, it provides some spectacular vistas.

Earlier this year, I decided to hike to the top of Mount Carbon in the snow using the Loop Trail.  I've hiked in just about every kind of weather available where I have lived, but this was my first snow hike. I started around 8:00 on a 2 degree but sunny morning.My Neanderthal physiology kept me nice and warm with no more than my usual cold weather get-up - overalls, sweater, and leather jacket.

I found that my body had to adapt to the cycle of focusing on each step to avoid crashing to the ground. About half way to the end of the hike up, I no longer had to concentrate on my pace and could enjoy the scenery.

The hike up Mount Carbon was grueling. The trail is a ledge and doesn't provide much room for mistakes. A fall probably wouldn't kill me, but the scrubby brush blanketing the hill wouldn't be pleasant. Still the view was spectacular and well worth the work.

(Mount Carbon in the snow)

(Mount Carbon Loop Trail)

(Green Mountain from Mount Carbon)

(The ledge)

(Mount Morrison)

(Denver skyline)

(Almost to the top)


I made the top ("Summit" would be an appropriate verb but it seems a little overblown for such a small prominence.) a little after noon. It was 27 degrees and I felt great.

(Me on top)

I gazed out at the Rockies and down at the tiny shelters of the ice fishers on Bear Creek Lake.

The really nice surprise came when I started down. Gravity did all the work. I felt like I was drifting down the side and the descent was quick and painless.

I made it back home before dark in great spirits. This was the hike where I tried out new methods to prevent the plantar blisters which had plagued my hikes all my life and the simple step of sticking duct tape on the balls of my feet did the trick.

By the way, you might have noticed that some of these posts are dated 2016. Those were written last year. I wanted to have a backlog built up so I could keep a fairly consistent stream of new posts appearing. Also, my adventures will be somewhat topical. The posts I wrote last year are general subjects - the blog, my geographical area, resources, and such. In 2017, I'll be looking at philosophy, psychology, parapsychology, and religion around Bear Creek and Denver.