MacGregor Falls

Over the years we have spent many a summer vacation at the YMCA of the Rockies in Estes Park. This Y has trails that back up to the Rocky Mountain National Park. As part of staying in a cabin or lodge you have access to many programs and the one that I use the most is the hiking program. DH signed up for a hike each day where I signed up for 3 led hikes and did a find your way back hike with a cousin.

Our Tuesday morning hike group met the hike leader Joanne at 8:45am, we found rides to the Lumpy Ridge Trail Head where we see the three chicken formation.

From there we walk up and down the trail to where we can see the two owl formation. We walk past this section. The rocks in this area are unusual in that it is not part of the glacier rocks that are found in most of the park.

Most of the mountains in this area can be rock climbed to the top via trails to the climbing access points. However during June - July some of these mountains are off limits for bird nesting. The red tailed hawk is one of the birds we saw on this hike.

The trail leads around the MacGregor Ranch which is a working ranch that is now in trust and run by the National Park service.

Part of the trail requires that you walk across a field to reach the trail that leads to the falls.

Along this path we saw the beginning of the Coralroot orchids emerging (Corallorhiza). They look like early asparagus stalks when they first emerge.

On this path we also cross the original Estes Park water treatment facility. While no longer used there is a building that housed the filter equipment and the dam.

From here it is an uphill climb to see the falls. While maybe not the most impressive falls in the park it still puts on a nice display and was a good spot to take a rest before the return hike.

While at the falls some of us scrambled up to the rocks above to get this view.

On the return trip the horses were out in the fields.

Also seen on the return trip were bones from a fallen elk. It looked like coyotes had been involved. I missed this on the trip out but was told that the other hiking group that was out there was blocking it at that time.

This was shot at the end of the hike which was around 7 miles total and shows that the afternoon rains were just about to start. This is how a typical day is in the mountains. Bright and sunny in the morning, and rainy by the mid-afternoon, returning to clear by the evening.

Wildflowers seen on this hike.

Hiking the Trails of Colorado

For the past week I have been logging mileage on the trails of the Rocky Mountain National Park. The photo above was from my hike to Mills Lake.

This is from my hike around Boulder Brook. Lots of snow this past winter has meant a late spring season and lots of water for fast moving falls and bubbling creeks. The next few installments will be a photo journal of my hikes, but for now trying to get through all my photos to decide which ones to use and still unpacking stuff.

Josephine

Josephine - Interweave Summer 2007
Yarn - Louet Gems Super Fine/Fingering Weight
100% Merino Wool - Violet (08-1452-9)
gauge - 7st/10 rows = 1 inch
Needles and size - Addi Turbo Lace US 3

When I swatched for this sweater I used the US 5 needles called for and got gauge but really did not love the feel of the fabric as it was too open for me. So I swatched using US 4 then settled on US 3. This meant that I was going to have to rewrite the pattern for the change in gauge as well as I wanted to make the pattern for a 36" which was in between the pattern choices. Between the lace panel there was a simple panel of knits and purls that allowed for some room to add stitches to make the sizing work. I followed the intent of the pattern with decreases in the simple panel at the same point in the sweater and knitted the decreases needed to hit 36" just below the bust. Next mod was to move the v-neck to 2 inches above the bust and to begin the arm holes at 4". I have a knit shirt that I really like with similar look so got out the tape measure and used that as a guide for this area. The shirt also confirmed that I wanted an arm hole height of 8" not 7.5". From here I noted how many stitches were bound off at the arm hole and the shoulder to make the mods necessary for my gauge difference and to determine how many stitches and how quickly I needed to decrease stitches for the v-neck portion. Voila sweater. I did knit this sweater in the round since I was using a wool fiber and then did a 3 needle bind off at the shoulder. So no sewing on this sweater. Over all an easy knit once you have the math worked out and charted in an Excel spreadsheet.

Summer Knit-a-Longs

Well it's time for some summer knit-a-longs to throw in with those already in the queue. First up is Bad Cat Designs Summer Sampler Shawl. around 50 rows each week, no pressure and this one is scheduled to end in September.So a nice stress free knit-a-long.

For the second Knit-a-long how about joining the Fingerless Glove Fanatics on Ravelry for a monthly knit of Merletto Mitts. Another fairly easy knit, good for that extra sock yarn that is lying around or the 150 yds of sport weight hand spun that you are looking for something to do with.

So join me and show me what you come up with. :)

It's Raspberry Time

Member of the rose family, red, sweet-but-tart, pick-me-up, eat straight off the cane, chocolate loves it, tarts love it, cheesecake loves it. Berry season is here!

The Garden Journey Continues

New Dawn

When we first moved into this house I came across an arbor that was the exact size I wanted for the stairs leading into the upper meadow. For this arbor I knew I wanted to plant New Dawn which is a Hybrid Wichurana type rose. It is quite fragrant. New Dawn is a sport of Dr. W. Van Fleet which is a once bloomer. It was noted by a grower that a branch of Dr. W. Van Fleet was a remontant bloomer and so cuttings were taken to see if this was a stable sport of the plant. The new cuttings taken from this branch did indeed rebloom as the original so a new rose was entered into the market place. Being a sport this rose can revert back to it's original parentage and so you may have a New Dawn that blooms profusely or one that is more of a once bloomer which describes mine. With all the other roses in the yard that is ok by me. This is one of my few grafted roses.

Growing on the arbor with New Dawn are clematis Etoile de Violettes, clematis Vienetta Evipo006, and Alister Stella Gray.

Souvenir de Madame Leonie Viennot

This is another one of my aggressive tea climbing roses. This one throws 20 foot canes and doesn't look back. It is a once bloomer that begins the first part of April and continues blooming through mid May. It is sweet smelling with beautiful pinks and cream-yellow blooms. This rose comes from the Antique rose Emporium and was an impulse by at the local Botanical Garden sale. It was in bloom, I knew it was a tea and well it said take me home. Little did I know I had bought a once blooming climber at the time, thankfully the arbor was already built for another climber.

Excellenz von Schubert

This rose was acquired from the Antique Rose Emporium in TX and is a mainstay of my garden, blooming profusely in the Spring and then with respectable repeat until frost. This rose is a polyantha/Hybrid Musk type rose and since this rose is not fragrant it has been discussed that it is really Gartendirektor Otto Linne. Both are similar roses and are in the same class. Whichever rose, it is a keeper.

Alister Stella Gray

This rose is a Tea Noisette that I planted maybe 5-6 years ago. It basically replaced a New Dawn own-root that I had planted on the north side of the arbor and since the one on the South had taken over the whole arbor I decided that I wanted some mixed color. The New Dawn that was in this roses place originally went to live at my friend Bonnie's house and it is taking over its space quite nicely. Up until this year Alister Stella Gray has bloomed but not done much else, however, it has recently grown a nice new basal that has quickly shot up to 6 feet. Hopefully this will mean more mingling between it and New Dawn. This rose was acquired from Roses Unlimited in Laurens, SC in a 5 quart pot.

Salet

Salet is one of the more interesting roses I grow, it is a moss rose. Note all the prickles on the buds and on the stem, this is what makes a moss rose a moss. :) The prickles on the buds are flexible and don't hurt at all but the stems now that is another story. This is one of the few moss roses that will grow this far South and the color, rebloom and fragrance is quite outstanding. A worthy rose for the rose garden.

Gloire de Dijon

Have you met Gloire?


She is an apricot blend tea noisette that is currently taking over the North side of my house. Above is a shot from the right side of the Holly facing east.


Here she is from the left.


Yes that is her up in the tree a good 12-15 feet from the ground and probably a 20-foot cane since she is located a good 5-6 feet from the tree.

Gloire has nice arching canes that are quite prickly and produce an outstanding flush in the spring with flowers coming intermittently throughout the growing season. This rose originally came from Ashdown Roses as an own root around 6 years ago, however this is probably not the REAL Gloire de Dijon since the petal count should be higher. Also about this time there was a discussion on the Rose Forum about Gloire not really doing well on own roots that it did better grafted. After this discussion I noted the Gloire was pulled from the Ashdown inventory and I haven't seen it offered since. It is apparently not a rose that is easily found in commerce at this time. This rose has the coloring and size so I am not at all disappointed by this rose and will happily let it continue to take over the North side.

Since it is spring and I have lots of garden shots, expect the blog to turn to the flowers for a while. :)

Cemetery Stroll

Last weekend was the annual Cemetery Stroll in the old section of the cemetery. It's a chance for local groups to reenact past local politicians, prominent city figures, or to tell the story of the Civil War and how it affected the area. In essence a chance to bring ghosts and history to life. Here are some shots from our stroll...

April Spindle Spinning

April Showers brings blue, white,and purple to mind. Blue and white for the rain; flowers in the white, blue and purple shades; and wispy blue and white skies after the storm. My inspiration…

My yarn from start to finish…

Lace weight, spun on a golding antiqued rosette 2” 1oz spindle, for 177yards. I used this as a chance to play with my hand carders and spin rolags. Because of the rain earlier in the month I had time to spin this since I couldn’t do any gardening. :)

Dogwoods

White, Pink, Red
Gracefully arching
illuminatingly beautiful
sweeping up towards the sky
Welcome Spring!