YOLO folks in CO, Apr 2019

We finally tore ourselves away from family and friends in the metro Denver area and headed into the hills.  We stopped in at Florissant to see old friends Donna and Richard.  They have a house full of Headstart kids that keep them young.  We ordered pizza and one of the parents brought it up with him when he came to pick up his child--free delivery.  Donna in her living room in the log cabin they built many years ago.

The road on the way to Cripple Creek passes a large alpaca farm that rents out the animals for pack trips.

This one claimed the kingdom by standing on the bale of hay.

Richard and Donna's old house in Cripple Creek where she spent time making stained glass art in the form of windows and other objects.  The oval window in the house is one of her works.

Looking down the street of casinos in Cripple Creek.

The late afternoon sun shines gold on the old building, just like the gold the miners were after.

Burros were used in the area to haul things and some still roam the area.

The old Palace Hotel still stands, now a casino.

A mural on one of the old brick buildings depicts a Native American chieftan.

This old sheepwagon is a rarity these days.  It looks like it will fit onto the back of a pickup truck to make a campervan, now,

Just outside the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument.

This iconic old log building has been here forever, it seems.  I've always liked the looks of the Thunderbird Inn.  It's right on the 'major' crossroads here.

On one of the other corners is this storefront, with the howling wolf painted onto the satellite dish.

This fence was lined with old bicycles for nearly a mile.

Elk were crossing the road and jumping the fence to get into this field.

This elk was looking pretty shaggy and was the last to figure out how to jump the fence.

This antelope further down the road was also required to jump the fence to get to his destination.

The creek running along the road still had ice along its sides.

Some folks don't realize South Park is a real city in Colorado.  I still get a chuckle out of the cartoon show.

The large number of jet contrails covered more of the sky than the clouds.  The snow-covered mountains never cease to be a scenic wonder.

This old farmhouse could have stood here back when the Native Americans were still called Indians.

A splash of color along the road near Buena Vista.  The adirondack chairs looked quite comfy.

The taller director chairs looked inviting, too.

The snow along the roads was still high enough to nearly cover the signs along the side.

We headed up and over the passes and south into New Mexico for more adventures.