Lifting the Cone of Silence

The worst thing about being unemployed is the uncertainty about your own financial future.

The second worst thing is all the dadgum work involved. You have to look for jobs, comply with the multitude of requirements to qualify for unemployment payments -- and find ways to economize. That's what I've been doing...and that's my excuse for my prolonged silence and temporary disappearance from the blogosphere.

That is a legitimate excuse, isn't it?

Anyway, these posts may continue to be sporadic for a while. We're not done with our actor-similarity quizzes, nor with the Star Trek homage mashups...but today's post is merely a straightforward hiking trail review.

Pawnee Buttes Trail — Northern Boondocks, Colorado



Okay, there isn't really a location known as Northern Boondocks, but it's probably just as meaningful to most citizens as the actual description: "Just about midway between Keota and Grover, Colorado." (I didn't have a chance to see the sprawling metropolis of Grover, but Keota is pretty much just a barn and a windmill. Definitely too small for a WalMart or anything.)

Pawnee Buttes consists of a couple of impressive sandstone towers rising up above the buffalo grass prairie of the Pawnee National Grassland. If you've never been to a National Grassland, it's really not hard to visualize: Just imagine lots and lots (and lots) of tall, windblown grass spread across flat plains from horizon to horizon, punctuated by the occasional yellow or purple wildflower. Maybe some cows here and there (and their hubcap-sized residue.)

Technically, the buttes don't "rise above the prairie" so much as "they haven't yet eroded down to the level of the prairie." (Hey, we are all about scientific accuracy here. And by the way, they have found dinosaur fossils here.)

You have to drive about 15 miles on dirt roads after leaving the pavement, and need to keep a sharp eye out for the faded brown signs that direct you to the trailhead. There were a few mud pits within the road, which caused us some concern since I've been trying to ride the last ounce of rubber out of my bald tires...but we managed to splash through them without getting stuck. You'd think traffic would be sparse so far from civilization, and indeed there were zero passenger cars to be seen en route. But there was surprising volume of truck traffic, which I assume existed to service the numerous oil wells and/or missile silos that pepper the area. If we'd have gotten stuck, I'm sure one of the truckers would've given us a push.

The trail itself offers a ~5-mile round trip across grass, around the buttes, and up to the base of the most distant formation. Part of the trail winds through eroded gullies where you hear the sounds of a variety of prairie birds and get a feel for the diversity of life in the seemingly barren environment. We didn't see any snakes or lizards or mice, but there are bound to be millions of them in the vicinity. We did have the chance to see a lone coyote trotting down the path a few dozen yards in front of us. He looked us over, but obviously recognized that it would be folly to mess with highly-trained swimmers.

Even the simple dirt path parts of the trail offer lovely views (though I'd hate to be out there in the heat of high summer). Click to embiggen this view and you'll notice the giant wind farm visible in the distance. I know that windmills aren't exactly a native part of the landscape, but I generally find them to present a pleasing aesthetic.



I really enjoyed this hike, and consider it worth the long drive from Denver. I bet it would be especially beautiful at sunrise or sunset...but we were there from mid-morning to early afternoon.

I guess that's all I have to say about Pawnee Buttes. But I did want to share a couple of other photos from the previous day. The first is a view from the road leading up to the Eldora ski area, where we had a very pleasant hike on the less-than-well-marked Jenny Creek trail.



This photo is from the dam of Barker Reservoir looking back toward Nederland. I thought it was very pretty.



So that's it for today. Please tell your friends that despite my absence, I am indeed alive and well...and still in search of the elusive winning lottery ticket. Thanks for dropping by, and have a great day!