FISH CATCHING TRAVEL
Knockin Tail Lures by My Coast Outdoors
The weather this winter has been something else. While up north and in the really high country there is snow, here at 8,400 feet it has basically melted. But it is absolutely stunning weather. It will hit 60 degrees and looks like it will stay that way for a while. So nice, but snow is the life blood of Colorado, much less the border and California. All that water comes from somewhere, much of it here. Our area is considered drought, and we need snow. While we walked today the coats came off. And that fancy snow blower on the porch is just taking up space. There is only one thing good about the weather, the boat might come out sooner.
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One of the things we love about Colorado is how much folks love the outdoors and as a group are healthy and fit. When we saw the climbing festival was in Lake City we were excited to see it and were so glad we did. It sure looked like big fun.
Just a small section of the climbing areas.
This is a small section of the ice wall. They flood it from the creek every year and it is open to all. All I have to say is how cool, and I wish I was 20 years younger. The Boss and I did a high building urban rescue course and took folks off buildings, so we know how to get down. Going up looks like another completely different operation. I would do it in a heartbeat. All climbers had a belay person supporting them at the bottom which obviously reduces the risk of dying. The tiny figure at the bottom of the first pic is belaying for the little, tiny person halfway up. These are one big ice walls.
All climbers had a belay person supporting them. This was more a free climbing accent. Belayed for safety but able to free climb with the existing anchors. Way cool.
Success!
Just a few of the dozens of folks climbing. It was fun and amazing. As we walked and watched folks the Boss looked up and there was one crazy mofo. It does not get any cooler than this guy. First up how high he was. The cable stretched completely over the entire canyon. He did not use a balance pole and fell once but hopped back up and made the trip both ways. We learned he does this all over the world and that was his practice run.
That would be him!
He fell once and it was something to see him hop back on a swinging cable.
How about a little perspective. The only word I can think of – Stunning.
All I have to say, what a stud. This was no bullshit high!
On our drive we went past San Cristobal Lake which I have fished before. There were a few ice shacks and a couple of vehicles out on the ice. The point is next weekend Lake City has another festival but on the frozen lake. Whether just walking, snowshoeing, alpine skiing, or hell belly crawling, it does not matter. All are welcome to traverse the mile course and indulge in a few cold ones along the way. I keep saying it but Colorado is just plain cool.
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As we headed back from Lake City way up in the mountains the Boss slowed down and here is why.
Feed Me!
She stopped and rolled down her window and this fox came right to the door. It was near a busy trail and obviously has been begging. This is why you NEVER feed wild animals. When normally talking about habituation it is this, feeding animals so they associate us with food. It does them no favor and in this case leads to getting hit by a car.
The bigger picture is Yellowstone where the animals are habituated in a different way. They are so used to cars and people unless it is a Touron they go on about their lives. Why I rag on photographers who tout their stuff with pictures from the park. While great and manipulated the animals there are easy to find and photo. Or as in one case a “pro” was feeding fox to get them close, that is not a wildlife photographer, that is a butt head. A kid with an iPhone can do just as well.
As a side note we saw one on the way up, boy are they cool looking with their winter coats and stick out like a sore thumb when hunting in the snow-covered fields. We did see one bunch of sheep on the way up but wanted to get to the ice climbing so did not stop. But did not see them on the way home.
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The Billionaire Land Grab Continues
In our travels we have experienced the hate (I will use that term for lack of a better one.) folks in some places have for outsiders moving into the area. Our first experience was in Arkansas where folks “hated” the people from Chicago. There is always that we don’t care how you do it there so don’t tell us how to do it here. That attitude was prevalent as the city folks wanted to change the way the things were done in Arkansas.
The same thing has happened with North Carolina and Florida folks. It happens here in Colorado with them not liking the California folks, same thing happens in Texas as more people migrate from California. And there is a certain amount of those feelings for folks from Texas as they clash some with the residents here. But now there is a real legitimate gripe here in Colorado with a billionaire oil man from Texas.
I have long hated high fence for multiple reasons and this dispute involves over 20 miles of high fence on his ranch here in Colorado. His ranch covers over 100 square miles of what I call high desert including 20 peaks in the Sangre de Christo range. There are plenty of issues including erosion, cut off of the elk and mule deer migration, including cutting off water holes along with a 20′-foot-wide swath cut through the forest. Of course, it is highly complicated and over the last 4 years involves litigation. It seems to be coming to a head soon with multiple stake holders involved. Suffice to say you see very little high fence here other than at major elk crossings and highways. The locals hate it and so do I. As more and more access are being cut off by rich folks the high fence is a blight on the land. It may be legal, but it is an indication of what the rich are doing to the outdoors. Neither they or the current government cannot be trusted to do the right thing for citizens. Is the final result in this country that the rich will own it all and folks are left with little?
Here is a link to one of the many stories available on this issue. You decide what you think of it, but it goes without saying Colorado does not want to be Texas.
Colorado AG steps into battle over billionaire’s fence in San Luis Valley
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The Land Grab Heats Up
The Trump administration in concert with President Not Elected Herr Musk sent out a letter to thousands of the part time seasonal National Park and Monument employees rescinding their summer work in our parks. It will end in chaos as it involves thousands of workers. No one to clean toilets, control traffic and crowds, maintain the parks, it will be a disaster. Our parks, and I do mean OUR PARKS have exploded with visitors and can’t handle the crowds as it is. So what next? You will hear the following: Look at how horrible it is so time to sell some of the land off or turn it over to the rich contractors who gave them money. I hope I am wrong but stay tuned, it is going to be a real mess. I do not understand how folks say you cannot trust politicians and then are ok with this kind of thing.
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It is so sad what is happening to our country. Billionaires are running the show and it will not turn out well. The cash rush is on and it is going to be ugly. So we keep taking our hikes, chasing animals and loving the outdoors. To the rest of the country, Good Luck you are going to need it.
Good Luck and Tight Lines
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