Day 7 - South Fork, CO

First thing I did this morning was take a look outside and sure enough there was a little snow. Not much and hopefuly, I thought, not a sign of what was to come.

Once dressed and downstairs I finished the blog for yesterday. Staying with friends and lack of WiFi are the usuall culprets when I'm not on time.

Breakfast and housekeeping, in this case laundry, took up the early part of the morning and then it was off to Creede, Colorado. No trip to South Fork is complete without taking the 22 mile drive up the Rio Grande to Creede. Although silver was discovered in 1869, Creede didn't become an offical Boom Town until the 1889 discovery of silver in Willow Canyon. When Denver underwent major legal reforms owners of major gambling houses moved to Creede. Amoung the more famous to hang out in Creede were Robert Ford, the man who shot Jesse James, and Bat Masterson. Over time silver, gold, lead, zinc and copper were mined in the area. While less than 300 inhabit the town now, the glory days saw more than 10,000.

Must stops while in Creede include San Juan Sports (open), Rio Grande Angler (closed), coffee shop (closed) and the old fashioned hardware store (open). This year we added the olive oil store. We saw a lot of "Closed For The Season" signs around town.

Lunch was at the Tommyknocker Tavern, a Tommyknocker being a mischievous spirit associated with mining. Anyway we were joined by Creede resident Sara, who we had lunch with two years ago, for a great lunch while watching it snow. Heading back to South Fork I had to make a quick U-turn for a photo op with a few big horn sheep.

Dinner was at the Windsor Hotel in Del Norte. Built in 1874, it ws saved from the wrecking ball in 1993. Restored to it's past glory, it is now known for fine dining and luxury accomodations. The great meal shared with Frank and friend Sally was finished with a one of a kind dessert.

Early to bed for the drive to Flagstaff.

51 miles today.

Posted from my iPad2