We enjoyed a second relatively clear day today. We departed Old Snowmass and made a stop at one of our favorite free hot springs. It's literally right next to the highway and hardly anyone knows it is there. The hot water trickles out from seeps under the road and into the Crystal River. People have used rocks to construct riverside pools that blend the extremely hot spring water and the cold river water to a perfect temperature.
When we arrived today, there were only two other people there - two young women who were enjoying the clothing free option, and they were not shy about it either. They were in the best pool, but they pointed us to the next best area. After a bit they got up and gave us the prime pool which was a perfect soak. I didn't take photos this time (for obvious reasons of not looking like a creep), but I had a few photos from two years ago when we were there all alone.
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| Looking upstream at Elena |
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| View of the pools from just off the roadway |
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| Paul's feet pointing downstream |
Then we decided to head into Crested Butte, since the smoke haze was almost nonexistent. You can go the long paved road, or the shorter dirt/gravel/washboard Kebler Pass road that's "only" about 30 miles long. We chose the short and super scenic route through Kebler Pass. We're certainly giving our new van a thorough "shakedown" as we bounced and vibrated along the narrow road. We enjoyed a lunch stop along the way and when we arrived at Crested Butte I pried Elena's white knuckled hands from the door and seat. She was on the outboard side of the narrow road with steep cliff drops.
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| Lunch stop along Kebler Pass. Bebop is in the ditch. |
We enjoyed a nice hike in Crested Butte. In the summer, that town has more bicycles than people. Bebop enjoyed the wildflowers and mountain views.
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| Mount Crested Butte behind Bebop |
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| Bebop frolicking in the wildflowers |
We are at our campsite for the night near the Curecanti National Recreation area. Tomorrow we head back into the mountains and visit the little town of Creede, CO.
- Paul
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