Above the Waterfall

Isn't that a beautiful little stream! The water in the stream here is completely isolated from that below because of the high waterfall. We could see fish in the stream here, and they are a pure strain of wild Colorado Cutthroat trout, a small and very important population. Because of these fish, this area will be preserved. However, there is great pressure to drill gas wells up on the plateau above. I worry about that. I can imagine all the roads that would have to be cut to get to the various drilling sites. Also, is it possible that drilling the wells not too far away could pollute this stream somehow?
Also notice the overhanging cliff and remember that it is oil-bearing shale. I am sure that you also remember the $4/gallon we were paying for gasoline, Our way of life requires more and more energy. We have gotten a lot of it from other countries, and now there is increasing pressure to exploit all the sources we have here at home. If people like me want to keep all this beautiful area wild, then are we hindering the development of our energy resources? Further questions: Should we drill off-shore in Florida? Should we drill on the north slope in Alaska, in the Alaska National Wildlife Refuge? And, should we begin construction on new nuclear power plants? These questions haunt me......

More about the Roan Plateau

This picture is taken down in the canyon which lies to the left of the picture in the last blog. Notice that water goes over the cliff which is a layer of shale. The stream below is thus isolated from the stream above the falls. Other people on the hike went on down and climbed over boulders and trees to get to the bottom of the fall. We old people didn't make it, but maybe I can talk them into sending us a picture from down there. They said it was beautiful, and I bet it was. Ok, in the next blog, we will go to the stream above the falls to see what it looks like.

Roan Plateau

The Roan Plateau lies northwest of Rifle. We drove up on the Plateau last Saturday, driving in from Rifle on a very steep road which winds back and forth as it climbs the Roan Cliffs. After reaching the top, we looked across miles of beautiful countryside, cut with streams and canyons. We drove on to a spot above the west fork of Parachute Creek, and hiked down into the canyon. In the picture, Arleta is hiking down into Parachute Creek, which lies in the canyon to the left of the picture. It is fall here, a beautiful time of year, with leaves changing color.
The cliffs you see along the canyon are characteristic of this whole region. They are made of oil-bearing shale, and therein lies a problem. Many people would like to devise ways of extracting oil from the shale, but can you imagine what a destruction of this wonderful place, the removal of shale would cause? Also, a lot of natural gas lies beneath the area. Though there are many, many gas wells in the Colorado valley below, people would like to drill wells on the plateau as well. If this were to happen, there would be great disruption. I wish we could keep the area wild, perhaps saving a considerable portion of it as wilderness.

Yankee Boy Basin

Colorado has so many beautiful places, I am sure we could never visit them all. We were in Ouray and Dan suggested we drive up to Yankee Boy Basin. The picture is taken looking back toward Ouray. Our car is on the left. Notice how the road was made almost right on the face of the cliff. Ahead of the car, the road goes right under an overhang of the cliff, with a further drop-off on the right to the beautiful stream below. You will probably notice that it looks a little hazy in the distance. That is because it was raining. We had a lot of rain in our outings this summer. Sometimes we complained a bit, but we certainly need the rain, and at times, it added greatly to the beauty of the area.

A Beautiful Place

American Basin is a beautiful mountain basin, lying among 13,000 and 14,000 foot peaks which surround it. To get there, drive on the Alpine Loop above Lake City. I don't think you can find more beautiful flowers, or more fascinating mountain scenery anywhere. We drove up to American Basin twice this past summer, once in July and again in August. Early in July, we were a little early for many of the flowers, but in August they were out in abundance.

Checking In

We will be going to Ethiopia in October. I want to get back to my blog after being away for some time so that I can keep my friends posted about what we see and do in Ethiopia. I also want to post a few pictures perhaps and also let you all know what goes on in our life. Hope you will be reading these blogs and commenting if appropriate. So, here goes.....!