Time Machine Travelogue Six

Buckle Everything Up Both Your Ski Boots and Seat Belts

Have you wondered where the time machine has been?  With me traveling so much lately, I haven't even pulled it out of it secret hiding place. You don't want an operational time falling into the wrong hands. It is all systems go though. So I'm rolling this bad beauty out and going back to 1976. Location that we setting is a mile high. We are going to Denver, Colorado.

In 1976 California was in the middle of a serious drought.  I was a skier. So I had to find a place with that glorious white substance. Not what your thinking. We were Powder Hounds and we were like blood hounds sniffing out SNOW.

My best friend's Mom lived in Broomfield, Colorado, a suburb of Denver.  This was going to be our home base for ski trips and sightseeing in Denver. We were spending ten days. We left California taking turns driving straight through. It was the worst time for a long distance driving trip because President Richard Nixon, Tricky Dick, instituted the 55-mile per hour speed limit. Like Sammy Hagar, “I Can’t Drive 55.” In Wyoming, there were pronged horned antelope going faster than us.  I think I forgot to check the antifreeze in my Volvo 242.  The engine’s thermostat broke so the coolant kept circulating through the engine.  Leaving Wendover, Nevada the inside of the car started to get cold.  It was so cold that that the moisture from our breaths froze on the inside of the windows.  Good thing we always traveled with blankets in case of emergencies. It was January and when we stopped at a station I had stopped many times, a place called Little America in Wyoming; the temperature said it was minus ten degrees. That is minus twenty-three degrees Celsius for my International readers.  We arrived at my friend’s Mom 24 hours later. 

The neat thing about a week ski vacation is you get to ski mid week when the crowds and lift lines are less.  Being Sunday my friend’s parents took us to Boulder, Colorado.  My friend's step dad worked at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal, and he knew Boulder well.  The University of Colorado is there.  This makes it a college town.  The neat thing about college towns is there are generally cheap places to eat.  They took us to a place called the Aristocrat.  They had massive portions of great breakfast foods. I don’t know if it’s still there.  I would enter the time machine just to go back there to eat, but that's for another trip.

Winter Park Ski Resort

The next day, we went to Winter Park Ski Area.  It was a cold day and it had snowed.  We had to, at that time, cross the Berthoud Pass located on the continental Divide.  We had to put chains on.  I was experienced at doing this but not at twenty below.  My hands couldn't latch the chain with gloves on so I took them off.  Very bad idea because my fingers nearly froze off.  This California boy was not use to temperatures like this.  The skiing was great light and fluffy powdered sugar and plenty of untracked snow.  My friend loved putting down figure eights on the runs. 

The next day, it was another ski area.  It was then called A Basin.  Previously it was called Arapahoe Basin and the name has reverted to it since.  The unique thing about A Basin is it is one of the highest elevations for its base and its peak.  The 13,000-foot elevation leaves you breathless.  However, the snow was incredible and taking breaks made for an easier day.  The views of the Rocky Mountains were stunning.  With these views your psychic batteries are recharged. 

Later in the week we went to Keystone Resort.  This was a corporate resort.  It didn’t have the feel of maybe going broke next week like A Basin.  The experience at A Basin was definitely geared to the skier who was challenged by the terrain and took that challenge on with relish.  You saw skiers in blue jeans tearing up the slopes.  Keystone was powder and stretch pants.  The beautiful people enjoying being seen in the lift lines.  They skied using a Stem Christie technique stopping to chat at the side of the run.  Very few die-hard skiers were there just to ski.  You could tell by the long lines to grab a burger.  Maybe we were too workman but it made us feel like we didn’t fit.

In between days of skiing there was sightseeing in Denver.  If you are looking for a strange place to visit you have to go to the Molly Brown's House.  The Unsinkable Molly Brown’s story is legend.  Her story has been told in films several times.  She was a survivor of the Titanic sinking.  Her house was a great example of the Queen Anne Style.  It has the ornate gingerbread appointment inside and out. 

I love museums.  Denver has a great Art Museum.  There were several floors of exhibits. Each floor was incredible.  The Native American art exhibits were extensive and informative.  Pre-Columbian to Western expansion artifacts were impressive.  There were many examples of art and artifacts from several different Native American tribes from different regions of the United States.  Other Western art included famous works of paintings and statues.  Western artist like Fredric Remington, Charles Russell were prominently exhibited.  There were displays of old styled firearms.  The men in the group will enjoy looking back at the guns the tamed the West.  If you go to Denver in any year never miss the Denver Arts Museum.  Even if you are not a fan of museums there is something for everyone.

Lastly I cannot remember back on my trip to Denver without talking about a Mexican restaurant, Casa Bonita.  When they told me that we were going to go to a Mexican restaurant, I thought we have Mexican places literally on every corner in California.  

When we arrived, what I saw was amazing it was a giant pink warehouse.  Upon entering there was a long line leading up to a cash register.  The food looked like nothing special.  Typical gringoized Mexican food.  They put it on a tray sent you to look for a seat. Then you entered to where you were to look for a seat it became apparent to why Casa Bonita had its charm.  The inside was a Disneyland of restaurants.  There were many different themed rooms.  There was a Cantina, a jail, called the Pokey, and a large multi storied room with a waterfall that resembled Acapulco Cliff side.  This is where we chose to eat.  The food was okay but the ambiance was incredibly rememberable.  After eating, we strolled around looking at all the other possible rooms.

Well, I need to get us all back to our own time. The time machine needs to cool down and be put away.  I will make sure it is ready for next week’s travelogue.