Today's planned route: NONE (Believe it or not, today is spontaneity day.)
I’ve given myself the whole day to poke around Grand Junction and see what’s there. It will also be nice to spend a day without driving more than 20 minutes. So I skip the interesting sounding areas to the city's east, Grand Mesa National Forest (150 mile scenic drive) and Glenwood Springs (an hour and 20 minutes away), saving them for a return visit. From my notes taken from the Visitor's Bureau web site <http://www.visitgrandjunction.com/global/thingstodo.cfm>:
Grand Mesa, “the world's largest flattop mountain”, is a mass of wild flowers during mid-summer, and at 10,000 feet, boasts lush spruce forests and over 200 pristine stream-fed lakes jumping with trout… Glenwood Springs has hot springs, [and] is the location of two rivers – the Colorado and the Roaring Fork, with a 16-mile trail along the Colorado River.
There are also the Grand Junction area wineries, which are available for tastings, but I don’t want to be thrown in a foreign jail for overloading with grape shot(s). I’ll save these experiences for when I come back with more time (well, maybe skipping the jail visit).
Grand Junction sits at the confluence of two of Colorado's major rivers, the Colorado and the Gunnison. Seeking to explore this facet of the city, I opt instead to find one of the Colorado Riverfront Trails, a trail system that follows the rivers in and around the Grand Junction area.
I wanted to hike along the river, which is what drew me to this town to begin with, because it looked so serene last year as we traveled towards Denver. There is a series of hikes that are part of "the Colorado River Trail" system that look promising. After breakfasting, I scan through my charts, and punch the closest trailhead into the navi system. A 15 minute drive takes me onto a gravel road, the entrance to which is guarded by a large sign stating "a wilderness stamp is required".
As I ponder how to deal with this hiccup, a fellow driving a CO-licensed truck pulls into the area. I motion him to roll down his window, and then ask about the stamp. He explains that it gives permission to enter the wilderness areas, and is like a stamp on a fishing or hunting license. “They’re available at any sporting good store or the like, they’re everywhere,” he says…
Geez, I think, I havta pay to hike along the Colorado River!
I understand that it’s a useful way to pay for the upkeep of these areas. I am just unhappy that I roll into town looking forward to a pleasant stroll only to find such a road bump. But read on, all’s well that ends well!
"It is not down in any map; true places never are." ~Herman Melville
As I cruise the nearby neighborhoods looking for a shop to purchase the wilderness stamp, I come across a Safeway's, and decide to stop to refresh my water supply and get a few apples for snacks. And it’s here that I decide to go to the Dinosaur Journey instead, so I head west back to Fruita where I’d spotted the museum on my way to the Colorado National Monument yesterday.
Evidently the Grand Junction area is part of the Colorado Plateau, which spreads into the rest of the “Four-Corners” states (also including Arizona, Utah and New Mexico); numerous discoveries of dinosaur fossils and bones have been made on the plateau. The museum at Fruita is a collection of bones, fossils, footprints, photos and rubberized models of the dinosaurs unearthed in the area. Some of the models move if you press a button. That’s entertaining – well, until they repeat the same motion for 5 minutes before coming to rest. I soon learn to walk away after a few moments and continue on viewing the rest of the collection.
Overall, and not being a huge dinosaur fanatic – at least not since Jurassic Park III – I think the visit is okay, not outstanding (I’m sure it’s super for the real enthusiasts). It’s probably worth the $7 admission fee though. And there is one very cool exhibit: I stand on a platform, press (yet another) button, and the shaking/rolling feeling of a magnitude 5.2 earthquake rocks me as the earth lights up behind the Plexiglas display, and the ground rumbles and the sound of fire crackles from the loudspeaker.
And where else can I find dinosaur tattoos like the ones in the gift shop?
There are more pictures from the museum at this WebShots link if you are truly interested:
http://community.webshots.com/album/560955703asxShq
Okay, here’s another reason I had decided to head for Fruita. I also remember from the day before that there is a state park just a block or two beyond the Dinosaur Journey; it's called the James M Cobb Colorado River Park, Fruita Branch. A chance to walk along the Colorado River? I grab a sandwich from the Subway on the way, and pull into the park entrance. I ask the lady at the window what the fee is to come in just to walk around. “Six dollars,” she says, and that seems plenty reasonable to me. But then she adds, “But if you want to go back and park outside the Park and walk in, it would cost nothing.”
So I do as I am told.
The park proper is empty of people except for me. I have a pleasant lunch watching the geese play on a private lake and by the little park playground. I walk along the river as far as I can go until I reach a fenced boundary, maybe a half-mile one way. The opposite side of the river path is bounded by another small lake. The sun is out, it’s around 85°, and all is peaceful. A lovely day!
Here’s a link to more pictures from the James M Cobb Colorado River Park, Fruita Branch:
http://community.webshots.com/album/560956298qfdufh
Yet another half mile down the main road is Dinosaur Hill; it’s here that they first discovered Alosaurus bones in 1908. I decide to take 1 mile hike up and down and around the hill to see what it’s all about. It’s really dry and dusty, the temperature has risen another 6 or 7 degrees, and I’ve not bothered to bring water; and for what I see along the way, or perhaps, don’t see, I’m not sure it’s worth the effort.
There are no bones that I can see, except a cast of some huge spine that looks like a rock layer wrapping around the hilltop; and there is not much in the way of descriptive markers. Halfway up the hill, though, is a nice view of the river below, and around the corner from the summit is the screened off entrance to the tunnel system that was created when they started pulling out the bones – all of which are now in the Field Museum in Chicago.
Two men drive up in a car with AZ license plates as I begin the last leg down the hill to finish the trek. They get out with their dog and go to view the descriptive signs at the trailhead. I suggest that if they are going to do the hike, they should take some water. “Is there anything worth seeing,” they ask?
“Not that I would notice,” I say, “but then, I sure didn't know what I was looking for.”
I climb back into the car and depart for Grand Junction without waiting to see what they decide to do. I still have some sunlight left, and more to see in town. First, I drive east on I-70 beyond the city and double back to downtown, taking a business route that gives me a good feel as to how Grand Junction is laid out, and what some of the neighborhoods are like.
Before I left San Diego, I jotted down a few of the things that were going on in Grand Junction during my stay. The events include The Main Street Farmer's Market, as well as Just a Bunch of Artists Art Show (JABOA). Back at the hotel I stow the camera and water pack, then head back down Main ST on foot. My first stop is a bank on 5th ST, home of the JABOA show.
They advertise the event as their Fourth Annual Art Show, to include “fine art photography, Navaho weavings, crystalline glazed porcelain pottery, watercolor paintings, collages and mono-prints, a visual wealth!” I find the bank, and unshaven and a bit grubby from my hikes this afternoon, I am greeted by a bank employee who asks if I need some help. I say, “If it’s okay, I’d just like to view the art.”
With permission granted, I make a circle around the bank lobby finding only a half-dozen paintings and blown-up photos, a few craft objects and 8 or 9 artist concepts done in watercolor for a new housing tract. I am deeply disappointed…but dinner will be at a Nepalese/Indian restaurant, the farmer’s market will soon be opening and Week 1 of Monday Night Football – New Orleans at Indianapolis – starts at 6:30 p.m. Go Saints!
The Nepali Restaurant on Main ST serves Nepalese and Indian foods. I have an excellent supper of lamb vindaloo with rice, garlic naan (bread) and a glass of a local white wine. The dipping sauces are very tasty and unique. Unfortunately, I feel that I’ve insulted the waiter/owner, or at the least disappointed him, because when he offers me the carrot pudding dessert “on the house”, I politely turn him down because I don’t eat sugar if I can help it. He walks away mumbling to himself and sends his wife to bring the check. Oh well, I figure the next time I’m here, enough time will have passed that I’ll be off his radar. Or maybe I’ll cut my hair and re-grow my beard. I watch from my dinner table as the action unfolds outside.
The town "homeless" character, grey-bearded, thin, tanned leather skin, flashes the peace sign to the town cops as he passes them and ambles down the middle of the street scene, lugging his 2 full backpacks. I think it’s time to join the masses.
I stroll down Main ST to view the Farmer's Market, staged every Thursday evening during the summer. I wonder where the townies park, since there are no cars on Main ST tonight. All of Main ST downtown is blocked off and booths line the avenue on either side. They feature “arts & crafts vendors, children's entertainment, and snack food vendors along with Colorado's finest fruits, vegetables and other food products offered by local farmers”.
A few tweeners ride bikes or push forward on skate boards. There is every sort of people here, all ages, sizes, shapes - but mostly white, in keeping with the demographics of the area. In fact, there are more people on crutches or in wheelchairs than there are minorities. (I'm not attempting a social comment here; I am just struck by the absence of color.)
The booths feature purveyors of produce, arts & crafts, soaps & incenses. Local businesses, radio stations and churches advertise their usefulness. There are political booths, county, state and federal (parks) representatives, along with cheerleaders, street art vendors and bands that play various genres of music from the street corners. I stop to listen to a rock band, members of the grey ponytail set, who blast away on Wild One. Judging by the number of folk who've also stopped to listen, they are a local favorite.
I can't helped but be swept along with the crowd. It is a feel good time, and the streets pulsate with hospitality. Wait, is that pot I smell? No, just the roasting of sweet corn mixed with an occasional fart.
I am back at the hotel in time to watch the Colts trounce the Saints. Well, I guess the day will not end entirely perfect after all.
It’s hard to put into words what it is I like about Grand Junction. I have visited some of the surrounding area, and noted that it has a nice, open feel. It's a good place for the outdoor enthusiast – there is a concerted effort to get people involved in the availability of nature – so there is a host of hiking trails and they advertise their many parks (including the Colorado National Monument), river walks, dinosaur "fields", etc. Oh, and a lot of vineyards!
I like the downtown area a lot, and the atmosphere while I am there is one of community. I love the imaginative feel that the sculptures on every street corner bring to the area. You’re not likely to get lost there either. Grand Junction is small compared to my own experience – the population of the town itself is around 48,000, with another 80,000 in the surrounding area.
I like the idea that it has a small town atmosphere, but it is large enough where you can be incognito and not every one in town knows your business unless you want them to. And the housing seems affordably in my price range.
This is of course, a preliminary scouting stay, much as I've done in other areas. I have other requirements (like an artist/writer community, for instance) that I'll need to research. I'm not even sure yet where the closest airport is to Grand Junction, or how big it is...but my first impression is that Grand Junction should stay on my list (until I seriously decide I don't want to deal with 2 ft of snow a year!).
Some information from the Grand Junction Visitor and Convention Bureau's web site: http://www.visitgrandjunction.com/index.cfm
Population:
City of Grand Junction - 48,141
With outlying towns - 126,445
Mesa County - 127,808
Average Precipitation:
Rainfall - 9"
Snowfall - 22"
Elevation:
4,586 feet above sea level
Average Temperatures:
January - 36 / 16 F
July - 93 / 64 F
Today’s drive:
Doesn’t even count
Tomorrow:
Grand Junction to Moab, UT via Arches NP
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