OK, what was so different about Colorado "back when?" (Denver: apartment, hotels)

[jazzlover]

On numerous occasions, I have posted about how today’s Colorado is a lot different from the Colorado of even a few years ago. I’m sure many people ask, “So, what’s so different?” Well, I decided to relate a true story of mine that happened about 30 years ago. It might illustrate how both Colorado and a lot of the people who live here have changed. I'm not editorializing here about which is "better" or "worse." People may draw their own conclusions about that. This is just my personal "reminiscence."

A friend of mine and I were in Grand Junction one summer Saturday afternoon. As usual, it was hotter than hell in “Junction.” About 4 PM, we decided we ought to go “to the hills” and cool off. We decided to head for Silverton and spend the night there. Before we left Grand Junction, my friend suggested that we ought to take his brother along for the trip. Now, the only hitch was that his brother was working in Gunnison and we would have to pick him up since his car was in the shop being repaired. We went to a pay phone (no cells then), called up my buddy’s brother and told him we would pick him up. 2 ½ hours and 135 miles later we were in Gunnison and picked up “brother.” Now, we could have backtracked to Montrose, then south to Silverton, but what fun would that have been? We decided, instead, to take a “shortcut” down to Lake City, then over the jeep trail from Lake City over Engineer Pass and down to Silverton that way.

So, off to Lake City (65 miles) where we stopped for dinner, picked up a couple of six-packs and headed over Engineer Pass. Now, Engineer Pass is not exactly a great road, even in daylight, but now it was near 10 PM. Oh, well. By the time we hit the top of the pass, it was midnight. That was an unforgettable trip, bouncing over a jeep trail in the middle of the night, with only our headlights and starlight to guide us. (Don’t try this at home.) We finally got into Silverton after 2 AM. We had not seen another vehicle since we had left Lake City.

At this time, Silverton still had active hardrock mines, and most of the town’s year-round residents (around 800 full-time residents then) were miners. They were a hard-working, hard-living, and hard-partying bunch. Colorado law (then as now) required bars to close at 2 AM, but Silverton is a long ways from Denver, and several of the bars were still wide open. We joined the Saturday night (actually now well into Sunday morning) revelry. We finally crashed into our beds at the hotel around 3:30 AM and a couple of bars were still going. (I asked a friend of mine who lived and worked in Silverton year-round during those years, “What do you in winter, when there are no tourists and the roads are often closed either way out of town for a day or two at a time?” He replied, “Smoke, drink, and ogle each other’s wives.” Not pretty, but pretty truthful.)

We woke up about 6:30 AM to the cool mountain breezes blowing in through the ancient window sashes in the hotel (built 1881) and the sound of running water outside. The local volunteer fire department (manned by several fireman we recognized as some of the revelers from a scant three hours before) were hosing down the streets—washing the broken beer bottles and vomit out of the gutters and down the storm sewers, so the town would look “presentable” to the tourists arriving later in the morning on the narrow gauge train.

We dressed, went down to the café, ordered breakfast, and said, “Now, what are we doing to do today?”

Crazy? Rough and tumble? Crude? Yep, sometimes it was all of that back then, and more. Do I miss it? You bet.

[BlueWillowPlate]

Yes, anyone can be nostalgic about life 30 years ago, no matter what the location.

We had some good times back then!
One example for me would be Strawberry Park Hot Springs before it was developed. There was just nothing there but the springs.
Now it has a shuttle--and a website.

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by cil

Yes, anyone can be nostalgic about life 30 years ago, no matter what the location.

We had some good times back then!
One example for me would be Strawberry Park Hot Springs before it was developed. There was just nothing there but the springs.
Now it has a shuttle--and a website.

Another Colorado "special place" that I remember well from back when. Nothing better than sitting up to your neck in an open hot spring pool when it's 20 below outside. Have to dip your head underwater every so often to melt all of the ice off of your hair.

Or how about having to change into your swimming suit in an Army tent at the Ouray hot springs after the bath house burned down a few years back? (Yes, the replacement bath house is quite nice, too.) Or changing clothes outside at the hot springs at Dunton, because the "brown cloud" from the proverbial "wildwood weed" was too strong in the bathhouse (which was falling apart, anyway)? Or soaking at a little known hot spring on a guy's ranch (with permission, of course) near Saguache--with a bunch of the local cowboys--who usually were wearing nothing in the pool but their Stetsons. You would swim over to the edge of the "pool" every so often and dig a cold beer out of the snowbank (yes, not a good thing to do--drinking and soaking, but we were young and ignorant then).

[Katiana]

Your stories sound more like stories of a young adult than anything else, jazz. We all did wild and crazy things back then, no matter where we were. It has litte to do with the so-called "degredation" of Colorado, IMO.

[sunsprit]

or how about heading over Independence pass before it was paved?

or camping out at the 'bells in June and having the whole place to yourself?

or the hotsprings at Carbondale along the banks of the Crystal?

or cruising past Fairplay at 100 mph on a road bike and the CHP coming the other way just waves at you?

or being able to head out of Boulder 5 minutes and able to find complete solitude and nobody else around to spoil your campsite, the views, and the serenity of the place?

or a Boulder 1 Bdr apartment for $37.50 per month?

or a nice "Denver Square" three floor house in Capitol Hill or Park Hill for $28,000? with a carriage house, too?

fishing along the Gunnison with nobody else along the way for miles?

all now long gone ... but the population increase here with it's effects are no different than a whole bunch of special places all around the country we took for granted "way back when". So be it ....

watching Dillon Dam being built and dreaming of the boating and sailing and fishing that it would provide?

seeing the expansion of major ski areas (or their creation to begin with) and dreaming of the fabulous skiing to come?

all part of life ....

[jazzlover]

Originally Posted by pittnurse70

Your stories sound more like stories of a young adult than anything else, jazz. We all did wild and crazy things back then, no matter where we were. It has litte to do with the so-called "degredation" of Colorado, IMO.

You bet I've changed since then (age does that), but the place has changed a lot, too. I'll leave it at that.

[Katiana]

I do remember a few things from the "good old days". We moved to Louisville 25 yrs ago. It was an old mining town of 5000 people, just starting to grow due to Boulder's anti-growth policies. (People have to live somewhere!) Anyway, Harper Lake was a little pond in a wooded area on top of Davidson Mesa. In the winter of 1982, DH and I piled our ice skates and snow shovel into my Ford Fiesta, and drove it into the woods until it about got stuck in the mud. Then we took out the shovels and skates, shoveled the snow off the pond and went ice skating. Today, Harper Lake is a city resevoir, much enlarged and it never freezes. Even if it did, ice skating would probably not be allowed.

[livecontent]

I moved to Colorado in 1979. I took a job at the University of Colorado to cook for their catering; the restaurants, and cafeteria at the Student Center(UMC); Presidents House, Alumni Functions etc. I am graduate of The Culinary Institute of America in Hyde Park, NY.

Well, I decided one day to cook chicken breast for the Cafetera. I rubbed the breast with olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and rosemary. That was a big mistake--there was numerous complaints about the grass(rosemary) on the chicken. There would be no complaints today. So change has at least given Colorado some appreciation of taste and different cusines.

When I worked at the University, it was the time of the Red Zinger Bike Classics and many of the atheletes were housed at the university. I had the opportunity to cook for them--it was crazy--it was the time when carbohydrate loading was the thing--some wanted pasta with every meal. I got to know the bicyclist and they invited me to many parties and I was so surprised by the young, vivacious, gorgeous, girl, groupies that followed these guys all over the world. Ya know, we need another bicycle classic--I will be ready.

I become Executive Chef at the Hilton Harvest House, the next year, 1980. Every weekend, there were parties in the gardens behind the hotel--Friday PM being a big day and when there was a football game--it was chaos. Newsweek or Time, I cannot remember did an article about the parties, telling about all the beautiful girls in danskin tops where dope was traded freely. ----- The next weekend, the local Boulder airport was packed with planes from all other the country, flying into to experience the events and the place was packed for weeks and weeks with jetsetters, yuppies and the leisure crowds from the world.

Another interesting item is about Rudi's Bakery in Boulder. Rudi Bakery produces great products and most people would assume that the name originates from the German--Rudi--for the continental influence---wrong! It comes from a group of followers of some Indian Hindu cult called Rudishiemer??? something???, I can't remember, named after a swami or guru.

Since for large banquets I would order bread from local vendors----I remember having trouble with them, at that time, because my bread would not arrive on time. Since, this was a vendor that was used from the previous chef, I inherited the vendor. But finally, I got angry and went down to the bakery--I was surprised and shocked---the workers were all stoned listening to this Hindu music chants:---now, I knew what was the problem--so I ended the business. But shortly afterwards it was bought by a very nice competent Jewish man and I the service improved dramatically. Now I do not think it now has anything to do swami Rudi.......whatever

One time I had to buy china for the the expansion of the hotel. I went downtown to Store's Equipment, a restaurant supply house, that existed from about 1900. It was run by the Kaufman Brothers, "Arnold" and "Bunny". They were very nice old Jewish merchants but were characters like out of an old Dicken's Novel. I went to their office, I think on Blake and 15th, in this old building; I was greeted by a receptionist using an oldfashion telephone switchboard, the ones with all the cords. Bunny took me back into his office and it must have dated back about 100 years ago with paper cubby holes along the walls.

He told me that he owned many of the buildings on the street and he took me on a tour, through the basements where his inventory was stacked. All the buildings were old and I mean old. There were items of china and tableservice that did not see the light of day for maybe over 50 years, there were oil lamps and equipment that have not been used since the 1930's. He had bought out inventories from old restaurants, ***** houses and hotels. This was just after the fire that destroyed the building that he owned, across from his office, where the Colorado Constitution was drafted---the building was burned by a disgruntled employee.

Now Store's Equipment is no more.....

I did much business at that time, and latter years when Blake, Market and Larimer were still a wholesale market area of Denver and when Denargo Street was still a wholesale produce delivery area......but I said too much.

Now, I realize these are not stories about long ago "native" experiences (whatever that means); These are my stories from years ago and I think are unique views of Colorado History.

Livecontent

[Todd TCE]

Woodland Park. circa 1978:

Winter weather and empty streets. Late at night after a lot of beer drinking. (yes under 18) Flying down "main" at about 40mph and yanking the hand brake in a 67 bug, doing spin after spin in the middle of the road. Who cared? Nobody was there but us. So we did it again!

[DOUBLE H]

Hi live content!. I remember Stores Equipment real well. You are right; that was a firetrap building and a half! I applied for a job there in 1969. I never saw such a jumbled mess in my life but it had literally tons of restaurant equipment and supplies there. GREAT STORY!!