Lamar, Wiley, McClave, Hasty, CO -- PHOTO TOUR (Denver, Colorado Springs: living, buses)

[McGowdog]

Here's some pics of these areas and I'd throw in the extreme southern section of Eads as well. These pics are by no means anything special. I was too busy and on the go to take anything fancy. I wished that I could do that sometime, but it's also nice to be on the go and "just do it" if you know what I mean.

I don't do postcard type photos. I see those and they make me not even want to take a photo and put them here. But the reality is, I enjoy doing it for fun. Someone in a local forum asked me to take it a bit more serious because they like my pics. I haven't responded yet.

I have to give props to my current mentors in this; VegasPilgrim for starters. He gives me hope that you can take pics on the fly and give the "real picture" of what we see when we're checking out a place. The real down-to-earth lay of the land, not just the purty sunsets and wildflowers. But I like to see the hue of a sunset or a sunrise hitting a building at the right instant in time. For that, I go with DenverAztec's photos. There are others who inspire me. I can't think of all of them now. But props to them too and here ya go;

[David Aguilar]

Since I had never heard of those towns before, I thought by clicking on this thread I might get pictures of politicians instead.

Nice pictures of a Colorado most people don't often think about.

Looks very peaceful out there, great job once again McGowdog!

[McGowdog]

Lamar. A former place of residence and work for me. I didn't live here long enough to really know the place. But in a year's time, I met some of the folks that make up this area and these names go back a hundred plus years, so... I learned a thing or two about the area. They recently made buses here and the AC units used in them. They lost that due to some selfish decision upstream. Nothing new to many parts of America. They have a little farm down near Springfield that may show some promise in the near future. I'm hoping so. Oh, and they've got a little power plant that looks pretty promising.

One thing I respect about these little towns along the eastern Ark Valley is their independence from towns along the good old Front Range. But the good old Front Range might owe a bit of respect when they bite down on one of those onions in that samich they bought from mickeyDs.

Amongst Ark Valley towns, this is one that's a bit rough around the edges. With a few feedlots around there, it smells like money. If you know the right county roads to take, you can avoid some of that money smell. Lamar does not look like the boom town it may have once been, but it's gettin' along pretty good. I think you'll see some promise for the future here.

Its downtown area needs some help. A lot of places look currently closed down. But it's a living breathing crossroads from Texas and the Olkahoma Panhandle to Denver and Colorado Springs, from Wichita Dodge City and Garden City to the Ark Valley and on up the Sante Fe Trail to the Colorado mountains.

I could have spent more time capturing more historic photos like the tower in the park by the willows area, the tower that perhaps Kit Carson first saw "Them Thar Hills" to the west, or that John Martin Reservoir and Dam that can be seen from space... But like the Wiley thread, I just didn't have time. So here ya go, hope you enjoy some of them;


Ripley's Believe it or Not; Petrified building





















"Go West young man."

[famlife]

lol i was going to comment on the bird poo, till i saw the number of birds u had to contend with!

[McGowdog]

Funny you noticed that. You mean the one by the McClave sign?

That was actually bug splatter. A common thing in Colorado and the surrounding states this time of year, right? I think the birds are out after the bugs.

The bugs at this particular time are an alfalfa miller, I believe. They look like little yellow Aspen leaves.

What's the last thing to go through an Alfalfa Miller's mind once he hits the windshield?

[SheridanL]

umm, "Not gonna' have the guts to do that again!"
Am I right, did I get it?
Nice pics, I am wondering what kind of bird is by that tree, it's huge!!!

[McGowdog]

Originally Posted by SheridanL

umm, "Not gonna' have the guts to do that again!"
...
Nice pics, I am wondering what kind of bird is by that tree, it's huge!!!

I think the answer to that is its booty.

And I think the bird is an emu. This ranch had some yaks too. I wanted to get pics, but they were gone after we took pics of the canal.

[SheridanL]

Oh yeah, his booty goes through his mind! Yep!
An emu, that's really cool. I wonder if people raise them for the eggs?