October 9, 2019. Aspen, Independence Pass and Leadville.

 

October 9, 2019.  Aspen, Independence Pass and Leadville. We’ve been to Aspen several times over the years.  Aspen was, of course, the home of John Denver, one of our favorite recording artists.  Years ago, Annie and I tried to find his home for a drive-by photo.  The home, Starwood in Aspen, his sweet Rocky Mountain Paradise, is in a gated residential area.  We were turned back at the gate despite my humming Annie’s Song to the guard.  The guard was obviously no respecter of talent.

In the heart of town is the John Denver Sanctuary.  It is in a sheltered and secluded acreage along side the Roaring Fork River.  The sanctuary is landscaped with boulders, flowers, grass and large stone carvings of his song lyrics along with quotes from other notables including Helen Keller, Albert Einstein and Jacques Cousteau.  Walking paths take visitors through the sanctuary.  We spent most of an hour reflecting on his poetry and thinking of the times we listened to his music on road trips.  It was a moving experience.

There is a visitors center adjacent to the sanctuary.  We stopped there for directions. The nice lady there walked us out the front door and pointed to a walking bridge over the river, no more than 100 yards distant.  She told us that this is John Denver week in Aspen, that fans from all over the world were in Aspen in tribute to the singer.  With that knowledge we were surprised that the sanctuary wasn’t teaming with people.  There were, perhaps, twenty there.  I saw one sixty-ish woman, attended by another younger woman, maybe a daughter, sobbing at the lyrics to Annie’s Song carved in a massive stone.  I suggested to Annie that the area should be renamed “Trail of Tears.”

We drove around Aspen a bit.  It was founded in 1879 as the town of Ute, named after native Americans who inhabited the area.  It was another mining town, with huge silver deposits.  It grew to 15,000 residents before the silver crash in the 1890s.  The population is now 7300 and it is known as a favorite of celebrities which has driven real estate prices beyond the reach of many of the workers there.

Independence Pass is accessed by a narrow and winding Highway 82.  Annie Farkley did not like the drive.  The passenger side of our car was the one nearest the guard rails protecting her from the steep canyons.  She was constantly raising and lowering her left hand signaling me to slow down.  She was critical of my choice of routes, my driving and my constant chortling at her uneasiness.

We drove through Leadville without stopping.  I like Leadville.  I like the thin air, the history and the sturdiness of the people.  I asked Annie if she wanted to live in Leadville.  She said she did not.  It is too close to Independence Pass and she has no desire to go that way again.

Snow tomorrow, maybe.  I’ll let you know.

Goodnight.