Looking at the Sky

It seems we are all a bit obsessed with the solar eclipse that will travel across the U.S. today. In my part of Kansas, we'll only experience a partial eclipse. But that didn't prevent a run on eclipse viewing glasses in Central Kansas. When I was in Hutchinson last week, I went to five different stores, trying to find the special viewing glasses. I had no luck, even at the Cosmosphere. I guess we'll settle for Randy's welding helmet.

It is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, a fact TV newscasters have been telling us all summer. (So I should have looked for eclipse glasses earlier, right?!) Not many people are still around who would have experienced the last one in the U.S. On June 8, 1918, a total solar eclipse crossed the United States from Washington State to Florida in a path similar to today's event. That was the last time totality crossed the nation from the Pacific to the Atlantic.

I guess eclipse glasses were a "thing" back in 1918, too. This ad from The Denver Post was found on The Great American Eclipse website.

Looking to the sky is nothing new for me. Though we don't often experience this phenomenon when the Sun, Moon and Earth line up in just this way, I am always fascinated with the sky. I love the sunrise, the sunset and the daily variety of clouds and sky.

Once I get past the shelterbelt trees west of our house, a summer sunset in my part of Kansas pretty much stretches from horizon to horizon with very little interruption. I love the beautiful and unique nightly masterpieces created on our Kansas plains, where the only interruption in the sea of color is a strategically-placed tree or windmill to create a silhouette.

In the past month or so, I've gotten to experience new sunset views as we've traveled away from the farm.

When we were in Estes Park, I told Randy I wanted to witness a sunset in the Rockies. We arrived at the Lake Estes walking path one evening during our Colorado stay.

It was a beautiful evening as we walked the path along Lake Estes. The calm lake surface reflected the mountains and the sky (and some high-line poles, but they were easily ignored). 

Wildflowers decorated the riverbanks of the Big Thompson River in a few places, adding visual beauty to the musical notes of water rushing over rock.

Looking away from the sun, we were rewarded with the beauty of the so-called golden hour and a view of the 9-hole golf course where Randy had played. 

Later, geese impersonated actors in a old-time Western, as they left the Lake Estes Golf Course and traveled off toward the sunset. I thought sunset would happen more quickly in the Mountain Time Zone. But it seemed to be on a lazy tourist schedule, and it took its own sweet time.

Worth the wait? Though the backlit cloud bank seemed to create another level of Rocky Mountain "high," I think Kansas sunsets have the Colorado version beat. But I'm still glad we did it.

Then, from August 11 to 13, we traveled to Chicago for a wedding reception for my sister, Darci, and her husband, Andrew. On our first night in the big city, they invited us to their apartment for Greek food, a nod to their actual nuptials in Greece.

When we arrived, I snapped a photo of the view from their balcony.

Their apartment faces east, so they don't have a direct sunset view. But as the sun started to set, we still experienced "sunset" through the reflections on the buildings. 

And I completed the trilogy with a snapshot after dark, but I could still see the remnants of the sun reflected on some wispy clouds (in the upper righthand side of the photo).

It just proves there is beauty to be found, no matter the location. But I always love the quiet solitude and the ever-changing colors of sunset on the Kansas plains.

***

I think I prefer the daytime glimpses of the mountains. Here are a few "leftovers" from my previous Colorado posts.

 Mountain view before rain shower

One day, we had planned to drive to Beaver Lake in the Rocky Mountain National Park.  However, as I like to say, nature was full. The parking lot for that particular spot was at capacity and they were turning back vehicles. We don't know what we missed, but we did see the beautiful Moraine Park. 

The valley was once the melting basin of the Thompson Glacier. The huge mass of ice deposited loads of rock debris or lateral moraines that are now the forested ridges.

I'm a fan of leftovers - whether they simplify the next meal or provide another glimpse of God's beautiful creation.

***

I have been on a bit of a hiatus from Kim's County Line, so this post may seem a mishmash of photos and thoughts. I hope to get back on a more regular schedule after my gallivanting about! 

Par for the Course

"For me, the worst part of playing golf, by far,
has always been hitting the ball. "

Comedian Dave Barry

Oh, Dave: I can so relate. That's why I decide to let my husband hit the ball, and I ride along in the cart. We are both much happier that way.

Early in Randy's fascination with golf, he bought me a used set of women's left-handed golf clubs. He even took me to a driving range and had a professional give me pointers.(Smart man: He didn't try to "instruct" me himself!)

But he can't change my natural propensities: I like being good at the things I do. Yes, I realize that's a narrow-minded way to live, but there you go. It's the truth. I am not good at golf. 

I am good at riding in the cart. I am good at taking photos of pretty places where Randy golfs.

I am good at reading a book while we wait on the foursome ahead of us. I am good at being a conversationalist when called upon and in being quiet during the all-important golf swing.

Randy has made his peace with that. When we go to a new location, Randy likes to golf at courses in the area. The same was true during our trip to Estes Park, Colorado.

Driving range - Estes Park Golf Course

The overall "green" of the course was quite a contrast from the withered lawn and scorched farm fields we'd left behind in Kansas, where 100-degree temperatures were the norm at the time.

As it turned out, Estes Park also was warmer than normal. But it was still cooler than home. And we weren't watching dryland corn and milo fields burn up while there. Out of sight, out of mind? Well, in theory, it works.

Randy golfed at two different courses while there.  The 18-hole Estes Park Golf Course is a public golf course that opened in 1917. He also golfed at the 9-hole Lake Estes Executive 9-Hole Course, a public course that opened in 1972.

A view from the golf cart - Estes Park Golf Course

With the mountain backdrop, I didn't do a lot of reading during our time on the courses.

  

I have added a new "job" to my role as Randy's No. 1 golf fan. Once during a golf outing, I call out, "In the hole," trying to give Randy the experience the pro golfers get on Sunday afternoons. (I always wonder whether the people who are shouting this have their DVRs recording and want to hear themselves on television. I just roll my eyes.) But it is good for a laugh.

So was this sign along the way. For the record, we did not see any elk droppings or hoof prints, so there were no real excuses for mulligans.

Estes Park Golf Course was recognized as the sixth most beautiful golf courses in the United States by Mitch Kaplan, author of The Golf Book of Lists.

We concur:  It was beautiful!

Randy likes to wear K-State gear while golfing because it often generates conversations. At the 18-hole course, he was paired with a couple of golfers who were wearing Oklahoma State orange. I guess we kept it all in the Big 12.

They were all comparable golfers, which made it fun for them all. 

The rain held off until near the end, and the guys played through it. We would have loved to send the rain to Central Kansas instead.

***

On another day, Randy golfed the 9-hole Lake Estes course.

According to publicity materials, it's home to a herd of elk that are active during elk calving and elk rut seasons. We didn't see any elk on the course. But there were plenty of geese.

Randy planned to golf the short course in the morning, and then we were going to go back to Rocky Mountain National Park and drive to Beaver Lake. However, nature was "too crowded." We saw the electronic signs, saying that vehicle access to Beaver Lake was "restricted." We later learned that the parking lot at Beaver Lake was full and had been since 7:40 that morning. Park rangers suggested we come back later in the afternoon.

So ... we went back to the 9-hole golf course. They gave Randy a discount on another trip around the course. It was a pretty day. There was a nice breeze. I had a camera and a book. All was right with the world.

The Lake Estes 9-Hole Golf Course incorporates the Big Thompson River on the last four holes.

Randy only landed the ball in the water once. (One other time, it glanced across the river like skipping stones. That was impressive!)

All was going so well that he decided to make a third round of the 9-hole course. We almost got to the end before we got rained out.

Since it kept raining, we didn't drive back out to the National Park. I guess Beaver Lake will be on a "next time" list.

Rocky Mountain High

It is a good thing, therefore, to make short excursions 

now and then up among the clouds, 

on mountain tops, 

to see better what the sun sees 

on our return to common, everyday beauty.

John Muir

Quote at the Kawuneeche Visitor Center

Rocky Mountain National Park

I must agree with John Muir. Indeed, it was good to make a short excursion to the mountains.

 

Two weeks ago, we were in Colorado. It was a last-minute trip, which is what farmers seem to do ... well, it's what my farmer seems to do. As a child, he remembers similar occasions when his dad would come to the house and announce an impromptu adventure.

We were caught up with farm work because it was so hot and dry. In typical fashion, Stafford County Fair week had brought 100-degree temperatures. While the fairgrounds got some rain one evening, we had missed out on any rainfall at home.

Our last trip that didn't involve children, grandchildren or K-State sports was in 2011, so it was time for a getaway. Randy suggested either Branson or Estes Park. I voted for Colorado, since I figured Branson would be just as hot and even more humid than Kansas.

Colorado didn't disappoint!

We were envisioning a little cabin along a Colorado river. However, when you are making last-minute reservations, you take what you can find. The motel wasn't cheap (but it should have been if going by the quality). While we weren't in a picturesque cabin along the roaring river, we did stop and enjoy the beauty and sounds of water rushing over river rock.

It was our first time to visit Rocky Mountain National Park.

One day, we traveled the Trail Ridge Road from Estes Park to Grand Lake.

 

As we traveled upwards in the Park, the temperatures got cooler, and we even pulled on jackets for a little while. It was wonderful!

Even though we called it "snow," the information boards called it a "glacial landscape," or rivers of ice. No matter what it was called, it was a welcome relief from 100-degree temperatures and watching the dryland corn and milo burn up back in Kansas.

While trees don't grow in the alpine tundra, delicate little wildflowers still flourish. It's like a colorful miracle!

 

For a couple of Kansans, the mountain vistas were a beautiful change of pace, including the play of light and shadows as clouds drifted in and out of the panoramic views.

One of my favorite stops along the way was the valley nestled at the feet of the Bowen-Baker peaks. It was just one of those places where my reaction was "Thank you, God!"

When we got to Grand Lake, we ate our picnic lunch and watched the boats.

  

We definitely didn't need our jackets any longer. Grand Lake is the largest natural lake in Colorado and is known as the headwaters of the Colorado River.

We pulled into the Grand Lake Lodge so we could get a view from above.

Our trip back to Estes Park was just as picturesque - maybe even more so since our views early in the day had been obscured by a cloudy, hazy morning.

I love Kansas, and I will never agree that it's a flyover state or simply a way to get to the mountains from the east.

But it was a treat to see mountain vistas - a change of pace from our life on the flat Plains of Kansas. (Not all of Kansas is flat, but our part of the world is.)

We were amused at one of the visitor centers when Randy heard a dad ask how he and his boys could see a bear. The park ranger suggested going to a campground and looking for the dirtiest camp site. I don't know whether the dad tried it or not. We didn't see any bears. But we did see a few animals ...

 including an elk ...

... some mountain goats ...

 ... and some cute chipmunks.

We did not feed the animals.