The Return Of Spring

It got all the way up to 70 degrees today, so I celebrated by riding a 28 mile loop on the local trails. The hobo jungle between Hampton and Dartmouth is still there. Some of the encampments are expanding into split-level dwellings with tasteful driftwood siding to set off the blue plastic tarps. Some of these folks are obviously unemployed architects.

The confluence of Sanderson Gulch and the Platte river is being upgraded to a flagstone lined mountain stream motif to about a block back from the river. If anyone ever visited there, they would certainly be impressed.

The rest of the gulch up to Heart Failure Hill is as usual.

Heart failure Hill is reached by going West on Jewell to Kipling which isn't a bad ride. Alternatively you can go North on the Kipling trail to Jewell, which will make the name seem quite apt. Note that going South on that stretch of Kipling Trail is quite exciting in that it's easy to reach 30 mph going down, narrow trail, limited visibility, and as you go under the tunnel, there's a narrow 90 degree right hander with a decrepit chain link fence on the outside to help break your plunge into a small creek about halfway down so the heart failure is possible both ways although accompanied by abrasions and contusions on the downhill side.

Civic improvements to the Bear Creek trail at Wadsworth include two telephone poles with perches on top big enough to sit 2 golden eagles in the prairie dog town there. Should be some great bird watching opportunities here this year.