(Post by Tracy)
Monday morning we drove out of Denver and towards the little town of Silver Plume. We watched in awe as the altitude reading on the GPS went from 5,000 feet up to 11,000 feet.
Silver Plume looked like it has one main thing going for it: tourists come here to board the Georgetown Loop open-air train. The train makes its way along the mountains to the town of Georgetown. Along the way, tourists have the option of stopping for a tour of the former Lebanon Silver Mine.
At the opening of the mine, claustrophobia almost got the best of me. I forged on, though, following our tour guide all the way to the end, where we saw equipment that was abandoned on the day that the mine was closed with the passing of the Sherman Act. Amazingly, while the mining pulleys and excavation equipment looked historic, I can attest to the fact that shovels have not changed much since the 1890’s.
We also learned from our exceptional tour guide that, in a pinch, rubbing the residue from the Aspen tree’s bark on your skin is a natural sun-screen alternative. And while I’m at it, did you know that the Aspen tree is not really classified as a tree? Technically it is a “tree-like plant.” Now you’re ready to join your local Colorado Trivia Team.
After the train ride, we ate lunch in Georgetown at a nice local restaurant that did not have any fruit on the premises. In an effort to be healthy (and because neither baked beans nor coleslaw has ever been appealing to me) I asked our waitress if it was possible to substitute fruit as a side to my sandwich. She thought about it, said, “I don’t think we have any fruit,” but said she would write it down on the ticket and see what happens. A few moments later, she came back saying that there was no fruit in the kitchen. I gifted Tom an extra little side of baked beans.
We finished our meal. We bought ourselves ice cream. Mom befriended the owner of the local homemade-lotion-and-soaps-shop. We went on our way, hearing the train's whistle (two long, one short, one long) fade behind us.
i'm enjoying your travel journal immensely, Tracy! Tell Cousin Diane and John hello. :-)
ReplyDeleteTrivia - supposedly, the two-long-one-short-one-long train whistle that was sounded at traintrack road crossings, comes from the Morse code dah-dah-di-dah, or - - . - which is a Q, which was supposed to stand for the Queen's Train, in England, where, of course, anything from the Queen would get priority, so everyone else get out of the way!
ReplyDeleteThe Queen always has the right of way!
ReplyDelete