Book 7 final E-Copy with Ring Cover 10-6-2018 (2)

JUST AROUND THE BEND

Episode VII

CHAPTER 11

ARKANSAS RIVER:

Cottonwood Pass:

We will eventually leave Colorado along
the Arkansas River Valley and out onto the
Great Plains. The Arkansas River is best
known for what few know it for.
Surprisingly, it was the boundary of the
greatest deal in the history of the
Continental United States.

The Arkansas River was the southern
boundary of the Louisiana Purchase.
South of it belonged to the French. North
was the 2/3 addition to the United States.

We were in our ‘One Mile’ camp on the
Taylor River and ready to move on, over
the Continental Divide through Leadville
to Avon and meet the Colorado River at
State Bridge.

After taking the round trip through Tin
Cup and around to Gunnison we realized
that the longest trip toward Leadville
would be south through Gunnison, east
along US 50 to Salida and north on Rt 24
to Leadville.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

From Leadville it would be easy to meet up
with the Colorado again.

The Tin Cup trip was inspiring to us. We
realized that we could make it over the
dusty back roads and high Continental
Divide passes that surrounded us. These
were really short cuts. We would only need
to persevere.

In this case the comparison was as easy as
the decision. The short cut was about 50
miles from camp up over the Cottonwood
Pass and down the opposite side to Buena
Vista.

The choice we made was the short cut, at
10-15 miles per hour. We’d have to keep
our eye out for deep ruts, pot holes, and
possible washouts. Even if we couldn’t get
through and had to turn around it would
be quite an adventure.

We were up early after having a pleasant
evening visiting with the host and another
couple that had traveled all over North
America, from Nova Scotia to New
Mexico.

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JUST AROUND THE BEND

Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

In an hour we set off up the Taylor River.
At sunrise we occasionally glimpsed the
sun’s orange reflection against the valley
hillside and it’s flash on the river.

There were no mountain goats on the cliff
as we approached the Taylor dam. Around
the reservoir the second trail after Tin Cup
was the Cottonwood Pass. It looked
promising, as the Forest Service had
probably graded it. We took the turn and
started up. Cottonwood Pass was only
6,000 feet higher, 12,128 feet, through the
tall slender spruce and forest.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

By the time we reached the pass we had
seen several deer, a couple of bucks with
velvet antlers, and so many grand mountain
vistas of the magnificent Colorado
‘fourteeners’ that we couldn’t count.
The dirt road had indeed been graded, no
ruts, no pot holes. It was such an easy and
beautiful drive.
At the Pass we stopped for a final view,
and then the road turned to hardtop.
Going down the eastern slop into Buena
Vista was a piece of cake, even though it

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:
was not nearly as scenic as the sun had
passed over us to the west.

At Buena Vista we had our first sighting of
the Arkansas. It was a ferocious narrow
river, with white water rapids, boulders and
clear water racing down the valley toward
Salida.

Unlike the Colorado River it had not
carved the valley into a deep ‘V’ as it
headed down. It was in a Moraine valley, a
large ‘U’ shaped, curved one, carved by the
glaciers thousands of years before.

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Episode VII

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Twin Lakes:

We headed for the Twin Lakes where we
would camp and over look the headwaters
of this grand river. The Twin Lakes are
dammed and probably a little larger than
the Taylor reservoir.

We climbed several thousand feet above
them and settled on a good site among the
trees, yet with a view of the lakes. We set
up camp, and prepared for dinner.

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JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

Arlene headed for the pit toilets, but came
back utterly outraged at the condition of
them. They had not been cleaned or taken
care of for some time, maybe as long as a
couple of busy weekends.

Sorry, but that’s not what we expect
anywhere and were so grossed out about it
that we searched out the host to get our
check back. It was in a drum canister
which had to be opened by the attendant.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

After a short talk where we appraised him
of the situation and our feeling about it, he
was more than obliged to retrieve the
check.
We packed up for a second time that day
and drove out of this pretty camp away
from the Twin Lakes and the Source of the
Arkansas River. Heading toward Leadville
and around a few mountains to meet the
Colorado River back on the other side of
the divide.
U.S. 50 East:

To continue following along the Arkansas,
we’ll return another time from Gunnison,
US 50, and our favorite camp at One Mile
to pick-up our path to Poncho Springs and
Salida.
Salida is a cross road town with a choice of
going in every direction in Colorado, north,
south, east and west. Not a large town, it’s
major attraction is a Wal Mart store.

We’ve been here many times, always to get
gas, and often to shop. We replaced that
horrible camera episode with a Kodak

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

camera, and of all things we’ve bought
some of those delicious Palisades Peaches.

We’re heading east on US 50 down the
valley along the on-rushing white water
Arkansas. It’s a lovely drive, with the river
beside us we wonder how grand it would
be to take our kayaks along it. The rapids
never looked like, level 4; beyond our
abilities, just lots of fun.

At Canyon City we passed the State
Penitentiary. That’s where everyone must,
work as it wasn’t much of a town. But,
what caught our attention was the scent of
smoke in the air.

Us Easterners don’t need to read many
newspapers, or visit the great southwest to
imagine what that scent might mean.

Wild Fire!

Our adrenalin popped. Would we actually
see one? Would we be able to drive
through? And then a few more sobering
thoughts.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

We were in a National Forest, and forest
fires generally terrorize the country side.
Thousands of acres are often burned,
people lose homes, ranches and towns are
sometimes burned. And often roads are
closed.

We pulled over, just outside of Canyon
City to look over our map and turn on the
radio. If it was a Wild Fire we’d have to
know where. Even though we assumed it
was either to our south, along the forest
ridge, or much worse in front of us.

If it was in front of us we could run into a
closed road. There aren’t many roads
along here, and detours are long. If we
could take a detour.

The map showed that we’d have to back
track 20 miles to Texas Creek in order to
find another road headed for Pueblo.
Even then the detour would be 60 to 80
miles long before returning to US 50. The
detour might also be closed. In which case
we would back track beyond Texas Creek
to a safe place to spend the night.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

These fires may continue for days, even
weeks, depending on the wind and
weather. If it was so bad, and lasted for
days or weeks, we would have to find a way
to circumvent it probably on route 9 and
24 into Colorado Springs.

The radio was crackling with news of the
fire. It was in front of us between Lincoln
Park and Florence, about 5 miles ahead.

There was no sign of the road being closed
so we hoped we could get through. A
couple of miles later we saw several fire
trucks. They might have been getting
ready to close the road. But, that’s hard to
say as the hills to our south were covered

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

with smoke.

It didn’t take us long to stop lollygagging
and drive past. Hopefully, beyond the fire.

Lake Pueblo:

As we drove along the landscape changed.
While the mountains were obscured by the
haze and smoke to the west the hills
became more and more desert like with
fewer trees and more tumble weed and
dollar cactus appeared.

By the time we reached Pueblo the
landscape was pretty stark. It seemed as if
the strip retail stores were the only thing
holding down the dust.

The old road route 96 led us to the Pueblo
state campground. The area had old warn
out used car dealers, small shops and small
beat up old homes. It wasn’t that
appealing.

Inside the campground we fallowed the
twisting road and shore line around the
burnt grasses and the brown bushes. The
reservoir, Lake Pueblo was suffering from

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ARKANSAS RIVER:
the drought. It was down 20 – 30 feet
from its usual side.
Most of the sites were flat so when we
came to a spot with some trees, we took it.
It had electricity, so we were protected
from the 103 degree temperature that
scorched the earth outside.

We heard that the fire had been contained.
Thank goodness.

The Arkansas was dammed to provide
water for the desert city. It also was
enjoyed as a place to boat, fish and swim.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

The little water that had been let out from
the dam was still called the Arkansas River.

We weren’t staying here long, particularly
with the fire behind us.

At a certain time in our travels, maybe after
a month or even two we feel like we have
been out long enough and that we ought to
be headed home.

We get itchy to be where there’s more
room inside our house, to wander around.
Say from the living to dining, to bed room.
In our rig, whichever one, it’s never more
than a few feet.

By the time we reached Pueblo we’d come
to that point. Often, it’s several days to get
home, sometimes a week or more. From
Pueblo it would be weeks.

Once we reached the Florida border it
would only be 3 days. That kind of
weighted on us as we were used to a
Connecticut sized state where once you
reached it’s border it would only be
another hour or so.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

Out of Pueblo we crossed the rough and
ragged Colorado desert through La Junta
hoping to camp at the Corp of Engineers
on John Martin reservoir, the next damned
site of the Arkansas. Unfortunately, the
State had taken over the campsite. That’s a
code red for us, remembering that
Colorado charges too much for their
campgrounds. We continued through
Lamar out into Kansas.

Kansas:

As we crossed the border into Kansas the
landscape changed. It’s still flat, but
Colorado’s plains are rugged, and rolling,
but there’s not a lot of agriculture. It
seems like the land isn’t used much, and of
course there isn’t much water.

In Kansas on the other hand we could see
as far as the end of the earth.

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ARKANSAS RIVER:

The rough country side had changed into
cattle grazing ranches, corn, wheat, and
sunflower fields.

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We stopped again and again as we passed
acres of cultivated fields. Arlene at one
point got out and climbed through this

sorghum field.
When approaching Garden City from the
east there is the dreadful smell of the feed
lots, thousands of cattle being stuffed with
grain before being slaughtered and
distributed all over the country.
I guess the distribution is something of a
marvel. After being slaughtered pieces of
cattle are shipped everywhere, from
Portland Maine to Seattle, Washington to
Sarasota, Florida within 24 hours. Right to
your grocery.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:
But, approaching from the west we were
traveling down wind and it wasn’t until we
passed the city that we caught the scent.
Ugh. The smell carries for miles.
Dodge:
We stopped in Dodge, Kansas and

although there was a reservoir full of water,
grass on the camp site and trees with some

shade the poor Arkansas River was empty.
We would cross most of Kansas and
Oklahoma before it started to gain some
volume. In the meantime we were excited
about being in DODGE.

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Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

That wild west town where all the cattle
drives from way down in Texas loaded
their beef onto the trains for shipment to
the East.

The Rodeo was in town and everyone was
in a celebrating mood. This was great, just
the kind of break we needed, for a pick-
me-up. We figured the Dodge Rodeo
would be high on the Rodeo list, one of
the big ones.

It really isn’t, Las Vegas is the biggest.
Dodge is on a par with the others we’ve
attended in Moab, Utah and Deadwood,
South Dakota, small potatoes. We didn’t
care what size it was, and after getting

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Episode VII

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settled we headed into town to join the
festivities. We walked around a bit,
thought about buying rodeo tickets, and
visited several of the open booths.

Down town we weren’t surprised to see
something like a Zimmerman store. It’s
possible that there are more German
migrants in America than any other
nationality. There are communities of
them everywhere, around America.

It’s nice, but I’m the last of this side of the
family tree. Dan and my brother’s son
Michal are still alive, but neither have male
off spring.

Actually, I’m glad about that, not because
the family name is lost, but because it’s not
necessary to continue the sexist tradition.
Arlene for instance should be Milton-
Zimmerman after her family name.

Instead she has used her family name first
in business and secondly as her middle
name after we were married and she
retired. Arlene Milton Zimmerman. (She

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ARKANSAS RIVER:
has always had a grand hand, and enjoyed
writing Zimmerman.)
On the corner of Boot Hill and Wyatt Earp
boulevard was this Long Horn steer, ‘Texas
Red’. We’ve never seen one before. This

guy was huge and friendly. We should
have gotten his autographs, or hoof print.

We’ve told the story about creating a name
for ourselves as we drove across the plains
years ago. It’s ‘Double ‘R’, Bar ‘Z’. We
thought we’d use it on the entrance gate to
our ranch. Also as a branding iron for our
cattle.

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Well, here was our opportunity, a booth
with all kinds of metal work.

We looked everything over and really liked
the craftsmanship. These folks did some
really nice wrought iron. We bought this
coat rack, with the lariat swirling cowboys.
These guys were so good that after leaving
with our cowboys we decided to go back
and ask if they would make something up
for us. We figured we’d be here a couple
of days, if we went to the rodeo, and they
could do it before we left.
They were so friendly, said they could do it,
but not during the rodeo. They would mail
it to us. This is, with their help what we

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designed. The circle just tied the whole
piece together.
It’s great! Double ‘R’ Bar ‘Z’!

Dodge Rodeo:
We were on a high. So pleased with
ourselves we bought tickets to the Dodge
Rodeo and went back to the RV to get
ready for the bronco’ and barrel racing.
Now we’re getting pretty good at this
‘dress-up’ for the event. Arlene pressed
both our long sleeve shirts. Cowboys and
Cowgirls alike wear starched long sleeves.
We even put a crease in our Levies.

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My brother had given me a pair of cowboy
boots. They were a bit tight so I hadn’t
worn them, but figured I’d survive one
night. Both of us wore our summer straw
cowboy hats, with the wide brims.
We were ready.
Welcome to the Dodge Rodeo!

The opening festivities were great.
Horsemen with banners, paraded around
the ring. An announcer introduced all the
important people who were responsible for
the show. There were more parades and

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˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:
roping, like Monty Montana the famous .
trick roper.
They then called out the ticket numbers for
the winners of the raffle.
Oh! My! Arlene had a winning ticket. She
won!

This beautiful commemorative pewter belt
buckle.

WHA! HOO!
She nor I ever win anything. How happy
we were.
Now it was time to get down to the
Bucking Broncos and the real Rodeo.

375


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

Out of the gate, one after another
cowboy’s being tossed into the air, chaps
flying, hats flung off and often them too.
A fierce battle, man and beast. Some made
it 8 seconds, others not so long.
Here’s the story of the ‘Strawberry Rhone’
and one cowboy bronco rider:
“They went up in the east and came down
in the west. Turning on a dime and giving
a quarter change. Their hooves reach to
the sky while their neck drops and their
head strikes the ground. They twist like a
pretzel and coil like a spring. Hats fly,

376


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND

Episode VII

ARKANSAS RIVER:

boots flap in the sky, then reach into their
hides, arms swing and heads roll.”

We stayed for the last roped calf late in the
evening. Back in the RV we could see the
final fireworks bursting into the sky. This
had been a great couple of days. We took
off our cowboy outfits and cooled off in
the welcomed air conditioning with a glass
of wine and Arlene’s prize.

The next day we packed up and left
Dodge.

To The Mississippi :

We’d traveled across the plains into eastern
Oklahoma where the Arkansas gathered
some water headed into the grand state of
Arkansas, Fort Smith, to Little Rock and
on finally as a fully fledged river merging
into the Mississippi, before flowing
together toward the Gulf of Mexico.

377


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

378


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi “œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 1
Colorado:
State Map and some of the trails traveled.

379


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 1
Rio Grande River from Colorado to the
Gulf of Mexico.

380


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 1
Colorado River from Rocky Mountain
National Park to Gulf of California.

381


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 1
Arkansas River across the states to the
Mississippi River.

382


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 1
Kansas and Nebraska Rivers from
Colorado:

383


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

384


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 2
Colorado Water Conservation Board:
No Water: 2004 Report on water usage.

“We have to be more agile as a state if we
are going to react to the changes that are
right in front of us.” “That is going to
require trade-offs, and people are not going
to be able to necessarily use the water they
want to use all the time.”
Essentially, the 30% of the population on
the Eastern Front, will have to cut back on
using 70% of the water they use. Today
there are 29 tunnels transporting water to
the east. It is estimated by 2050 that the
need will double.
This is a typical political issue where the
smaller population in the west can’t resist
or modify the laws against the larger and
growing eastern population.
This particular problem exists in states all
over the country. Florida as one example
is ruled by the developers on each coast,
who’s population is far greater. North Port,
before the economic failure of real estate

385


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND

Episode VII

APPENDIX 2

had approved building 3,000 more homes,
while the state’s congress was considering a
law to transfer water from the north, south
beyond Orlando to support them.

We have seen over years how irrigation has
used much water, and even drained the
aquifers underlying the states. This is true
across the Southwest, and the plains in
Colorado, Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma,
Nevada, California, Arizona, New Mexico
and Texas.

This is a groundwater depletion map across
the west. It’s easy to see how Colorado is
cut in half by the Rocky’s West and the
Eastern plains. The Colorado plains are
estimated to have depleted between 10 –
25 Kilometers (yellow) to over 150 – 400
Kilometers (red stripe) from their
underground reservoir.

386


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND

Episode VII

APPENDIX 2

It is easy to see that these southwestern
states and Colorado need to work on their
use of water. Rebuilding the underground
aquifers in a warming climate and multiyear
drought will be a huge task.

Residential areas use more water than
agricultural, and are less responsive. The
developers of residential communities have
the political strength, which endangers the
natural resources.

387


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 2
We don’t believe Florida is up to solving
their water problem, and probably
Colorado and the Southwest states aren’t
either.

388


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

Before we left The Black Canyon we penned a
letter to our grand daughters about this
wonderful story.
How the West Was Won:
Yesterday we drove down into the Black Canyon
of the Gunnison. After camping on the top rim
for almost a week. We couldn’t find a way to
hike down, because the side walls were so steep.
Tthe several trails were so rough and dangerous
that going down would have required cliff
climbing equipment. Neither of us were ever
interested in that kind of adventure.
Near the end of the week we discovered a boat
excursion at the far eastern end of the canyon,
where it wasn’t quite so steep. If we could get
down to the canyon floor we’d be able to go into
the canyon. We’d drive half way down, along a
winding, switch-back, gravel road, and then down
300 steps or more to the river. From there we
would follow an old railroad track down the river
a mile or more into the canyon before getting to
the boat dock.
Since we are on the western side of the
Continental Divide rivers run down stream,
westward toward the Pacific Ocean, not eastward
to the Atlantic, like the Hudson River.

389


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

But, let me backup a little, as the canyon has
quite a story. Thanks to our anthropologist and
geologists.
A long time ago, before people, even before
animals and dinosaurs, this steep canyon was
formed. The rock on each side was so hard that
the river running through never dislodged a
single pebble and therefore ran so clear and
transparent it looked like glass. It’s only color
came from the reflection of the sky.
On one side, to the north there developed a huge
mountain volcano, and as it erupted, over the
years, it filled the canyon with the softer volcanic
rock. It filled it to the brim so you couldn’t see
the canyon. It looked as if there were only rolling
hills slopeing off the gigantic volcano.
As our earth formed, and changed there was
nothing like good old water to help wash away
the soft volcanic dirt and rocks. The water of the
river kept working it’s way off the mountains
toward the sea. Instead of running clear it carried
the softer rocks along with it, and started cutting
back into the once great canyon.
By the time Captain John Gunnison of the US
Army arrived, millions of year later, the river had
washed out all the volcanic rock and soil and
returned it to it’s clear fast running self, with the
2,000 foot cliffs we see today.

390


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

Our Army in the west wasn’t just there to protect
the thousands of pioneers making their way along
the Santa Fe and Oregon Trails. They also were
interested in helping those who lived in the East.
They wanted to find new ways to ship produce
and minerals like gold and silver and live stock
like cattle and sheep back east.
During that time, around the1850’s or about 150
years ago the rage in transportation wasn’t just
horses and buggies. Thanks to Robert Fulton the
steam engine had caught on. There were
steamboats with paddle wheels racing up and
down the Mississippi, the Missouri, and other
rivers including the Rio Grande and the
Colorado.
The US Army came into the picture with Captain
Gunnison. He had been sent to find a railroad
passage through the mountains to California.
This river looked like a good path out onto the
western desert..
Trains also ran on steam, from coal and wood,
and it was thought that a railroad across the
United States would help develop our huge
country. With a continental railroad we wouldn’t
be tied down to just water transportation for
heavy freight.

391


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

Railroads were a hot item. Trains transporting
freight across the land between rivers. What a
historical advantage that would be.
Captain Gunnison knew this about trains, and
when he found the Black Canyon ( I suppose it
got it’s name because it was so deep that no
sunlight reached the bottom.) He proposed
blasting a pathway along it’s banks, for the rails.
At that time the river was known as the ‘Little
Grand’, because a little further west was another
larger river called the ‘Grand’ River which it
flowed into.
They blasted until it was so difficult they couldn’t
blast any further. The railroad was built, but not
all the way through the canyon.
They were able to go deep into it before cutting
out along the southern side and around to where
the ‘Little Grand’ joined the ‘Grand’ and the two
took off across the desert. The desert, which later
became the great State of Utah. The two rivers
met in the town of Grand Junction.
This was such a great feat that everyone in the
world knew about it. That’s why Rudyard Kipling
took the train through the river canyon in 1890.
Why else would he have left India. It just goes to
show what an adventurous person he was.
That’s not the end of the rivers story, or the
brave men and women that helped build it. After

392


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

we started replacing railroads with highways, and
horses with cars and trucks we started using more
and more water.

Our population was growing and lots of people
were living where there was too little water. We
needed to take water from one place to another
where they could use it.

Moving water around isn’t an easy job, but we’ve
been doing it for thousands of years. Those
clever Romans were really good at it, engineering
and building aqueducts all over Rome.

We were also. The ‘Little Grand’ was redirected
through a tunnel and carried away where it could
be used by other people, as far away as Phoenix,
Arizona. We also turned to irrigation to take
water into areas and fields where we needed it to
grow crops.

But, water comes to us at different times of the
year. So in the spring there’s plenty, yet in the
late fall there’s not enough.

Just think about it for a moment. Like you I’m
about as thirsty no matter what time of year it is.
Easy enough to say, all we need to do is keep it in
storage until we need it. The storage units
needed to be pretty big. So instead of soda cans
full of water we built dams, and reservoirs to
hold water until we need it.

393


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

New York City needs lots of water. One of the
ways to provide it was to dam rivers in upper
New York State. Lake Sagandaga is such a
storage area. In fact when they flooded the valley
they didn’t even clear it out. They just covered
the roads. Those roads believe it or not are still
under the water. If you look at an old map you’ll
see where they were.
Here in western Colorado they also needed to
store water for their fields and growing
population. The highways took over from the
railroads and a couple of dams were built along
the ‘Little Grand’ . By then they changed it’s
name to honor Captain John Gunnison. It’s new
name is now the Gunnison River.
The Black Canyon is so deep that the dam’s
water only filled up several hundred feet. Today,
several other reservoirs have been built, The
Blue Mesa, Morrow and the Taylor all to store
water from the Colorado mountains that flow
into the Gunnison.
They say the little stretch of pathway that we
walked along at the canyon floor was the last of
the famous railroad. All the rest lies under the
water, along with the railroad tracks and a couple
of train trestles that were used as a bridge across
the river.

394


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

APPENDIX 3

We boarded the pontoon boat and traveled 7
miles down the canyon before returning. It was a
grand experience for us to travel along the
bottom of this deep canyon that we could only
look into from our campsite.
That should be the end of the story, except for a
few changes have occurred. Remember the other
river, the ‘Grand’?. Well the great State of
Colorado changed it’s name. It’s now the mighty
COLORADO RIVER. It’s the most important
river in the western United States. Today it
carries almost all the water used in Southern
California, and our countries bed basket.

395


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi“œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“

JUST AROUND THE BEND
Episode VII

396


`ˆÌi`Ê܈̅Ê̅iÊ`i“œÊÛiÀȜ˜ÊœvÊ
˜vˆÝÊ*ÀœÊ* Ê
`ˆÌœÀÊ
/œÊÀi “œÛiÊ̅ˆÃʘœÌˆVi]ÊۈÈÌ\Ê
ÜÜÜ°ˆVi˜ˆ°Vœ“É՘œVŽ°…Ì“