Exploring Back Roads

I've been wanting to get away from town, so, last week, I week out and drove places just to see where the road took me.  Luckily, I have the use of my friend's Volkswagon Touareg and I was able to pack up my cares and worries and just drive, look, and expand my senses.  I frequently find myself singing the Cole Porter classic "Don't Fence Me In" when I'm driving through open country with hills, dells, arroyos, folds, and small creeks.  I honestly do feel the urge to have a horse under me and to go riding across the land that I see, wondering what hidden gems I'd find that I can't see from the highway.
   The other day, I decided to drive up 71N in Boulder County, which turned into Larimer County, when the road became 37E.  After a few miles, the pavement ended, and I was astounded to find miles upon miles of roads snaking through valleys and up hillsides and even to mountain tops.  I had no idea that there were so many homes and ranchettes (as westerners call them) back in the hills.  I found out that even though a vast majority of the homes are actually located in Larimer County, they have a mailing address of Lyons, which is in Boulder County.
   I fell in love with the views and the quiet.  Saturday, while my roommate, Beatrice was marching in Denver's Tax March, I took my sister, Kathy, and we went back up 71N, and explored even more of the back roads...  It was glorious.  We followed Stagecoach Trail up to the end of the road, and found ourselves sitting on top of the world.  It was almost noon, and the only sounds were the birds in the trees and the sighs of wind in the pine boughs.  We got out and explored the mountain top on foot - Kathy wearing sweat pants, a turtleneck and a vest, and me in shorts, a T-shirt, and slip-on Keds.  We saw a field of sand lilies, tons of rock formations, a wide variety of lichens, wildflowers (but no pasque flowers) and cacti.
   We traveled on Silver Sage Drive, Ponderosa Hill Drive, and fell in love with a house for sale on Gray Mountain Drive.  The price might sound high to folks outside of the metro areas of Denver, but please take into consideration that the median cost of a home in Boulder is now $1 million.  This is a 3 bedroom (plus study) home on two levels with two full baths and one 3/4 bath, with a 2-car garage.  It was built in 1996, and has a front porch and a rear second story deck (the house is built on a slope and the garage is a part of the ground floor).  The house itself is 2,450 square feet, and it sits on 27.24 acres of wooded land with multiple rock formations.  The selling price is $435,000.  One can keep horses and/or other livestock on the property - but there is very little level land, and it looks like the ground soil is, maybe, 3 to 4 inches deep.  Perhaps a place for goats and chickens, but not for large livestock....  The views from the living room, kitchen, master bedroom, and the back deck are fantastic - the ground (which you own) falls away down into a valley far below, and there are folded hills forming the far wall.  I covet that property!

Front of the house on Gray Mountain Drive

Side view of house with garage and two of three out-buildings

View from the rear deck

View down into the valley, looking over the 27.24 acres

Spring Flood Preparedness in Boulder County, Colorado

Elizabeth Black, a wonderful local artist, attended the open meeting held last night for people in the county who live along, or near, creeks and streams that may flood this Spring.   Here is Elizabeth's synopsis of last night's meeting in Boulder:

Gary Sanfacon ran the meeting, along with Mike Chard (?spelling).  There was no one from the City there, which was a glaring omission and which many folks were upset about.  Apparently City of Boulder meetings are coming soon.  GIS mapping information is being shared by the City and County, and there is joint planning on law enforcement and emergency preparedness.  But city/county attorneys, public works directors and transportation departments have still not had joint meetings, but plan to perhaps. Paul Featherstone (?spelling) assistant City manager is the lead on the City’s flood issues.  Contact him if you are in the City.  The City is doing its own flood mitigation, only on City owned public land and places where they have a dedicated creek easement.  The rest of the meeting concentrated on County issues.

Gary said all the information at this meeting is on the website www.bouldercountyflood.org as well as a web-cast of the previous meeting up in Longmont.  The county is working with private contractors and federal partners NRCS (Natural Resources Conservation Service) and Army Corps of Engineers to accomplish their goal of mitigating spring flooding risk by May 1.  It sounds like NRCS has taken the lead on many things for the present.

Mike said they expect spring runoff to pick up the second week of May barring a super-warm April.  They have walked all the creeks and know where the problems are: debris and avulsions with spill potential.  They are only removing debris that has the potential to clog bridges and culverts.  They will only be removing debris that is an immediate risk to life, public infrastructure and property.  They are just cleaning out the existing system, not upgrading it or upgrading problem culverts or bridges.  The County has convinced FEMA to pay for spring run-off mitigation on private property.  This is a first in the country and FEMA has never done anything like this before.  The county needs your permission to do this work on your property, and you need to sign the ROE form (right of entry).  200 sites have been identified in the County for this work to be done.  You might not like the terms and conditions in the ROE form.  But that is the only way they can do the work and they will consult with you and work at not damaging things on your property.  Not signing the form and not allowing the work to be done on your property will impact your downstream neighbors as well as you.  The ROE form gives them a long time to do the work because they expect they may have to return again as more debris is washed downstream.  The ROE form must be signed ASAP so work can be completed before May 1.  George Gerstle said that FEMA is only paying to clean things up to handle a 5 year flood event.  The county is giving building permits for temporary structures that must clear a 10 year event.  Permanent structures must clear a 100 year event.

The county has maps that show the 200 places along the channels which they will be cleaning before May 1^st.  Maps were at the meeting, and they will be posted on the website by the end of the week.  There was nothing on the maps that was in the City of Boulder, and Githens Acres seems to have fallen off their radar on these maps.  If you feel that the county has a glaring omission on these maps and left out a place that really needs to be mitigated before the spring run-off, contact them ASAP.  Gary Sanfacon 720-564-2642 gsanfacon@bouldercounty.org

Keep your eyes open during the next few months as spring run-off ramps up.  Hazardous conditions to report to 911 this spring include bank erosion, plugging culverts and bridges, hazardous collections of debris and imminent landslides. Snow pack is currently 168% to 200+%.  Groundwater remains very high all over.  4MiCaCr has a lower risk for spring run-off since it is a smaller drainage with less snowpack.  Landslides remain a risk as do thunderstorms and flash floods.  Big landslides are a possibility through 2015.  These landslides are NOT the same as debris flows and there are warning signs: increased rock fall, cracking of soils and foundations, tilting trees, broken water lines.  Report threatening conditions to 911 or County Office of Emergency Management (303) 441-3390.

Go to www.boulderoem.org to opt in to get the warnings for your drainage on your cell or computer.  Consider getting a weather radio to get updates in case your phone goes out. Get a non-electric based phone (old-style rotary) in case your power goes out, so you can still make phone calls.  Many stream gauges and rain-fall gauges have been washed out and the warning systems for drainages have been severely compromised.  St Vrain and Lefthand gauges are gone.  The 4MICaCr gauge is gone.  It is a USGS gauge and there is no timeline for when it will be reinstalled.

Long-range, the County’s Creek Planning Master plan will be finished by July 2014.  Hard-hit areas in the County will keep getting roadside debris removal for county residents.  Go to the website or call Gary if you need to keep getting debris removal.  If you want to get email updates, sign up atwww.BoulderCountyFloods.org .

Get flood insurance now.  There is a 30 day waiting period before it activates.  Go thewww.floodsmart.gov to find out more information about flood insurance and places to buy it.

Nearby in Colorado (Photos)

Bald eagles in Boulder County

View of the Indian Peaks in autumn

Settlers' Park in Boulder

Snow is still on the mountain tops in Summit County

Great blue heron successfully fishing at Wonderland Lake

Colorado Views

Old Boulder County barn

Bear Lake in RMNP

Beaver Meadows in RMNP

Barn owl

Old building on Caribou Ranch