Month: September 2022

Today, we thought we’d take a non-medical journey to Boulder to take in a few sites. Though not common in this active area, we found a few things to do with the 3 good hips between us. Bob is still waiting for the steroid to take effect, which will could be another week or so yet.

We started (and we weren’t alone) at Boulder Falls. While not the most spectacular, they are easily accessible, and they feed Boulder Creek which runs down the mountain and all the way through Boulder. We saw lots of people hiking along and tubing on the creek on our way to the falls.

We then drove back into Boulder only to head out past the massive Chautauqua Park and up Flagstaff Mountain to take in Boulder from above. We stopped at Panoramic Point, part of the way up, and then continued onto the top. We saw trail markers along the way, so this is likely something you could do by foot as well.

Finally, we drove into Boulder proper to brave the Pearl Street Mall, a pedestrian- only shopping and dining area.

Last night after dinner, we decided to chill on the upper terrace here while watching tv and taking in the view. While we have shared pics before, the view looks a little different during each time of day.

Today, was quiet, but I did get out for a walk into the Berkeley neighborhood to visit a Little Free Library to exchange a book. The closest one I found online was about 50 minutes from the house, but it was a beautiful day and I wanted to walk. I left Bob home to do his hip strengthening excercises.

I ended up finding a closer free library on the way which had a great selection of books. I exchanged “Methland,” a non-fiction book about the severe problem that meth use/addiction has caused in rural America with a focus on Oelwein, Iowa, for “Songs in Ordinary Time,” an Oprah’s Book Club pick. However, I continued on with the walk to see more of the area and see what the other library had to offer.

After my book stop, I popped into a Sprouts grocery to restock on a few items and then headed back to Sloan’s Lake to take some more photos of the lake. While walking around the lake, I found a board that told the story of the lake’s formation. Turns out that in 1861, Mr. Thomas Sloan, a farmer, dug a hole for a well on the north end of his farm. His digging hit an underground spring and by the time the water flowing from the spring slowed, a 200 acre lake had appeared. The locals initially called it “Sloan’s Leak,” but it became and remains a popular recreational area.

Bob and I have started venturing out a bit on his newly shot leg. Yesterday, we opted for the free 30-minute tour of the Hammond’s Candy factory that has been operating in Denver for over 100 years. It was an interesting tour where we saw a 15-minute film on the history of the company, run by the Hammond family until the early 2000s.

We then got to watch the factory workers as they poured out hot candy (over 300 degrees), added coloring and flavor, and then pulled and shaped it into canes. Along with candy canes and hard candy, they make chocolates, caramels, popcorn, trail mix, and other goodies. So, while the tour was free, we dropped some money on goodies for us and gifts.

Today we decided to do something more typically Denver and drove out to Red Rocks Visitors Center and then to Buffalo Bill’s grave on Lookout Mountain.

From Red Rocks we intended to go right to Lookout Mountain viewpoint near Buffalo Bill’s grave, but ended up stopping first at the Lookout Mountain Nature Preserve and Boettcher Mansion, which serves as an event space.

Bob’s vacation from his wife is over, as I flew into Denver on Tuesday night to join him for a house sit in the West Colfax area of Denver. It has a great dog, Coco, and home. Bob cared for both once before, for a friend from high school and her husband, when I was with my sister in Rockford.

Bob arrived a few days before I did. He takes Coco for her morning walks down near Sloan Lake and gets a great view of the Rockies. I ran on the 2.5 mile trail around the lake this morning, and it is very popular with runners, walkers (both with and without canine companions).

The other issue that has been occupying our minds is the state of Bob’s left hip. He has been having pain that’s gotten progressively worse. He had it checked in Kansas City and Austin but wasn’t sure either had provided a correct diagnosis. Luckily, his cousin in Colorado Springs connected him to a friend that works at the Sports Medicine and Performance Center at the University of Colorado in Boulder, and he had a very thorough assessment there this afternoon.

He has moderate to severe arthritis in his left hip that will need to be operated on late this year or early next year. In the meantime, he got a steroid shot that should help with the pain for a few months and get him back to walking and biking