David E. Steiner

Retired USAF, Teacher, Dad, Grandfather, Curmudgeon

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The South St. Vrain Canyon

 

You have to wonder about Alonzo Allen and what he would think about our modern improvements to his road from Lyons to the unnamed valley in front of Mt. Meeker and Longs Peak. It wasn’t very far, but the way up presented a real challenge when it came to building a road. True, there was wood for the cutting and there might even be gold, but the ascent was steep and the canyon was narrow and winding. So it’s not surprising that much of his road bypassed the canyon on its northern side.

The first road in the canyon was difficult to maintain, not only because the road itself often slid into the stream, but because it required a number of bridges over the twisting stream and they often washed out in the spring.

The easier but much longer route was from Ward, which was the terminus of the narrow gauge railroad from Jamestown. Then you could use the road from Nederland, first used by horse drawn carriages and then by cars and Stanley Steamer busses to reach Estes Park. That road became, for much of its route, the highway that now runs through Tahosa Valley. The only remaining portions in its original state are some sections of Cabin Creek and Big Owl Roads.

Today, of course, we all use the highway in the canyon, first paved in the 30s and made wider and straighter in the 50s. On a clear day in the winter one can drive from Allenspark to Lyons in less that 20 minutes. Alonzo would be astonished.

On the other hand, while the trip up or down Alonzo’s road could be long and difficult, nobody ever got killed. The canyon road now takes a predictable toll every year, as drunks cross over and meet cars head on or busses and cars are mishandled and wind up in the stream. But we accept those hazards as part of the price of living and working in this place and most of us try to be careful. The other day I was driving past the Hilltop Guild and the van in front of me tried to slow down, slid on a patch of snow and rear-ended a stalled truck. Parts and glass flew everywhere but fortunately no one was hurt. Another reminder, I thought, not to take canyon travel for granted.

One of the hazards we apparently can’t do anything about, however, is the spot people use to shoot their guns, just at the lower entrance to the canyon. It’s just a few feet from the roadway, and it’s been in use for as long as I can remember, which goes back to the 40s. Ever since that time people have been shooting into a small section of dirt and rocks. There used to be trees there but they’ve all been shot to splinters. At various times there have been bottles, cans, and even a television set used as targets. Accurate figures are impossible, of course, but it’s probable that more than 2,000 pounds of lead have been deposited in that spot and the lead no doubt leaches into the South St. Vrain Creek, just 100 yards away.

No one has ever been shot accidentally at this spot, according the Boulder County Sheriff, and since I began inquiring about this hazard in 1988 I’ve had no luck in getting anyone to take the problem seriously. The State Patrol said it was Boulder County’s problem and Boulder County said it was the Forest Service’s problem and the Forest Service said “The Forest Service allows the discharge of firearms on National Forest lands where done safely and in accordance with established regulations. The shooting range along Colorado Highway 7, between Lyons and Allenspark, is one such area where firearm use is allowed. This range has been examined by the National Rifle Association, several State and County agencies and the Forest Service, and found to be safe.”

The NRA’s finding, is, of course, a great comfort.

But the “applicable regulation,” the Federal Code of Regulations, Chapter 36, par 261.10 (d) says “The following are prohibited: Discharging a firearm or any other implement capable of taking human life, causing injury, or damaging property: (1) In or within 150 yards of a residence building, campsite, developed recreation site or occupied area, or (2) across or on a Forest Development road or a body of water adjacent thereto, or in any manner or place whereby any person or property is exposed to injury or damage as a result of such discharge.” The underline is mine.

I don’t know about you, but I always feel “exposed to injury or damage” when I drive by that place and I see people drinking beer and shooting guns a few feet from my car.

I’m not so sure Alonzo would want to trade places with me.

 

 

Columns

© 1985 – 2003, David E. Steiner

Allenspark Wind Columns:

Introduction

Why Allenspark?

Going Riding [August, 1985]

Electricity

Used Cars

Peace and Quiet [1986]

Liberals & Conservatives

Going to the Movies

The Screened Porch

The Beginning of The Season

The Weather

The Hilltop Guild Bazaar

The End of The Season

The Gift of Time

The Beavers

Addresses [1987]

Hiking

Watching the Trees Grow

Postal Rates

Changes in Estes Park

Square Dancing at the Pow Wow

Back to the Hilltop Guild Bazaar

The Solstices

Bird Feeders

Elevators

The Estes Park Hardware Store [1988]

Visitors

Limousine Service

A Memorial Service

A Hummingbird

Garbage

A Hiking Trip

The Estes Park Public Library

Wild Life

Riparian Rights [1989]

Weather

Fences

Commuting

Mountain Friendliness

A Motorcycle Trip

Satellite Television

“Weaving Mountain Memories”

Hotel Rates in the Old Days

The Price of Propane [1990]

The Front Range Almanac

June

Modes of Transportation

Miller Moths

My 50th Column

Modern Conveniences

Rock Climbing

On the Death of Otto Walter, Postmaster

Otto’s Memorial Service

A Big Owl Pot-Luck Dinner

A Whine About Telephone Service [1991]

After the Persian Gulf War

Some Changes in the WIND

The Trip to the Mountains

The Mountains in the Summer

Visitors

Of Dogs, Music, and Children

Muhlenburg County

To My Grandson

The Sale of Longs Peak Inn

World War II  [1992]

Murphy’s Law and the Computer

The South St. Vrain Canyon

“Whiteout”

The Hazards of Volunteering

Crime in Our Valley

Infestations

On the Death of Charles Eagle Plume

Can We All Get Along?

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Lost Horizon [1993]

Walking

Rumors About a Visit by the Pope

Progress?

More About Fences

Woodpeckers

The Visit of Pope John Paul II

Forest Fires

The New Sewage System

The Snow Pool

The Good Old Days [1994]

The WIND’s 20th Anniversary

The Bunce School

The Shooting Gallery

The Estes Park Museum

Our Government

U.S. West Takes a Hit

The Year of the Hummingbirds

A New “Yield” Sign

Growth in Allenspark

Private Telephones?

The Salvation Army

Creation Science [1995]

Devolutionizing Big Government

Risks

Airports

Fort D.A. Russell

Domestic Terrorism

Old and New

Barney Graves

Life in the Wilderness

What’s In a Name?

Arthur C. Clarke

 

The Estes Park Trail-Gazette Columns:

July 1983

Carpentry

Estes Cone

Johnny Grant

Observations in Estes Park

The Bath House

Waving

The Sutherland’s Ice House

How Old is Charles Eagle Plume?

Dogs

Christmas Trees

Tree Murder

Mountain Driving

Garbage

Mail Boxes

More About Mail Boxes

“Are you related to ....?”

Spring

An Accident

The Wild Cat

A July Reunion

A Visit to Baldpate Inn

Opening Cabins

Summer

The Times, They Have Changed

Death and Transfiguration

The Population Explosion

The March of Time

Faith-Based Social Services

Looking for Pitch

Recent Writings I

Recent Writings II

Recent Writings III

Recent Writings IV

Recent Writings V

Recent Writings VI

 

 

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