The Junket Journal: Rocky Mountain High

I wonder what John Denver would think of the present day Aspen. It is a different place than when he wrote "Rocky Mountain High" and "Thank God I'm a Country Boy" about his beloved Aspen. Today, it is still a breathtakingly beautiful area at an 8000 foot elevation, but downtown is a bustling, highly congested place to navigate. While Aspen only has a permanent population of 6851, we found taking the truck into town to be hopeless. The best way for us to get around was to ride our bicycles. There are hundreds of miles of trails in and around Aspen. Most trails are multi-use. They also have bike designated lanes in town, and people seem to be aware of and courteous toward cyclists. There are lakes and rivers for water recreation. Unfortunately, we were not there long enough to get out the kayak or paddle-board. We will definitely return sometime to take advantage of those opportunities. We also talked to a Nordic ski instructor who told us there are more than 60 of miles of groomed Nordic ski trails in and around Aspen and they are all free. I would love to make a winter visit.

Miles and miles of multi-use trails.

A nice buck crosses our cycling trail.

Hiking on a dirt trail with a small church in the distance.

Downtown Aspen with the ski-lift coming right to town center.

Horse-drawn carriage in downtown Aspen.

Marv's customer has huskies who give a howling greeting!

Another difference Mr. Denver would notice is the airport northwest of town. He loved to fly (he died flying an experimental plane). Aspen was drawing celebrities when he lived there, but now the small airport is row after row of private jets. The rich and famous have certainly found this Rocky Mountain jewel. Celebrities that currently have homes here include Oprah Winfrey, Tom Cruise, Kevin Costner, Jessica Biel, and Amy Adams. The affluence of the area is also evidenced by the types of motor vehicles around town. There are Land Rovers, BMW's, Mercedes, Jaguars, and more Teslas to be spotted on a daily basis than we've ever seen. There is some serious money floating around. Most of the huge homes in the area have gardeners, housekeepers, nannies and other workers going in and out all day.

There are lots of great places to eat, but we only took advantage of one that was recommended by the owner of the Aspen Velo Bike Shop. There is an 8 mile cycling/walking trail leading from downtown Aspen to Woody Creek and the Woody Creek Tavern. It is a biker dive with really terrific food. If you go there, bring cash or a checkbook. They do not take debit or credit cards. There is an ATM machine close by. The staff is super friendly and fun. We soon understood why it was so popular. We went on a week-day in the middle of the afternoon, and the place was packed.

Our waitress - Where Biker Chicks Do Lunch! Also shows a bit of the eclectic decor.

Best fish tacos ever!

Woody Creek Tavern in Woody Creek, Colorado.

The great thing about Aspen having wealthy inhabitants is that they have several terrific thrift stores. During my PCT hike, I lost 25 pounds and 4 clothes sizes. All of my clothes are falling off me, so I decided to check out the Aspen Thrift Shop for some new duds. I found several pairs of capri's and a skirt for $3-$4 each. I did splurge on one pair of high-end designer jeans for $15.00. For $37.00, I walked out with a whole new wardrobe.

After Marv finished his job, we moved 5 miles out of Aspen to Difficult Campground, a National Forest campground. We had checked it out earlier in the week and found that there are quite a few sites that will accommodate larger rigs. We were told by Marv's customer that the land adjacent to the campground is part of Kevin Costner's ranch, although we decided against stopping in for a social call. Since we were only 5 miles out, we rode our bicycles into town several days to explore more trails, get groceries and other necessities.

For a couple of days, we had noticed a funny sound from our right rear brakes, so Marv didn't get as much down time as he'd hoped. He found that we needed new brake shoes, so there was another chore to get done at the campground. Seems with RVing, there is always something. Fortunately, he can fix most anything, so the project was completed. It had only been a couple of weeks since our exhaust brake went out and had to be replaced. Luckily, we were near to passing through Boise, so when we stopped to have dinner with my brother and his wife, the guys were able to get a new exhaust brake installed and we continued on our way.

City Market - a busy hub!

Roaring Fork River

Looking down on Aspen after a strenuous bike climb up the Smuggler Mine road.

Marv on Smuggler Lookout.

Ellen made it up the Smuggler too!

Our mountain bikes take a break too after that crazy climb!

Beautiful Difficult Campground. We can see where Aspen got its name.

Remnants of an old smelter are all along the trail into town.

While at the Difficult Campground, I discovered there were lots of Chokecherry bushes. Some of my fondest memories of childhood are of going chokecherry picking with my folks and my Grandma Pieper. Then we'd go home to make jam and pancake syrup. I haven't had any for years. I picked a large bowl and make a couple of quarts of syrup. We had pancakes the next day. It tastes as wonderful as I remember.