Hanging out by the river

I found a nice, secluded beach on the Animas River, near to the library. My new favorite spot to read

Lewis Mountain from Junction Creek

Lewis Mountain rises behind and a cool block of Junction Creek Sandstone rests in the foreground.

Nobody"s Inn

The clever name gets me every time

Appaloosa Staring Contest

I was first to blink against this beauty.

Glider Rider

 

It was totally by chance that I managed to capture a glider airplane crossing through my shot. Click to enlarge, the glider is top center. My camera also decided to add its own touch to the photo as well. The colors are pretty funky.

Hidden Valley

Falls Creek area. Click to Enlarge

Bio Diesel Club

I had to get a shot of the cool paint job on this Bio Diesel fueled van

Fiery Sunset.

There has been sparked another wildfire around these parts. This one is south of Mancos, Colorado, in Weber Canyon. It was first reported around 4:30 PM, and has since then consumed around 600 acres, with spot fires remaining a constant threat. The silver lining to this situation is in the fact that this fire started near a road and should be easier to fight as compared to the Little Sand fire, near Pagosa Springs, which is deep within a roadless area.

Another silver lining behind wildfires is the sunsets. Nothing can come close to creating these ominous skies, so full of passion and excitement like the fire that spawned it

Red Cliffs of Hermosa

Oak Grove

Gamble Oak filter the morning light on County Road 250

Little Sand Fire Smoke Plume

While at work outside of town, this smoke plume dominated the northeastern horizon. It is from the Little Sand Fire, which is burning 13 miles northwest of Pagosa Springs, Colorado and about 55 miles east-northeast of Durango. The fire was started by lightning on May 13 in rugged terrain managed by the San Juan National Forest. The burn area is north of the Piedra River and is currently estimated to cover 14,224 acres.

The smoke plume was visible from many places around the outside of town and serves as a reminder to residents and visitors that extremely dry conditions exist and care should be taken to prevent any other fires from sprouting up during these extreme fire conditions.

Main Line

Train Depot

 

 

Lake of the Pines

Sorry for the late post. I had a busy night on the town and forgot to fix the schedule.

#482

Engine #482 was built in 1925 for the Denver & Rio Grande Railway. It was in service up to 1960, primarily on narrow gauge tracks around Salida, Colorado. The Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge Railway owns four locomotives of the same class, all built around the same time
  

Young Buck

Spotted him in the wetland area near the bottom of my street

Deer Trail

Following a deer trail up to the college

Alley Way

Where I grew up, in Santa Fe, alley ways are rare. Now I am grown and living in a more typical city, it is hard to think of life without them. I use them for passage, to hide my bike,  as shortcuts around congested areas, and to enjoy a slower pace. I find a bit of mystery in them too.

Hood Mortuary II

A slightly different angle to capture my favorite element of the building, the dome topped turret.

Hood Mortuary

I don't know much about it, but I really like the old building Hood Mortuary occupies.

Slackers

 A new sport has taken hold called Slackline. The point is to traverse a taught line of webbing strung between two points without aid. Some people have become very talented and can traverse terrifying heights with nothing more than a 1 1/2 inch strap holding them up. We are starting slow and low with a 2 inch strap and a setting only 3 feet off the ground

[Special Update] Wildfire!!!!

Conditions have been bone dry and the fire danger has been extreme. Today, on June 8th, all the elements necessary came together to spark this small (for now) fire on the north end of town. As you can see from the picture, it is burning on the steep slopes of Animas City Mountain within the ponderosa, pinyon/juniper, oak scrub. I am really hoping it is brought under control soon, because if it's not, things can get really ugly around here.

Ants on the sidewalk

I have been seeing many swarms of ant out and about all over town. I wonder what is going on in their world.

A View from the top

From the top of Durango Mountain Resort at Purgatory.

It's nice to relax for a change...

I don't know what these deer are normally up to, but today I caught them just laying around the yard, relaxing. I think the doe that is lying is pregnant and the yearling standing is her's from last season. Earl soaks in the sun at the bottom of the stairs

100

The La Plata Mountains as seen from the Fort Lewis Mesa, southwest of Durango.


Today I post the 100th picture on this blog. It is a small milestone, but a milestone nonetheless.

Just waiting to go

I was waiting at a stop sign in Hermosa, north of town. I saw it as a good time to slow down and look around

Engineer over Electra

Engineer rises above Electra Lake, a private reservoir owned by Xcel Energy. The water is stored here for the Tacoma Hydro Generating Station

Thirtsy?

This reservoir looks like a great place to hang out and play in the water, but it is closed to the public. This is storage for the towns drinking water, which comes out of the Florida River not too far away.

Tranquility

My contribution to City Daily Photo's monthly theme day.



Check out more participants here