Leece's Most Excellent Spring 2019 Road Trip: Seedskadee

Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge is north and west of Green River, Wyoming. on the way to Jackson.

Looking out over the refuge, from the deck at the Visitor's Center. The Green River is in the distance.

Leece eyeballs a nesting bald eagle. The eagle eyeballed right back

Nearly forty years ago, we had a temporary radar site just west of Little America, WY. I spent some time fishing in this area. When I caught some suckers, I would toss them up on the bank, and bald eagles would swoop down and scarf them up.

Trumpeter swans, swanning about.

Leece's Most Excellent Road Trip 2019: Craig to Green River

We went west from Craig to the north end of Dinosaur National Monument and the Gates of Lodore. It was cold and drizzly, with snow at the higher elevations. From the Gates of Lodore, we visited Brown's Park National Wildlife Refuge. Both Lodore and Brown's Park would be worth visits in their own right, but we were pushing on through Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area to Green River, and only made brief visits.

Coming down alongside the Green River, with the Gates of Lodore in the distance.

Gates of Lodore. They rise several hundred feet above the Green River.

Looking west, along the Green River, in Brown's Park NWR.

Crossing the Swinging Bridge. The Utah line is about one mile to the west. The unpaved roads on the south side of the bridge cut about an hour off the trip to Vernal, as well as being quite scenic.

The Swinging Bridge, from the campground just to the west.

At the state line, CO 318 becomes UT 1364. 1364 is paved most of the way, except over the top of a low pass, about 7300 feet MSL. Though the unpaved section was quite slick and icy, we had no problems making it over.

Leece takes a shot at Sheep Creek Bay.

Overlooking near Sheep Creek.

Storm over the prairie, just south of Green River, WY.

Leece's Most Excellent Road Trip Spring 2019: Salida to Craig

Late in May we departed The Holy Land for Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons. We went by way of Salida, up to Craig, then over to Green River by way of the Gates of Lodore  , Brown's Park National Wildlife Refuge,and the Flaming Gorge. From Green River, we visited Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge, and then on to Jackson, Wy. We spent four days in Yellowstone and the Tetons before crossing Wyoming through the Wind River country, to Scottsbluff National Monument, and back down to The Holy Land.

It was, indeed, a most excellent trip.

Coming up to Craig, we passed Mt Elbert, and then crossed over Tennessee Pass.

Mt Elbert, Colorado's highest peak

Another shot of Mt Elbert

At the Green Bridge Overlook, near Red Cliff

The world-famous Green Bridge

Fort Reynolds

Here's a bit of historical lore. There is a small marker on the north side of US 50, just this side of the Avondale exit.

It is often hidden by weeds so it can be difficult to see.

Fort Reynolds was named after Major General John Reynolds, who was killed at Gettysburg.

I did a little research on the fort and some of the people who were associated with it. It was an adobe fort that existed near the location of what is now Avondale. Constructed in 1867, it was in commission until 1872.

It was first occupied by F Company of the 5th United States Infantry - the 'Bobcats'. By the summer of 1868, Captain Charles A. Curtis was in command of Fort Reynolds. According to FindAGrave, Captain Curtis retired from the army in 1870, and had a distinguished post-service career. The source cited shows three different biographies with some conflicting details, but in one area they are all in 'agreeance:' Curtis was an accomplished and very active individual.

Other known commanders include Captain Simon Snyder and Captain H. B. Bristol. The timelines regarding the occupancy of the fort are fuzzy at best. Captain Snyder was an interesting fellow, too. His wife died in 1874, leaving him as a single father with a young daughter, Lillian. This is described in "The Young Troopers: Stories of Army Children on the Frontier"by Paige Ramsay-Palmer, in the chapter entitled, "Single Father." There is a photo of Captain Snyder in the book, taken in 1880's. Captain Snyder was eventually promoted to Brigadier General and commanded a division during the Spanish-American war. General Snyder died in April, 1912, and is buried in the Charles Evans cemetery, Reading, PA.

Captain H. B. Bristol retired from the army in the spring of 1879. In addition to commanding Fort Reynolds, he had participated in the forced relocation of the Navajo in 1864, as noted in "The Long Walk: The Forced Navajo Exile", page 65. Bristol commanded four companies of infantry in Sheridan's southern plains campaign of 1874-75 (The Red River_War). He commanded Fort Sumner during the summer of 1864, according to "The Civil War in New Mexico."

Unfortunately, Fort Reynolds was apparently not considered a very significant part of the history of the 5th, and there is almost no mention of the establishment in the official unit history. In the nature of a rabbit trail, we find that Daniel Butterfield was Colonel of the Regiment for a time. Butterfield is most famous as the fellow who came up with "Taps", deriving it from the British "Tatoo", another military bugle/drum signal.

There was also a company of the 7th US cavalry here at Fort Reynolds, for a short time. The 7th, as you will recall, is famous for Custer's Last Stand.

The first known reference to an earthquake in Colorado was on December 4, 1870. The report consists of an account of bottles on a shelf, one inch apart which were knocked together violently. This incident took place at Fort Reynolds.

Troops were sent from Fort Reynolds to help contain "The Christmas Day War" in Trinidad in 1867. 

The marker is by the side of the road, almost hidden by weeds, just this side of the Avondale exit off US 50. There is nothing left of the fort.

Santa Fe Farmers' Market

We also hit the farmers' market. Despite the time of year, there was a remarkable amount of veggie goods available, in addition to some absolutely outstanding bread works, and other goodies.

Warping the Kromski

Leece warps her Kromski loom.

Santa Fe's Museum of International Folk Art

The museum of folk art is on Museum Hill, which is also home to the Museum of Spanish Colonial Art; the Museum of Indian Arts and Culture; and the Wheelwright Museum of the American Indian. And, the Santa Fe Botanical Garden is on the Hill as well.

We spent a good part of the day here. It's well worth a visit.