It's time for a little freestyle, off-the-cuff Lummis blogging. I'm typing away right now in a little coffee shop in Manitou, called Yerba Mate. I did not expect to find wireless in this little mountain retreat, but here it is. Here's the scoop on Manitou, it's near the bottom of Pike's Peak, one of the prominent peaks in this part of the range and popular attraction, with a highway and "Cog Railway" to the top (we'll soon find out what that is). The cool thing about it is appartently it has been a neat little mountain town for a while. Lummis calls it in 1884, "a beautiful little town lying 7 miles up the canyon from Colorado Springs, and 6,500 feet above the sea". Of the residents of Manitou Lummis says, "Half of its 500 people make their living keeping boarders. The other half don't need to make a living at all, being wealthy owners of some as pleasant villas as you ever saw."
One of the charming things about Manitou I'm finding is mixed in with more recent construction are old stone structures, like little bridges or parts of bridges, stone walls, etc. Many newer houses are built on stones terraces carved into the side of the mountain. Nice mix of old and new. There's indeed, like Lummis says, a lot of stuff catering to tourists, a few boutique shops, antique shops, etc. If you're into exploring neat little stores there're a lot packed in here. There apparently is a little bit of a funky, new agey aspect too which I discovered when I wandered into this coffee shop. But it's a very nice coffee shop, cool rustic wooden decor, good coffee, good food.
I'm waiting to board this Cog Railway at noon to get to the top of Pike's Peak, which I didn't expect to be able to do. If, God willing, I make it to the top, I will be quite proud of myself, for getting to the top like Lummis did in winter, and on top of that taking public transportation to do it. It's going to take a good chunk of the day to do it and slow me up (there are many other things to see ahead), but I just don't want to say I followed Lummis's footsteps and didn't go to the top of Pike's when I had the chance. You can, by the way, drive to the top (Lummis mentions a road to the top under construction when he visited).
Manitou is also just down the road, so to speak, from Garden of the Gods, which really is an amazing place. We're kind of entering the Heart of Darkness of Lummis's tramp (in a good way), where there are just a lot of sights Lummis writes about, and Lummis is spending a little more time exploring, not just booking it down the rail. So for that reason I'm trying to be more efficient than I have previously on the Re-Tramp. I got up before dawn in my Colorado Springs Super 8 and hit the road shortly thereafter towards Garden of the Gods, an amazing collection of rock features in the foothills. I got there a little after 7:00am, and the place was spectactular in the morning sunlight, with few other people there.
Lummis reports a lot of rabbits in this area, but I'm surprised he didn't mention the birds. There was an abundance of birdlife as I wandered among the spires and sheer rock faces, adding to the atmosphere of the place: Magpies (I think), some sort of small bird of prey (a swift or something), a bluebird, doves, and some other really tiny birds (Audubon is turning in his grave right now).
Coffee is running out, so I'm going to go poke around Manitou a little more before I jump on the railway to PP. Keep an eye on the blog, tomorrow I'm planning on going to jail. Sorry, not in the way you all expected.
SHU
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