MHCC Goes to Grand Lake, CO

[bobcowan]

Every year, the Mile Hi CObra Club takes a 3 day week end to Grand Lake, CO. It's not a long trip, only a couple of hours from Denver. For me, this is always the highlight of the year. It's a layed back relaxed event. We take over a hotel on the lake, and spend the week end goofing off. We drink a little alcohol - not as much as you might think - talk car tech, tell stories and jokes, and generally have a good time.

We met the group in Morrison, CO, on Friday Morning. Most of the club is from the Denver area. From there, we take a few back roads, and eventually hit I-70 for a short stretch. Then over Berthoud Pass, to Winter Park, and Granby. The weather was pretty nice; a little gray in spots, but dry.

This picture was taken last year on Berthoud Pass.


We arrive in Grand Lake sometime in the early afternoon. No rush. We spend a little time on the deck goofing off. Most of the group went bowling, as there are trophies at stake.



After bowling, it's pizza on the deck again. And a few adult bevergaes.



When it gets cold enough, people retreat to their rooms, and a comfy bed. Michele and I called it a night around 2130; Yes, we're old now.

[bobcowan]

Saturday morning was a little dreary and rainy. Not a big deal. Our first "event" of the day was a healthy walk around the lake at 0800. I have no pictures of that, for obvious reasons.

After that, we planned a short hike up the trail east of town. This is a pretty nice trail that ends up at a string of lakes and ponds near the Continental Divide. I hiked it about 10 years ago, and the scenery was stunning. But it was a pretty tough hike. But our plan for the morning was to see the falls, and a little bit of the trail. Only about a mile, maybe less.




Along the way, we came across this guy.


Of course, somebody always has to try and get closer

[bobcowan]

The weather was off and on, some sun, a few small rain storms. Again, no big deal. The deck is Meeting Central. We spend a lot of time here, enjoying the lake and the company.



After lunch we went over to the go cart track. It's a pretty small track, with low powered cars. What a blast we had! Bumping and grinding, spinning out, hitting the rails. We laughed the whole time. Then it started to rain. That made it even more interesting. When it's dry, you just mash the throttle and go. When it's wet, a little more caution is required.

Michele said we were all grinning like a bunch of 12 year old boys. And I felt like one, too. No pictures. Our photographer was busy spinning out in turn 4. That was a lot of fun, and worth every penny.

While taking a break on the deck, Michele got this picture of our beloved leader, Al. Or Art. Or The Dude. Or whatever. Anyway, I zoomed it in and enhanced it just a touch. Now you know what puts the gleam in a man's eye.



Then it was about time for dinner. The local BBQ joint supplies us with a pretty good meal. Because the weather was bad, out hotel manager let us use their event room. It's a beautifull room with huge windows overlooking the lake.

Moste everyone stayed there to play games, drink beer, and stay warm. A couple of us went over to see the local playhouse feature. It was a musical, called The Andrews Brothers. I laughed so hard I thought I was going to pop a hernia! I gotta tell ya, these three guys do NOT make a reasonable representative of the Andrews Sisters! It was 2 hours well spent.

[bobcowan]

Staurday morning I took this picture of the mountains just east of town. The first snow of the season



Trail Ridge Road was closed Saturday night for snow.

Well, Sunday morning finally arrived. Way too soon for me. The weather was spectacular. Brilliant blue sky, bright sunshine. Not a breath of wind anywhere.



Maybe a sailboat was not the best choice this morning.

[bobcowan]

For the rest of us, it was time to uncover the cars, pack up the trunk, and say our good by's

[bobcowan]

Once the sun came up, Trail Ridge Road thawed out an was open by 0830. Good, because I was not the only one planning on heading that way. In the past, we take some back roads through North Park, South Park, and past Lake George. But the weather gods were not smiling that day - that route was cold and wet. Snow would not have surprised me.

We drove up over the top of Trail Ridge Road, the highest continuous paved highway in the continental US. Well over 10,000' ASL.


Longs Peak had some fresh snow on it. It hink it's going to be a long winter around here.



You can't really see her, but Michele is bundled up in the passenger seat.


I posted more photos here: http://s13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...009/?start=all

And, if you want to see pics from last year: http://s13.photobucket.com/albums/a2...20Lake%202008/

[bobcowan]

All in all, it was a great trip. The car ran almost perfectly the entire trip. I have to change the Baro map, it was a smidgen lean above 8,000'. It was a little cold, a little gray, a little sunny, and a little warm. Yes, it was all of that.

But, most importantly, it was well organized and well run. Our team leaders were Mike and Jane. They worked hard to set everything up, and coordinate all the details and all the fun stuff. Mike got our boat trip deposit back when we cancelled due to bad weather. And he arranged for the party room at the last minute. He even had his expresso machine fired up on Saturday morning.

Mike and Jane, take a bow.