Schlagwort-Archiv: Colorado

Manitou, 1 October 1893

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The day started with an icy cold, snow and storm. All the mountains were covered in fog and the outlook for the probability of the planned trip to the peak of Pike’s Peak reduced to a minimum. We did not have much luck with mountain excursions during our voyage in America.

In the morning, our ambassador in Washington, Schmit von Tavera, introduced himself as I had requested his presence here. He confirmed me the correctness of the unedifying circumstances of the exposition in Chicago and unfortunately especially the rumours about the Austrian section, so that I arranged to limit my visit there to only a few hours. He also developed a graphic survey of the conditions in the United States in all areas of public and private life that very much reinforced and enriched the impressions I have received up to now. Especially worth a mention is the changeover of the officials after each change of the presidency which precludes the necessary continuity in administration, quite apart from the crass excesses that this system promotes.

Furthermore in the land of the free public welfare for the working class seems to be seen as completely superfluous and to be substituted by the liberty to die of hunger if necessary. Economic disruptions have lasting effects given the completely insufficient support for the workers‘ interests. And especially the silver crisis is said to have caused great misery. Despite these dismal aspects the United States still exerts a great attraction to emigrants of which also from our country many thousands try their luck in the New World every year, only to all to often end up in a miserable state as they are not rarely exploited by scrupulous agents and left in a place to fend for themselves without rights and help, reduced to a miserable condition.

After a short railway journey we reached Manitou that is only 10 km distant from Colorado Springs and delightfully situated at the foot of Pike’s Peak and an attraction for sufferers and tourists. Climbing the high peak, that had been discovered and first climbed by Captain Pike in 1806, has since then been a very tempting enterprise so that it was decided in 1890 to build a cog railroad of the Abt system in place of the tiring riding path to the top of the mountain. The starting point of the railway opened in 1891 lies at 2013 m above sea level. The altitude difference to be surpassed amounts to 2318 m and the endpoint of the railway is thus 534 m higher than the peak of the Großglockner. I would have liked to undertake the trip to the peak of Pike’s Peak, whose altitude is certified by friend Baedeker to cause nosebleed due to the thin air, but unfortunately dense snow storm and extended fog prevented our undertaking, as the day before the cold temperature had been measured at the peak of 25 cool degrees. I thus stayed in Manitou that is picturesquely located in a valley basin and makes a friendly nice impression.

Due to its carbon acidic and ferruginous water, it is a often visited health resort where much is done for the visitor’s comfort and well-being. This is exemplified by the numerous sites and plants that snugly enclose the houses and villas. Numerous hotels and guest houses await the tourists and also a casino has established itself here

The bad weather naturally did not deter us at all from having a look at the beauties of nature in the surrounding area clad in winter dress. Firstly, Williams Canyon is a quite narrow rocky gorge whose blood red rocks rising high on both sides of the road and are made up of sandstone rich in iron. We thus can observe the rocks closely and in leisure. Some of the rocks have been buttressed to prevent any danger to the passers-by.

Much more interesting is the „Garden of the Gods“, an area of about 240 ha distinguished by a number of fantastic isolated rock formations that carry names that, with a little fantasy, seemed to be not badly chosen. There is a „baggage hall“, baggage-like cubes piled on top of one another, then the „Garden of the Sponges“ where formations have been created by erosion that look very much like giant stone mushrooms; the „Balanced Rock“ is an about 200 t heavy conical rock on which rests a meter-wide pedestal. Outstanding are thin sandstone walls that are arranged one after the other like a backdrop on a stage and are displaying truly grotesque formations such as „Lot’s wife“, „elephant“, „bear“, „American eagle“, „buffalo head“ and finally the „kissing camels“.

In any case these nature spectacles leave nothing to be desired in terms of originality. They rise in their blood red color completely suddenly and are well worth a visit. In the „Garden of the Gods“ I saw an oak species again for the first time after a long period of absence, however only a small one similar to our Austrian oak, with strongly slit leaves.

While we were amply being fleeced by a merchant in his Curio Shop, the clouds lifted, the sun emerged, the mountain range deeply covered in snow and even the peak of Pike’s Peak became visible so that we infinitely regretted not to spend this moment at the top of the giant mountain and to look out over the Rocky Mountains and the endless prairie of Colorado and Texas. But the hour of departure to Chicago had arrived and I had to take the decision to go without having climbed Pike’s Peak.

Links

  • Location: Manitou Springs, Colorado, USA
  • ANNO – on 01.10.1893 in Austria’s newspapers.
  • The k.u.k. Hof-Burgtheater is playing the tragedy „Kabale und Liebe“. The k.u.k. Hof-Operntheater is performing the opera „Mignon“.

Colorado Springs, 30 September 1893

Hinterlasse eine Antwort

On the line of the Denver and Rio Grande Railroad we were rolling towards our next destination, Colorado Springs, after we had turned Eastwards at Provo City. As far as the landscape is concerned, this route has to be described as very interesting as the tracks cross a great number of splendid canyons. Narrow rocky valleys and gorges exist in Europe too but neither in such numbers and extent, nor showing such grotesque formations we were encountering here. Unfortunately, the bad weather spoiled our enjoyment of the scenery as it was snowing when we passed the wild canyon of the Grand River and dense flakes and masses of fog covered the mountain peaks as well as the higher wall some of which rose almost vertically up to 750 m.

In many places the gorge with its rocky walls is so narrow that the railway and the river have just enough space next to each other and daylight can only enter between the colossal jagged walls. Nevertheless crippled pines have set root in crevices and wherever there is a bit of earth between the rocks, intensely red and yellow colored bushes peek out. The sandstone rocks appear in the most adventurous forms, withered and crumbled parts alternate with deep long clefts and caves. One expects the overhanging walls and blocks to tumble down into the abyss at any moment. Down there the gushing river digs its bed deeper and deeper. Rocks that have been broken off by the force exerted by ice in places pile up to mighty masses enriching the gorgeous view that this wild romantic and dark area offers.

The Canyon of the Grand River is 27 km long until the valley in which much new snow was lying opens up without however losing its bare and rocky character. Whenever the fog was broken up by the current wind, we could also see the high mountains surrounding the canyon.

Soon we entered into Eagle River Canyon that resembled its predecessor but was still considerable narrower so that one can not look up to the walls even from the bottom of the wagon. Here too some narrow tunnels had to be dug even though the railway tracks follow the river shore closely. Like glued to the wall appear the small huts of the miners and the mine entrances that allow the extraction of the ore and are the main source of income for the thinly distributed population.

When we reached some sort of high plateau after having passed Eagle Canyon, we were received by light rays of the sun emerging from dense snow clouds. The rays illuminated multiple green fields, an unexpected sight. Grazing cattle and horse brought life into the landscape.

The two cities of Leadville and Salida were examples of the already repeatedly observed type of urban settlements even though the territory, like the whole of Colorado, had been Mexican for a long time before it had been annexed by the United States. Numerous mountain names remind of this past era, thus the snow covered Sangre de Cristo range and places like Pueblo, which we later passed.

Right after Salida we observed mighty round boulders that sometimes were piled up on top of one another that, individually, were larger than a small house. The vegetation here was very paltry and only represented by the roof-shaped dwarf spruce and cacti in yellow bloom.

As far as greatness is concerned, the latest of the canyons, the canyon of the Arkansas, is the equal of the Great Canyon in the Yellowstone Park, but it lacks the latter’s splendid light and color effects that delighted me. Instead the canyon of the Arkansas is marked by the jaggedness of the red sandstone as well by the quite amazing height of granite rocks. The rocks rise at the most narrow spot of this 13 km long pass, called Royal Gorge, up to 800 m.

Overwhelmed by the view I stood on the platform of the wagon, following the example of most other passengers, while the speeding train seemed to flee out of the area of the threatening gigantic masses. Such scary areas have certainly been imagined in our mind while we listened to accounts of Indian attacks on trains, of fights between them and the passengers and of other romances about the far West with all their ghastly elements.

Suddenly, and without any continuing spurs of the surrounding walls, the narrow valley stops and makes way to a wide prairie-like valley where timid trials of cultivating fields and fruit can be observed.

From Pueblo the railway turns North towards Colorado Springs, a spa town popular due to its healthy climate where we rested for the night in order to drive to Manitou the next day and climb Pike’s Peak of 4331 m altitude.

Links

  • Location: Colorado Springs, Colorado, USA
  • ANNO – on 30.09.1893 in Austria’s newspapers.
  • The k.u.k. Hof-Burgtheater is playing the comedy „Der Veilchentreffer“. The k.u.k. Hof-Operntheater is performing the opera „Die Afrikanerin“.