Greg & Jim Study the Birds, Lakes and Flora of Rocky Mtn Nat. Park



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Talk about really seeing it, I think Greg and Jim are making up for all those of us, read most, who
have ever crossed this country of ours and not taken the time to smell the roses. I don't think
there is much they have missed. Whoaaaaaa:
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Windy Gap, Mothers Natures Resistance to Bikers

Hi All you lovely people: I cannot tell you how relieved I am to be over that pass. We have met
several people who have seen us and declared without hesitation that we are crazy, but we already
knew that.

We were truly blessed in our ride up the mountains. We saw saw quite a few stocks of white flowers
with leaves extending beyond the flowers by quite a bit. When I looked through the book on flowers
my brilliant friend gave me I discovered we were looking at Monument Plants. They grow for 60 years
and bloom only once and die. They were beautiful and we felt so lucky to have seen them in bloom.
Their Latin name is Frasera speciosa for those special people who enjoy the universal names.

Back in Estes Park, we missed the snipes. Linda told us about them. When we left Estes I had heard
the whirring sound that Linda said they make. We did not see them however.

We did not miss the hawks flying below us from the lookouts along the highway today however. They
have a beautiful blend of gold and brown that you rarely see when you are looking up at them.

We also found out that bull elk weigh up to 900 lbs and can run 35 mph. We decided not to make
any angry.

Greg heard frogs croaking in some wet land we passed. The wind was howling so loud, they were hard
to hear. Even though we were pedaling down hill, we could never get more than 15 or 16 mph. On
previous descents we had had to brake to keep us from going 30 mph or faster.

We are seeing lots of black and white magpies. Greg saw one without a tail. We saw an Osprey along
one of the creeks connecting the lakes.

The Rocky Mountain National Park's greatest asset is the water that it collects. In 1915 they did a
study to decide how to do this and today due to excellent planning the West enjoys some water
reserves that would not have otherwise happened. Our hats off to these forward looking people. We
hope that our NBG efforts will some day be enjoyed by our children and future generations in a
similar manner.

In any futuristic venture there always can be controversy. According to the information kiosks that
we found along the park roads, because of resistance, it took years for an effective water
collection system to become a reality. Along the beautiful lakes that (the park has about 150
lakes.  Some occupy pastoral, forested settings.  Others are perched on almost inaccessible shelves
high in the park's wilderness, remaining frozen almost year round, ed) were tied into these
conservation efforts, we saw pika's, pelicans and eagles.

I look forward to the day when cyclists can safely enjoy these sights and sounds without the fear of
high speed traffic disrupting a wonderful experience. Why should the mistakes made by a young
cyclist or someone rusty or new to the activity be punished with death or serious injury?. Life here
is short and children, as well as anyone looking for a better way to move around, should be able to
enjoy the learning experience without penalty.

Last night due to Greg's insight we decided to enjoy a room and a soak in the pools at Hot Sulphur
Springs Resort. It was a good choice as it rained hard.

The women in the pools told us we would become better looking if we did not shower after soaking;
that we should come back at daybreak and soak again. Unsure what they mean by this, however, the
next morning we went to breakfast instead.

At our morning meal, we met Bill Arblaster of Golden, CO, Dana Reichers of Lakewood and Lannie
Perkering Of Waldem, CO who were curious about our ride and my recumbent. They wished us luck and
hoped our efforts were successful. It is always an up lift to have others to encourage your efforts.
We are ready to roll and hope to have another glorious day. Jim and Greg

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Local access to PocketMail mobile e-mail now available in Europe, North America & Australia
http://www.pocketmail.com

Jim Muellner can be found at http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide/JimMuellner His email on
the road is: [email protected]

Greg Miller is at http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/bios/greg_mill er.php
here is a photo of him speaking at the Bouloder reception and send off:
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/Boulder2003/GallGregSpeak s_Jim

If you want to start from the beginning and/or follow Jim our other NBG relay riders as they move
forward in the National Mayors' Ride at <http://www.bikeroute.com/NationalMayorsRide>, point to
their blog at <http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/reports.php>. All of this
excitement will al be consummated at the second annual Santa Cruz NBG Bike Fest
<http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Festival>:

btw: If you want to become a rider, we WANT you!! Go to
<http://NationalBicycleGreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/getstarted.php>, to find out how!! btw2: We
have pictures from the various ride legs on line at
http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/gallery/2003Mayors btw3: If you want to see who these
cyclists are, go to <http://www.nationalbicyclegreenway.com/Events/Mayors_Ride/bios>.

MARTIN KRIEG: "Awake Again" Author c/o BikeRoute.com 79 & 86 TransAms, nonprofit Nat. Bicycle
Greenway CEO Ever wanted anything so bad U were willing to die for it? Really die? By moving thru
clinical death and reversing paralysis, *I saw God* when I answered that question.
 
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