After a morning hike, I needed a plan for the afternoon. When I called the front desk to ask for a suggestion, the young woman with whom I spoke suggested Nederland- a beautiful ride, less than 20 miles, and a great restaurant for lunch. Perfect!
The drive to Nederland goes through Boulder Canyon on Rt. 119. It's another breathtaking ride through the mountains, literally. There are rocks and evergreens on either side, the Boulder Creek, and cyclists, of course. A bit more than mid-way, I saw a pull-out filled with cars, and people peering over the edge on the opposite side of the ride. Since I was going slowly enough and there was no traffic, I pulled over, too. What the people were looking at was the bottom of the Boulder Falls. I joined others climbing over rocks on the walkway to get closer in to the falls. A young couple was next to me, and the guy stated that he often went fly-fishing at the falls, and last week the water was running brown due to mud churned up by rain. "Imagine what that would look like," he said while shaking his head. We both continued on our walks.
Within 10 minutes or so of leaving the falls I reached Nederland, a small town that seems to spring up in the hills while you're driving. I continued past the village area (the recommended restaurant was closed today) and went to Sundance Lodge and Cafe, where "the food is as good as the view" according to comments on TripAdvisor. The food was good enough, but the view was unbeatable-- the Rockies and the Continental Divide. I lingered beyond by salad and pork green chili, then went into the village. While the houses on the hillside were quite large, the ones in town were small and in need of repair. There were a few shops, several restaurants, a visitor's center, the post office, a bakery. I bought a pin, tee-shirt and a "hiker's cookie" filled with cranberries, oatmeal, orange rind, and dates. While I wouldn't choose to live in Nederland, I was mighty glad I went to visit.
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| The Rockies and Continental Divide |
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