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One of the interesting properties of real estate in the west is the mining claim. These parcels are often in hard-to-get-to places…but not all of them. One of my current listings is on the top of Boulder Mountain at about 13,000 feet. That one is all rock. A newer one that I have recently listed is near Hancock Lakes along the Continental Divide Trail. It was worked to some degree back in the 1800′s, but now sits quietly in an awesome setting. Part of this claim is meadow with lots of wildflowers in the spring. The big draw of mining claim ownership is that they are usually surrounded by public land, which you cannot buy. By purchasing a claim, you have a place to call your own and are often surrounded by thousands of acres of amazing ruggedness and beauty.
Typically, when a prospector found ground of interest, he would “strike” a claim. The standard claim was 300 feet wide and 1500 feet long, creating an area of 10.33 acres. To mark the corners, rocks, stumps, posts and trees were used. Some of the old posts are still findable, as they were on the Dan Allen. Often a nearby tree was used as a marker to the actual corner of the claim and these trees were often marked “BT”, for bearing tree. Many of these trees are still standing.
The tree stump above has the US patent #3328 carved in and still readable. A tour of the Dan Allen is right here. The best features of this claim are the surrounding rugged beauty, the accessibility and being just across the road from the popular mountain fishing site of Hancock Lakes!
I spent most of my working life in the weather biz. Here in Buena Vista I have been taking the official temperature for the Nation Weather Service for over ten years and this morning was the coldest. The temperature was -28 degrees, a new record. The old record was -18 set back in 1956. Fortunately there was little wind this morning, so wind chill was not a big feature. At these temperatures, a wind of five or six miles per hour can do a job on the skin. With sunshine back, it was a beautiful morning, with the mountains standing at frozen attention with their new mantles of white. It was stunningly beautiful.
Yesterday morning was more of a pain. The temperature was -6 at observation time, but the wind made it fell like -37 F and the snow pelting my face was painful. Fortunately I made quick work of the job.
And after all that, we only got about two inches of snow, while the rest of the country reels as this now massive system heads to the northeast. Over my forecasting years I have seen a few of these systems, which we fondly called “Texas hookers.” They are storms that have cold air, moisture and dynamics in the right proportion. They fall out of the Rockies and develop rapidly on their way to the Texas panhandle then make a left hook and aim for the northeast. This one was classic.
Here in Buena Vista, the sun is out and in a couple of days most of the snow will be gone. When one watches the weather as I do, I find this valley has an exceptional climate and little heavy weather!
2011 is well underway and so am I. I have been doing my cardio exercises so that I will be in shape to climb, first with snow shoes and in warmer times without. Outdoor activities are big in our part of Colorado. Any excuse to be outside doing something is a good one…and here in the Arkansas Valley there is plenty to do. This year there are some 20 peaks on my climbing list, most of them 13ers that are sometimes hard to access…but that is part of the fun.
Also, it appears as though my adopted section of the Continental Divide Trail will be complete and ready for a through-hike this season. That is about 8 miles of trail above 12,000 feet heading south from Cottonwood Pass and ending in Mineral Basin.
As for real estate, it is hard to say how that will turn out this year. 2010 was better than 2009 for me, but not for all. I’m prepared for whatever comes and as usual will be happy to assist any and all with their real estate needs along with giving trail tips when requested.
I had an interesting call from one of my clients the other day. They have enjoyed their second home here in Buena Vista over the years, have done some updating and now are ready to move on. They suggested lowering the price by $10,000 over the holidays. So we have!
 
One of the big features of this house is the huge south-facing deck. There are big views of Mt. Princeton, one of Colorado’s 14ers; down valley views as well as views to the east and west. Just inside from the deck, is the open living-dining-kitchen area. At the back on the main floor are two bedrooms and a bath. The upper level has two bedrooms, each with a balcony, and a 3/4 bath. The lower level has a family room and 3/4 bath. This is a great large- or extended-family house because of all the room in which to spread out. Whatever the size of the family, lots of living will be done on the deck. Even during the winter months, if there is no wind, the sun will keep you warm out there.
The price of this house is now $264,900 through January 4, 2011. If you know someone who might be interested, have them give me a call.
‘Tis the season here in the Rockies. Although there is no snow on the valley floor, the high peaks surrounding us are covered with snow. The town Christmas lights are strung across the highway and the light poles all have their decorations. Houses throughout Buena Vista have hoisted their seasonal decorations and this little town in a high valley in the Rocky Mountains is looking just about right. If there is any doubt as to the time of year, the annual equine parade has announced that the Christmas season is in full swing!
 
It will be a while before Santa and his eight…well nine…reindeer show up, but for those of us in Buena Vista, there are always the mule deer in the backyard.
One of the great gifts of living in this part of the country is having the Rocky Mountains in your backyard. For years I have worked with the Continental Divide Trail Alliance on trail work as they raise money to complete this trail. Congress created the trail but never funded it…so there is a lot of volunteer effort to get it completed. That is what every community does for their local projects.
The trail is about 3100 miles from Canada to Mexico and follows the Continental Divide. When first started, the trail consisted of walking trails, game trails, logging and mining roads and whatever was present to create a path from one end to the other. In recent years, the effort has been to refine that network, into a “proper” trail from top to bottom. In our area, we are working on a 90-mile section from Mt. Elbert, 14,440 feet, the highest mountain in the Rocky Mountains and the second highest in the lower 48, south to Monarch Pass on US 50. Some sections are being re-worked and some are being moved so that this entire length will be “off-road.”
  
In 2005, ’06, and ’07, I and others spent many days surveying and siting a large section of this new trail. A couple of years ago, I adopted an eight mile section, mainly above 12,000 feet, to watch over, monitor and maintain. This past weekend I walked it again for the fall inspection and more trail had been completed. It is a spectacular walk. With the completion of about 1,500 feet of trail, my section will be complete and with the completion of another 2.5 miles to the south in Morgan’s Gulch…where I spent many happy days working…the path from Cottonwood Pass to Tin Cup Pass, 17 miles, will be complete. I think that ‘sky-walk’, mainly above 12,000 feet, will be one of the jewels of the CDT and it is fun being part of that effort.
The last couple of weeks have been a whirlwind and I’ve gotten a lot done. I finished about 150 slides for the GRI environmental class PowerPoint and I’m tweaking my presentation for the GRI Water class in Colorado Springs this Friday. On top of that, I have four real estate transactions under way…I didn’t have four transactions last year! And of course there is my adopted section of the Continental Divide Trail that is waiting for fall inspection. The problem is, it is winter up there, so I am hoping for some melting before the weekend, when I plan to check it out…one day with my friend William.
What I appreciate is that it has all gone smoothly. One project flowed to the next and events happened at convenient times. I never felt as though the projects would not get done. In fact I knew it would. What I appreciate is that by allowing the process the doing was never an issue.
The time has come for me to dig in. A few years ago, I wrote the text for the Water Class that is part of the GRI program for Realtors in Colorado. Water is a huge concern…and business…in Colorado. My colleague, Kirk Goble, developed an impressive Power Point presentation to go with the book and the two of us thought that we had developed a really top notch class. Of course we would…and I think student response would support that. The GRI program has been reorganized a bit, but the Water Class is still a requirement for the Colorado GRI.
The revised GRI program has now added an Environmental Class to the Colorado Requirements and again Kirk and I have weighed in on this. My situation now is that the text and Power Point have not yet been released and I teach that class in three weeks. Now I have a pretty good idea what I am going to cover…but as the days drift by…I’m thinking “gee, I’d like to see that final product soon.” After all, one can not be too prepared!
While not record setting, it was a warm summer. There were many days with highs in the 80s…I would have preferred the 60s. At this elevation, 8,000 feet, the sun is so direct that you can feel warm even though the temperature might seem cool. Now we are heading into autumn and the outlook is for above normal temperatures and below normal precipitation. At this point in the game, above normal means 70s and that will be OK. Nighttime lows are already in the 30s. We just had our first snow in the high country and that put the frosting on a beautiful mountain scene. Below is Mt. Columbia, one of our 14ers, with a light cover of snow above the colored trees.
Autumn in our part of the state brings traffic to see the changing colors and this year it is bringing some welcome traffic to my real estate office. It’s a nice change!
Summertime is here. Cool mornings, hot afternoons and occasional thunderstorms. Along with that come lots of vacationers. They are here to see the wonders of the Rocky Mountains, here in the heart of 14er-land; however, they are not looking at properties the way they have in the past.
This year, again, the numbers are way down and the trend line is flat. The good news is that the inventory is huge; the interest rates are way down; and on any particular property you might be able to fashion a great deal. I think by autumn, we’ll see the real estate activity start to pick up with 2011 supporting a come-back. It’s just a matter of waiting for buyers, because the beauty, vitality and value of our valley has not changed.
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Welcome! Buena Vista, at 8,000 feet, sits in the Upper Arkansas Valley surrounded by 13,000 and 14,000 foot peaks in the heart of the Colorado Rockies. This area is a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts and is a second-home or retirement community for those who love the beauty and high-country adventure. I invite you to pay us a visit.
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