<br />About the Crystal Valley
<br />
<br />Page I 00
<br />
<br />I
<br />IJ
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />,
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />I
<br />
<br />Home
<br />Crystal Mill
<br />Search Pag~
<br />Pictures
<br />
<br />---------------------------------
<br />1\" t"~ "'1" " ~"""~'''' -r"l""'''
<br />..r . ~>';:"."',~ :,,~,~~(,' ''t ',,". ",,"' t-,;,;' ";. C, l' )
<br />,;,;":",, At t tl C .'r"';!'l"'("w'~~""H'" . ..:k:"";;,,
<br />~'e'_,..,,1v'w_~ r:. ~!:>-. ~ oJ, ~,:}
<br />I~~}:pii~~~:'. . ',~~ :~: :'l ~:Oll ,),~" ~~:t~{;~~ "~'~j:~.~;.4 ~ v )i~~JT. ~ :l:":~;..il~r;~~ :i~'~;f~
<br />~..::::~~~~~d~,~___..-.:1~~,d.ftfu;;eJt:.~l.\...~'^:::..!:..:::._j ~i(:r:i!r~~~'~}i-;~:~t~-_:.:::..r
<br />
<br />Lodging
<br />
<br />The Crystal Valley (or the Upper Crystal Valley, for some folks) extends from the
<br />intersection of Route 133 and Country Road 3 (where the main road turns 9f,00
<br />Marble) up to Scholfield Park, a total distance of about 15 miles, About half of that
<br />(say, 8 miles) is either paved or at least maintained, The other half is four wheel
<br />drive only, The valley includes two ghost towns: Marble and Crystal. Crystal is
<br />about 6 miles east of Marble, and is inhabited only in the summer. Marble is
<br />Local Arts, inhabited the year around, although the year around population is probably less
<br />Crafts, than one hundred, and the main road through town is unpaved, There are no stree
<br />Businesses lights, stop lights, or any other trappings of civilization,
<br />
<br />Upper
<br />Crvstal
<br />River
<br />Caucus
<br />
<br />The valley is traversed by the Crystal River, which has its origin above Scholfield
<br />Park. The river is very scenic, and lives up to its name: the water is so pure that
<br />native fish populations have a hard time surviving due to the lack of nutrients,
<br />Fishing ranges from mediocre'to excellent - you have to know where to go, and we
<br />ain't telling here,
<br />
<br />The forests consist of both Aspen groves, and evergreens, Legend has it that the Ul
<br />Indians, upon being driven out of the valley by the early prospectors and settlers, s'
<br />fire to the valley, For good measure they also put a curse on it, At any rate, if the
<br />legend be true, the fire gave the Aspen groves a chance to get started - Aspens are
<br />just big weeds, and will repopulate a burn first. The evergreens take longer, At an)
<br />rate, for whatever reason, there is a large population of Aspen, Many years the bes
<br />fall colors in all of Colorado are in the Crystal Valley, causing a huge influx of
<br />tourists during the end of September, and the beginning of October, The
<br />combination of evergreens and Aspens is mind boggling, As an aside (whatever
<br />were we talking about anyway?), it is said that Aspen groves are the largest and
<br />oldest living organisms - the contention being that a grove is a single plant, and
<br />some groves are tens of thousands of years old, Go figure,
<br />
<br />We should also mention, while talking about plants in the vaHey, that you can find
<br />morel mushrooms, But ya gotta know where, and we ain't telling here,
<br />
<br />Wildlife includes deer, elk, cougar, bear, raccoon, fox, marmot, chipmunk, squirrel,
<br />rabbit, skunk, grouse, mice, big horn sheep, mountain goats, eagles, and tourists, A
<br />are harmless, except the mice (hantavirus) and the tourists,
<br />
<br />I
<br />I
<br />
<br />Insects include ticks and glow worms, Honest to God, Residents devise ingenious
<br />methods of killing ticks (pulling off all the legs, and letting it lose to starve is a
<br />favorite), The little blood suckers don't get any more mercy than lawyers,
<br />Incidentally, to the best of our knowledge there are no lawyers in the valley, which
<br />
<br />http://www.marblecolorado.org/about.htm
<br />
<br />3/10/2004
<br />
|