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<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 />