Partway up the mountain is a town called Ruxton, with a population of 2 - a couple who run the power plant and check the reservoirs daily. They have to drive around the mountain and a total of 77 miles to buy groceries.
We saw a herd of elk and a deer on the way up. Narrator said it was the largest herd of elk seen so far this summer. There are some bristlebrush trees on the mountainside that are over 2400 years old! Some in another place in the world have been proven to be over 5000 years old.
We could see lots of red rocks from the train and counted 5 kinds of wildflowers closer to the top. It was 81 degrees when we boarded the train at 12:00 and 40 degrees at the top of the mountain. But no wind and sunny and the views were beyond words. I could see why mountain climbers find being on the tops so exhilarating, especially when they got there by their own steam! Our friends said the other time they were on the top the wind was blowing so hard they could hardly walk, so we were blessed to have perfect weather. They make hundreds of donuts up there every day for the tourists to buy and they were really good.
Our friends, Greg and Jan Young, who we met in the mid '70's in Alaska. They were doing a mortgage through my dept. in a bank and we became friends. They moved to Brighton, Co. after he retired from the State of Alaska (after getting out of the A.F.)
View from another direction at the top of the mountain
Going down the mountain. More than one train operates at a time
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