In Manitou Springs, a place perched on the edge of a mountain and history, you’ll discover an enchanting, colorful rendition of the 19th century. The extra flair is for the tourists’ benefit. There are boutiques and museums that showcase local designers and artists, pottery shops featuring Native American craftsmanship, and fun places for kids. All of this is brushed with a sugary mix of hemp, hippies, and mysticism. Whether in for the day to ride the Cog Railway up Pike’s Peak or passing through Colorado Springs, there are hours of enjoyment to be had in this little town.

​In 1887, J.G. Hiestand built what is known today as the Iron Springs Chateau Melodrama Dinner Theater. From its origins as a candy and cigar store in 1880, the operation changed owners a number of times before the Iron Springs Company purchased it and began to use the venue to sell mineral water commercially. 

Satisfy your taste for old-school (cash only) at Mo's Diner & Lounge with its eclectic 1940s decor and friendly staff. Serving good traditional food, they specialize in generous, classic breakfasts, burgers, meatloaf, biscuits and gravy, and some Mexican dishes, like burritos and green chili. Nothing fancy and prices to match. A warm family atmosphere with lots of locals.

For some more adult refreshment, the Ancient Mariner Tavern, built like a ship’s galley, features some rocking local entertainment, often without a cover charge. It boasts a full bar featuring Colorado draught microbrews. It’s a rowdy place and the music is loud – perfect for quenching your thirst after hiking up and down the hilly streets.
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Older than the state of Colorado itself, the walls of the Cliff House have seen history transpire. Once a stagecoach stop and gold rush boarding house, the inn was converted in 1886 to a sophisticated resort hotel capitalizing on the mineral springs in the region. The list of famous guests includes Theodore Roosevelt, P.T. Barnum, and Clark Gable. Food and service are impeccable at this reasonably priced vintage hotel.

The downtown Manitou Outpost has stood on the same spot since its beginnings as a livery stable in the 1800s. By 1913, a cafeteria pavilion showcasing an erupting geyser had replaced the stable. Later, a garage offering both mechanical work and tours of Pikes Peak was built at the site. Souvenirs, homemade fudge, and ice cream are the main attractions these days, along with the Navajo geyser well that is still preserved inside - but has ceased to spout.

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Born in 1932, C. H. Rockey came to Colorado as a young child. First a Marine and then a teacher, Rockey paid his dues before earning a chance to do what he truly loved – paint. He is one of the Pikes Peak region’s finest and least commercial artists. His whimsical images of a Tolkienesque ‘Manidoon’ will charm fantasy lovers the world over.

PATSY’S CANDY The product of an Irish popcorn vendor’s vivid imagination, this family-run business has been churning out delectable confections for decades. Tour the factory in Colorado Springs, where chocolate, taffy, and butterscotch popcorn are still produced using specialized machinery dating to the 1940s or give your kids a taste of the past at their original 930 Manitou Avenue location.  

Right next door, an old-fashioned penny arcade houses an impressive antique and retro collection that includes pinball, coin-operated rides, 1964 skee ball, and the latest video games. Competing in 12-player mechanical horse-racing, you could win a fistful of tickets to exchange for prizes. A sweet treat for all generations, this whimsical spot will tickle your senses and put a smile on your face.

COLORADO, USA

In fact, the Pemaquid-Bristol region looks a lot like Cornwall, very similar to the Fal estuary on the south coast. We even had a boat ride, to see the seals – but no ferry from St. Mawes! Lots of lobster and seafood, including fish and chips!

You don't get many chances to photograph real coal these days!

On our way, we stayed in the mountainous region of Jackson, New Hampshire. There is a funny little steam locomotive at the foot of Mount Washington, still puffing, complete with an engineer in a dirty face and overalls.

We spent one night in Jackson, New Hampshire, had dinner in the pub and listened to a local Irish folk band. The rest of the time was at Hawks House Inn, a comfortable, laid-back B&B near Damariscotta, Maine. The host was large, gregarious and couldn't do enough to make us feel at home, and the inn was busy each day. Breakfast was buffet style laid out on two large tables. Steve, the host, was very proud of his artisanal cereals and bread, all bought at the local farmer's market, he said, as was the selection of fruit. This was ideal for us since we could help ourselves to what we liked. Not having bacon and eggs each morning probably did our figures some good, and every little bit helps these days!

As you can see, the sun shone every day, which apparently is not particularly typical of the coastal region of Maine. While this is about the closest we are to the ocean, it is still almost exactly 600 kilometres away, so not an afternoon's drive.

We were lucky with the weather but here at home, we REALLY need some rain. It has been a consistently hot, dry summer and the gardens have suffered, in our case due to the heat, but also because of the ravages of the plant pests which such hot weather seems to encourage. Sigh! We can't have it all...

This Misty Mountain is not the Brigadoon of legend, emerging from the fog only once every 100 years, but it has been compared to that mystical land due to its fantastical appearance and the many stories associated with it. Notably, it has been cited as proof for the existence of giants, in particular a character named Bolster, who could stand with one foot on the hill and the other on top of St. Agnes Beacon 10 miles away. This is not surprising, given the size of the tors on Carn Brea. You can’t help but speculate how they came to be there, and the factual description of the area’s history and prehistory only adds to the mystery.
   738 feet above sea level, Carn Brea overlooks the towns of Camborne and Redruth in southern England, or Cornwall. From Pencoys village, it is less than an hour’s walk, accessed by following Loscombe Road and the dirt lanes that meander among flowering hedgerows between the fields. If you start out in the morning, it is likely to be as misty as its nickname suggests, but on a sunny day, the fog will burn off as you approach the summit. The wild and colourful groundcover is as coarse as what is found in the highland moors, and not unlike tundra in places. Well-trodden paths ensure that you won’t easily lose your way.
   The tor enclosure that you discover is worth the steep climb up one or another sides of the hill. Imposing granite ramparts line the bank, forming an eastern and a central enclave. The stones themselves command your attention, but your eyes will be torn between them and the expansive view of the countryside and villages below. Such Neolithic (4,000 – 6,000 BCE) structures could have served many purposes: ceremonial, defensive, community, but there isn’t enough evidence to say for certain what happened in the ancient days on this hill.

​Nevertheless, Carn Brea continued to captivate people’s imaginations. Pottery, Bronze Age tools, and Roman coins have all been found at the site. In the Middle Ages (1379) a castle that served as a hunting lodge and chapel was erected by ancestors of the Basset family, using some of the enormous boulders on the hill as a base. There are at least two tunnels leading from Carn Brea toward Redruth and St. Euny’s Church, which were blocked for safety reasons after 1970. Partway down the hill, St. Euny’s Well is named after the Celtic saint who brought Christianity to the area around 500 CE. 

​In addition to the tor enclosure with its massive outcroppings of rock, the carn is recognized by the 90-foot stone cross that graces its summit. The granite obelisk (1836) is a monument to Francis Basset, Baron de Dunstanville, who became a member of the nobility partly as a result of his efforts to defend the port of Plymouth from Spanish and French fleets with an army of miners. A mine owner himself, with 700-year-old Cornish roots, Basset was a philanthropist who worked to improve the conditions of miners throughout the southwest. Or so the story goes. Some historians describe Basset less sympathetically, suggesting he was grasping as a politician and controlling as an employer, giving with one hand and taking with the other. 

​Tin mines were the main sources of employment in the region throughout the Industrial period. Their abandoned chimneys define the landscape of Cornwall, which sent many of its sons overseas during the 19th and early 20th centuries to help establish mines in places as far away as Mexico, New Zealand, and South Africa. Whatever opinion these young men held of the Baron de Dunstanville, they grew up in the shadow of his memory, and their voices still carry on the winds of Carn Brea.

The climate changes with the neighbourhood in San Franciso. There is so much variety. And everywhere you witness the struggle to keep native plants alive. The red-flowering gum tree, with its outlandish blossoms and stout trunks, performs a proud chorus line in the narrow streets, while tall palms assert their supremacy along the avenues. The ever-changing weather only adds to the place’s mystique. In the harbour, while you commune with sea lions flopping and bellowing on the docks, Alcatraz and the Golden Gate Bridge are elusive. One moment they are there. The next, a rolling bank of fog obliterates them.
      The Bridge itself does not disappoint. It is as majestic as you’ve been led to believe, and the gardens at its base are magically beautiful. Venture down to the piers clustered about the Bay and you will come across a sub-culture of quiet throngs of earnest fishermen.
     The size of San Francisco is a secret, because most of it is folded up into the pleats of the hills, but step outside of it to the beaches, and you are met by the infinite flatness of the Pacific Ocean. Much has been said of this charming city, but never enough to adequately describe the dramatic contrasts you eventually realize are its signature. This is the place to see Wicked: the Musical, if ever oh ever a Wiz there was. Or to explore the Musée mécanique, a collection of mechanical musical instruments and antique arcade machines at Pier 45. A stroll through the district of Haight-Ashbury, locus of the 1967 Summer of Love, is the perfect antithesis to lunch in one of the city’s classic retro diners.

Much like the experience of riding a cable car for the first time, the trip to Pikes Peak near Manitou Springs in Colorado begins with some trepidation as the train lurches up the mountainside.        
    Soon, however, you are completely absorbed by the scenery and the stories the guides are telling. There are faces to see in gigantic stones and broken down remnants of rest stops from decades, sometimes centuries, before. Higher up, you’ll likely catch a glimpse of a marmot or some Bighorn sheep.
     The melange of moss and wildflowers that makes up the alpine tundra is so fragile it takes about 75 years to grow a half an inch. In contrast, some of the most ancient trees in the world survive here. There are Bristle cone pines over two thousand years old.
     Once you arrive on the summit, you’ll have about 40 minutes to take in the 360° breath-taking views of the Continental Divide’s Rocky Mountains, specifically the Sangre de Christo and Collegiate ranges. Beyond them, the Great Plains stretch south toward New Mexico. Time on the summit is limited due to the likelihood of altitude sickness, which can include nausea and severe headaches. The train leaves promptly, so you’ll want to respect the horn blast that you’ll hear about 10 minutes before your departure.

    A cog or rack railway uses a gear that meshes into a special rail mounted between the regular rails to climb steep grades. The Manitou and Pikes Peak Railway climbs grades of about 25%. The guided round trip lasts 3 hours 10 minutes and takes passengers first through dense stands of blue spruce and Ponderosa pines, past boulder fields, and beside the Minnehaha Falls. The train goes through a natural gateway as it approaches Deer Park and various landings with mountain views. On its final ascent, it climbs from timberline to tundra.

A brief journey up a steep hill in Manitou Springs takes you to the railway station, which owes its existence to the inventor Zalmon Simmons (Simmons Beautyrest Mattress Company) who financed the venture some time after experiencing Pikes Peak (altitude 14 110 feet) on a mule's back. Six deaths occurred during construction of the railway, but it opened in 1891.

To ride the Manitou and Pikes Peak Railway, you first need to get to a small historic town about seven miles from Colorado Springs. Disembarking in Manitou Springs, a place perched on the edge of a mountain and history, you are thrown into an enchanting, albeit more colourful, rendition of the 19th century. The extra flair is for the tourists’ benefit. There are boutiques of all kinds that showcase primarily local designers and artists, pottery shops featuring Native American craftsmanship, and fun places for kids. All of this is glazed with a sugary mixture of hemp, hippies, and mysticism.
     Manitou Springs has eleven naturally carbonated springs that have been preserved in fountains throughout the town. The treasure hunt draws you in almost immediately. Once you have found one, you can’t wait to see and taste the next. Expectation hangs in the air, as while you wander through the old streets, the mountain is waiting impassively beside you.
     The word "Manitou" means "Great Spirit." The land on which the town is built is sacred ground, visited by Ute, Cheyenne, and Arapaho tribes, who wintered there and credited the springs with healing properties. Following the gold rush of the 1850s, European settlers also discovered these qualities and began to promote the area as a health spa.