After a good night sleep and two excellent meals at cousin Dave and Mary Lou Daubert’s, we left mid-morning on our way to pick up my grandfather’s trail. Passing through Colorado Springs, we made the obligatory visits to the Air Force Academy and the Garden of the Gods. The late spring air was dry and clear, giving us expansive views of both the eastern Colorado plain and the still snow-capped Rocky Mountains. We treated ourselves to a ride up Pike’s Peak on the Cog Railway, from which we got even more stunning views of the surrounding mountains and plains. It was a similar visit in 1893 that inspired Katherine Lee Bates to write “America the Beautiful.”
On the train, our bench faced Chuck and Jennifer from South Carolina, along with her dad from upstate NY. He grew up in Boston, so we shared stories about our lives there. Then, as we described our trip and my grandfather’s diary, our story created an immediate connection. I was a little surprised when Jennifer said that she was “inspired” by our trip idea, but it turns out that they were the first in a series of relative strangers would be so enthusiastic about our journey.
Heading south from Colorado Springs, we aimed for Florence, CO, where my “Pop Pop” got his first glimpse of the Rockies on a Friday afternoon in June 1922, while riding a freight train from Pueblo. We had little to go on besides the fact that he got off the train in Florence, and “went on a tour for grub by the back door method” before hopping on the next train. So we headed for Railroad St., hoping to find a train station. Our first hunch in this historical treasure hunt was a success, as it took us straight to the restored Denver and Rio Grande Railroad station. However, it is no longer an active train station, but is now being used as a community center. At least it is still standing, as many former stations and rail lines have been demolished.
Although the station appeared closed, we saw some parked cars, so Aaron decided to take Pop Pop’s lead and use the “back door” method to get what we wanted. He went over to a side door and knocked and sure enough, a nice lady opened up and agreed to let us tour the inside of the station. She was there playing cards with some friends, and inside the station we saw some vintage photos of the station and trains from the early 1900s. The old photos, along with the overgrown train tracks, began to awaken our imagination, as we tried to understand the era of Pop Pop’s trip.
Bumming it: In his diary, Pop Pop described how he left Florence:
June 2, 1922: Went on a tour for grub by the back door method. Met with fair luck. Here we waited for the passenger train till nine. About fifteen of us got on. They were on the roofs, underneath, up on the tender {coal car} and in the blinds {between cars}. Ray and I rode on the tender. The railroad people out west are not so hard on bums as they are in the east. By moonlight from the top of the tender we saw the royal gorge through which the railroad passed. It is the most wonderful sight I ever laid my eyes on. A great piece of engineering. The further we went, the higher up we got. By the time we hit Salida, Col., we were very high. It was very cold.
It turns out we would be doing some of our own "bumming" on this trip. The guy who rented us the RV told us that WalMart has made it their policy to allow RVs to spend the night in their parking lots, “dry camping.” We figured that either it was good for business, or they didn’t want to bother chasing folks away. Either way, we were grateful for their policy, and headed for the nearest WalMart, which was in Canon City, CO. Even though we were freeloading in the parking lot, we did become regular customers for food and supplies.
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