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Show Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues, February 18-21, 2017 Mysteries of Colorado’s Pikes Peak: An ongoing adventure for historian Eric Swab SETH BOSTER The Gazette COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (AP) — Eric Swab was glancing at aerial satellite images of his next destination, another remote wilderness along Pikes Peak, when he spotted something peculiar. He squinted at his computer screen: two white smears through the pines. Maybe, just maybe, he thought he was looking at forlorn mining residue. This is the kind of thing that thrills Swab, who at 78 is showing no signs of slowing down in his quest to uncover the secrets of the mountain’s deep past, reported The Gazette. The white smears “looked different enough,” he said, “to where I thought it would be worth looking into.” So off he went with his weekly hiking group, pushing his round gold-rimmed glasses to his temple, fastening his safari hat, strapping on his snowshoes and entering into an untrodden area, the location of the smears plugged into a navigator. The group is composed of a dozen fellow retirees, similarly aging and ever eager for the chance of discovery with a historian of Colorado Springs’ great outdoors. Swab has published extensive research on how an old railway became the Manitou Incline. He’s written a yet-tobe-published book on Fred Barr, the man who laid Pikes Peak’s premier trail. In preparation for a presentation, he has a binder stuffed with notes and grainy images of structures that used to stand on the mountain. It is through rugged exploration that Swab builds his understandings. “It wouldn’t be an Eric hike if we weren’t bashing through bushes and boulders,” said Rick Weaver, a member of the group. “If you aren’t bleeding in at least two different places by the end of an Eric hike, it’s not an Eric hike,” Bob Lojewski, another member, added. Debbie Bloch, whose company Swab particularly appreciates for her keen ability to spot artifacts as small as a quartersized arrowhead also gave her opinion. “You’ve got to get off trail to find the treasures.” Hunting mysteries Swab stopped the crew to ask a question: “How many of you are old enough to have been on Pikes Peak in the late ‘50s, early ‘60s?” Did anyone, he wondered, see the F-94 Starfire fighter jet once displayed atop the mountain? Swab pointed ahead to a gravel spot where he said the jet’s remains are buried; he once ventured over to find stray bits of wire and plexiglass. The group approached a grassy plain, where Swab passed around a scanned copy of the 1890 homestead patent for the man who first owned the parcel. The view of Rampart Range was clear beyond, and Swab pointed out a ridge where underneath lurks evidence of his greatest fascination: the Fremont Experimental Forest, an initiative that began over a century ago to research ways to revegetate the hillsides ravaged by fire and logging. To Swab’s knowledge — based on a 1924 Department of Agriculture article he tracked down — eight rudimentary stations were built along Pikes Peak. And one is in the place beneath that ridge where he found collapsed log walls and remnants of a weather tower. He has yet to find and confirm the other seven sites. “Probably not in my lifetime,” he said, as he conceded also to B-7 The Park Record the improbability of finding another major intrigue: the complete route of the Fremont Trail, what he believes to be the earliest known path constructed on Pikes Peak. And still, he tromped on. His steps were steady and determined as he ascended a ridge, digging his poles into the ankledeep snow, ducking under pine branches and stepping over trunks and boulders, appearing unburdened by the pacemaker he got a year ago. Later, he was among those brave enough in the group to take a slippery slope down into a gully to observe a frozen waterfall. “Come on, ya wimp!” he shouted to a younger hiker. But then, he led the way up the ridge. At the top, he sadly reported to his fellow hikers a former group member’s health is declining, and that death is imminent. For a moment, tears are shed. Then Swab moved on to a lighter topic: the iron stake jutted up from the snow, with the year 1921 inscribed on its cap along with “PLOT 4.” “This is the mystery monument,” Swab told the hikers, as they circled around it. “Can anyone tell me what it means?” Their guesses weren’t quite as good as Swab’s. He’s hunted down another object like this in another remote elsewhere, with this one’s cap reading “PLOT 6,” and he’s studied enough to know that these were corner markers for some boundary. For what, exactly, he knows not — “I would like desperately to prove it was part of the Fremont Experimental Forest,” he said. “But I haven’t found any connection.” Alas, “A mystery,” a group member said over the stake as Swab nodded and led the way to the next stop, an old cabin, a swinging door still attached, an old dirty pot inside. Its past is yet another mystery to Swab. He noted some 250 abandoned cabins on his adventures, “and I might know something about 40 of them,” he said. Rewards from the search As much as he would like to spend his days leafing through material at the library and sifting through historic records by the Bureau of Land Management, he can’t. He has an obligation at home to his beloved wife of 56 years, who has Alzheimer’s disease. He drops her off with a caretaker on Tuesdays, the only days he sets aside for himself. These are days for searching. The group stopped for lunch, sitting on the stone foundation of what Swab knows to be an old lodge belonging to the Cusack family, the early 20th-century owners of the town of Cascade. Later, near the end of the nearly 7-mile trek, a hiker pointed out a concrete slab sticking out from the earth, and Swab’s guess is a loading dock, from the days when the Pikes Peak Highway was under construction. “There’s stuff everywhere!” he said with boyish elation. He then hiked up a ridge he was proud to say he never hiked before — a heart-pounding climb riddled with spiky yucca. A possible reward awaited at the end: the mysterious white smears he spotted on his computer. Breathing heavy at the top, he veered to the hillside, following the navigator’s coordinates. And there they were, the white smears. There they were, nothing but two rock slabs. Oftentimes, that’s how it goes for Pikes Peak’s mystery hunter. But the climb granted him a grand view of the mountain, and he looked out to it as he caught his breath. “Well,” he said over the rocks, “that’s all right.” And he carried on. Relax Easy Buying or Selling a Home is Joel Fine • 435-901-2171 joel@FineProperty.com (www.justcalljoel.com) Some of the pets at Nuzzles & Co. looking for love These animals are available to be seen at the Nuzzles & Co. Adoption Center and Rescue Ranch. Our Adoption Center is open Monday through Friday from noon to 7 p.m. and Saturday and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. It is located in the Tanger Outlets in Kimball Junction. Our Rescue Ranch is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., and closed Sunday. The Rescue Ranch is located at 6466 N. Highview Road in Peoa. Ryker Sandy Martin Milo Ryker is a 3-year-old pit bull mix. This big goofball is a bundle of love. 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Remix is a sweet and easygoing cat who is looking for a loving family and happy home to call his own. Searching for new things to do? Wanted: Volunteers These not-for-profit organizations are looking for volunteers. If you would like to include your group in this section, please email information to copyeditor@parkrecord.com. Please limit your entry to no more than 75 words. Big Brothers Big Sisters Do you want to make a child’s life better,? Big Brothers Big Sisters of Utah is seeking volunteers to become mentors to youth in Park City. Mentors meet two to four times per month with their “littles” to do fun activities and develop a lasting relationship. This little bit of time can make a big difference in the life of a child. For information, please contact Emily Medlock at 435-649-9366 or emily.medlock@bbbsu.org. Canines with a Cause Canines with a Cause is looking for volunteers interested in learning dog training and assessment skills. Volunteers will foster and train prospective service and companion dogs to be placed with veterans suffering with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For information, please contact Cathy King at 435-640-9095. The Christian Center of Park City The Christian Center is looking for volunteers with a passion for helping the community. Open six days a week, the center needs volunteers (ages 16 and older) to help in the food pantry, boutique store and thrift store, and with seasonal events throughout the year. Fill out an online volunteer application at www.ccofpc.org or contact Volunteer Coordinator Jenny Mauer at jenny@ccofpc. org or 435-649-2260, ext. 15. EATS Park City EATS Park City is dedicated to working with the school district and community to improve the school-lunch program using education as the foundation for change. School volunteers are needed to help with programs such as lunchtime taste tests, cooking classes and community events. Give an hour a week or a few hours a month to support interesting and fun ways to increase Park City children’s healthy habits. Contact eatspc@ gmail.com to get involved. Girl Scouts As a volunteer with a Girl Scout troop, you’ll introduce girls to new experiences that make every day feel like the best day ever. At every turn you’ll be their cheerleader, guide and mentor, helping them develop the skills and confidence that will last long after the meetings are over. For information, visit http://www.gsutah. org/en/volunteer-role-model.html or call Heather Smith at 801716-5109 For a full list of volunteer opportunities, visit parkrecord.com/volunteers. You don’t have to work this hard. Check out the calendar in Scene for local music, events and more! |