Surviving the mint (part 3)

On Monday evening (Labor Day), since I didn't get in my daily hike in, I walked the two miles from the hotel to downtown Denver for supper. And since I forgot to put the hotel's phone number in my pocket, I walked back.

I have a cousin in the Denver area, so I didn't want to be tied down by anything like a car rental. Alas, she didn't return my calls so we didn't visit. That meant on Tuesday morning I wanted to rent a car and hadn't made a reservation. I used Enterprise because they were a mile from the hotel. Alas, with each office such a small operation cars don't appear on demand. It was after 11:00 before I took possession of a Dodge Journey, a cross between an SUV and a station wagon. I did get a price discount and a small gas credit.

My first stop was Red Rocks Park in the foothills. This is an area with huge red rocks sticking up at odd angles. I enjoyed the nearly 1½ mile trail through the rocks. Lots of pictures. There is also a well known amphitheater built between the largest rocks. Next was Lookout Mountain and great views across Denver and the prairie. I then checked the map for scenic drives and found one reasonably close down I-70. The drive headed south out of Idaho Springs, up to Echo Lake (and could have gone to Mt. Evans), then down to Berger Park.

My primary destination on Wednesday was Boulder. While on the highway about halfway there a tire blew. I was in a construction zone so it was a while before I could pull over. By then the tire was completely shredded. Then the fun began -- I couldn't find the spare (though found the jack) and there was no user manual. I was close to an exit, so walked to a phone in a Mazda dealership and called Enterprise. The agent said that because it was a flat she would cancel the service fee the road service crew would add to my bill. The truck picked me up at the dealership and took me back to the car. The mechanic did something inside the hatch area to lower the spare from under the car. I would have never figured this one out on my own. Total delay less than two hours. Strangely, the car didn't do well with the undersized wheel, insisting on going 55 or 75 on a highway with a 65 speed limit. I decided I had better not venture up into the mountains and to avoid the highway back to Denver.

I got to Boulder in time for lunch and then off to the main attraction -- the Celestial Seasonings Tea plant in town. I drink herbal and decaf tea, so I'm familiar with many of their flavors and hoped to stock up on varieties that are not or no longer sold in Detroit. Of course, I also took the plant tour, which shows milling of leaves, making teabags, and packaging. It didn't show blending. We also stopped in the room where peppermint and spearmint is stored -- that will clear your sinuses! They sell a t-shirt proclaiming, "I survived the mint room!" And, yes, I bought lots of product. However, that leaves me with a dilemma -- what to do with their biodegradable shopping bag? It isn't marked as recyclable, and if I put it in the trash, will a standard landfill put it in a place where it will decompose? All my canvas bags were back in Detroit.

I spent the rest of the afternoon exploring the pedestrian zone in downtown Boulder -- lots of art galleries, tourist shops, sportsman outfitters, a kite shop, and several bookstores. One bookstore featured leftist books and a large display of bumper stickers. One that I remember said, "When the government ignores the constitution -- what is treason?" Another said, "25% of all prisoners are in the United States."

I took a road along the front range back to Denver. Once on Denver highways the car was fine.

On Thursday morning I toured the US Mint. Interesting, but not a lot that can be seen. I returned to Detroit that afternoon.