First Fish at Red Feather Lakes Colorado

This is a watercolor of my first fish, which was a crawdad.  I caught this on my first pole with my first reel, he fought pretty hard.  He was a definite catch and release.   We would see a lot of these babies in the lakes.  It was not until later I ate some in New Orleans, Louisiana, if only we knew, they would have been in trouble.

Hiawatha Lake - Red Feather Lakes, Colorado

Hiawatha Lake is just to the west of the Hilltop Store featured in yesterday's post.  I remember this lake for our two fishing spots.  This one is where I caught my first fish, a Rainbow Trout and trying to get my feet wet while wearing my Wellington boots.  I use to like how the rubber would get darker when wet.

Hilltop Store - Red Feather Lakes Colorado

There are not a lot of businesses in Red Feather Lakes, but the one I remember going back to longest is the Hilltop Store.  One of the first things we would do when we went to the cabin was make the trip to town to the well to fill the milk jugs for the cistern and we would go to the store for whatever supplies we had forgotten.  We would probably get the fishing gossip of what was working and at what lake.  I know it has been there for at least 48 years and will probably continue on for a long time to come.  It is also where my grandmother and I found the notecards which identified the Indian Paintbrush wild flowers.

Ramona Lake - Red Feather Lakes, Colorado

If you travel yourself to Red Feather Lakes, Colorado, this is the picturesque lake below the town.  My watercolor does not really do it justice.  I don't remember fishing this lake a lot, but as referenced below the piece, I fished it on the Fourth of July in 1970.  I was with my one set of cousins and we were fishing the kid's fishing derby.  I know my cousin, Troy Willis was with me and we both caught fish, Rainbow Trout.  Somewhere in the excitement my mom caught a fish hook in the thumb.  She got to drive 25 miles to the Boy Scout Camp to find a doctor to get it removed.  It is part of Family Legend.

My first pet dog - Little Bear the Norwegian Elkhound at Red Feather lakes, Colorado

I think it was Valentine's day 1968, my mom got us our first pet dog.  His name was Little Bear and he was a Norwegian Elkhound.  He was pretty wild and unruly as the Husky type breeds can be.  He loves the mountains and going to the cabin.  He would come in the cabin and he would spend some time in the yard on a chain between going to the lakes to fish.  He definitely cut down on the deer sitings.  He also provided me with one of this vivid childhood memories, as he pooped in the backseat of the Cougar while we were going up Interstate-25 at 55 miles per hour in the near the University Blvd exit in Denver.    Him, me, and the poop, it makes that back seat pretty small.

Mule Deer - Red Feather Memories

After the chipmunk, the most common animal I would see on the way to and from Red Feather Lakes Colorado was the Mule Deer.  I was fascinated with them and would always scan for them along the dirt roads, the hill sides and in the meadows.  I even remember faking sleeping in the backseat of the car on a drive back down to Denver.  My parents weren't sure if I was asleep, so my Mom called out she had seen a deer.  Busted, I bolted upright and started looking for the deer.

Red Feather Memories - The little Stuff

Some of the small things I remember from my childhood going to and from Red Feather Lakes, Colorado are some of my first animals and my first flowers.  The chipmunks use to run across the road and also would beg for food or nuts at rest stops on Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park and sometimes when we were fishing.  The Indian Paintbrush was my first wildflower, I remember my Grandmother, Joan Jenkins and I admiring the beautiful red flowers and her wondering what type of flower it was.  We found out later when we went to the town store and they had postcards and notecards with the Indian Paintbrush flowers proudly displayed.  We then knew what the flower was which had peaked our interest and I never forgot it.