I have lived in CO since 94', I have not explored the eastern plains too much and haven't seen really any videos on people checking it out. Nice work on finding something new to show the rest of us.
Somewhat interesting history on those windmill water pumps. The first Aermotor was sold in 1888, with 24 windmills in total being sold in the first year. La Verne Noyes died in 1919. He left the Aermotor Company to a tax paying trust, with 48 colleges and universities as beneficiaries. Aermotor continued to innovate and manufacture windmills throughout World War II and helped to produce the top secret Norden bombsight. During the latter part of the century ownership of the Aermotor Company changed hands and had its operation moved and expanded to new venues, including the country of Argentina; Broken Arrow, Oklahoma; Brentwood, Missouri; and Conway, Arkansas. By 1981, 80% of all windmills manufactured in The United States had their genesis in Conway. In 1998 Aermotor was purchased by Kees Verheul, as owner and president. It now operates from a 40,000-square-foot (3,700 m2) facility in San Angelo, Texas. In 2006, the company was purchased by a group of West Texas ranchers, and the name restored to its original from 1888..."The Aermotor Company". The company also manufactured galvanized steel fire lookout towers including a "7 x 7" model which supported a 7-by-7-foot (2.1 m × 2.1 m) steel cab at heights from 35 feet (11 m) to 175 feet (53 m). Hundreds of this model were in use in the southeastern U.S.; a dozen survived in the Northwestern U.S. in 1984. I wonder if you could find any of those original fore lookouts on your adventures back in the northwest? 🤔 Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aermotor_Windmill_Company
Ahh, the plains of Eastern Colorado. Their motto: "On a clear day you can see all the way to Kansas." 😆 But seriously, you should have driven a little further south and gone to the paint mines near Peyton. Very unusual and beautiful. Maybe next time.
This series has been very good, this video was especially Your channel has consistently gotten better and better with the balance between build videos and adventure videos. I can’t wait to see the camp kitchen in use.
Another great video, Donald. I like how you always seem to make the best of things. I know you were looking forward to the mountains, but now you have an excuse to go back. And will be better prepared for the altitude. If you ever decide to cut back on the exploring, you have a great future in wildlife documentaries. Even if the locals don't approve.😂😂 Thanks again for taking us along on this journey.
Not the Colorado you think about. Those grasslands were pretty good nonetheless. You know what those cows are saying during that stare down? Moooooove! 😂😂🐂🐂
This unexpected travel route was very interesting. The Aermotor Windmill company still exists in San Angelo , Texas. Their numbers are slowly diminishing as solar powered electric submergible pumps replace them. The pumps are easier to repair and service. Stay safe traveling.
Reminds me of the wind turbines on the Condon to hwy 206 to Wasco To Biggs Jct .in Oregon . then in to Washington to Marys Hill Hwy 97 to Goldendale ..
Such a good transition from the modern, electricity producing windmills to the older, water pumping windmill. And those buttes sure are some beauts!! (Couldn't help myself...)
I lived in Colorado for 25yrs. I've hiked the Pawnee Buttes many times, starting when there were no Wind Turbines in sight. The last time was a Christmas Day 2014. It started off a beautiful, clear, 58deg day, but the incoming blizzard caught me before I made it back to the trailhead. Just on the south side of the ridge you camped on, down in the draw, I lost vision in the swirling snow, ran off the road, and high centered my Outback. After 2hrs of shoveling and dark setting in, I knew I needed to call for help. 4.5hrs later when my friend finally reached me, the gravel roads were 2ft deep with drifts 3-5ft due to the 45-80mph winds. 3.5hrs later after digging out his lifted Dodge Cummins multiple times, and my Subaru, we manage to get both vehicles back on Hwy 14 and headed for home in Greeley. THANK YOU, Matt for being such, a true friend!! I crawled into bed at almost 3am, 18hrs after my adventure started, and slept like a ROCK!!! Sometimes the adventures that weren't planned, make for great stories, lessons learned, and fond memories! I now live in The Columbia River Gorge Scenic area of Oregon, so maybe we will see each other exploring the backwoods of the PNW. Keep up the great content!!
We live just southwest of Denver in the foothills, and love dispersed camping around the area. One of our kids live in Windsor, so we’ve been considering venturing towards these grasslands. Thanks for the video!
Great video Donald! I would love to support your channel but my $1700 social security check does not go very far so I must be very frugal. I know how much time and effort goes into making these videos and I appreciate traveling vicariously with you in your journey.
Did you run across any intercontinental ballistic missile silos out there? They may be non descript really, barbed wire fence and a big blast door on tracks covering the silo.
What a great end to the series. Pawnee national grasslands is one of the places on our list for this winter. That butte trail is also about the only thing I saw to do besides drive and camp out there. 😂
HI DONALD 👋 BREATHTAKING BEAUTY COLORS VIEWS LANDSCAPE SCENERY WEATHER WILDLIFE DRONE FOOTAGE VIDEO 📹 NICE TO SEE 👀 FOR MILES ALL AROUND YOU 😀 LOOKED LIKE MINI CANYONS STARTING ALL AROUND THERE . THE COWS LOOK AT YOU LIKE WHAT ARE YOU UP TO OR WHAT YOU WANT 🤔 L.O.L. LOVE THE DIFFERENT COLORS OF GRASSES . DO THEY GET SAND GRASS SPURS IN THE LATE SUMMER / FALL OUT THAT WAY 🤔 AWESOME VIDEO SHOTS ! THEY WERE SUPPOSE TO ADD SOMETHING TO THE WIND TURBINES TO PROTECT THE MIGRATING BIRDS & PREDATOR BIRDS SO THEY DON'T HIT THE BLADES , LIKE WHAT WE PUT ON OUR VEHICLES SO THE WILDLIFE HEAR OUR VEHICLES COMING TOWARDS THEM ! DEFINITELY NEED THEM FOR THE ELECTRIC VEHICLES SINCE THEY DON'T MAKE MUCH / IF ANY DEPENDING UPON THE TYPE OF ROAD / NOISE ! BE SAFE ! HAVE FUN ! ENJOYED 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 🍨 GOD BLESS YOU ALWAYS ON YOUR ADVENTURES 🙏 & THE HISTORY TOO 😀 THANK YOU 🙏 😀
Technically we refer to that part of Colorado as Kansas lol. I feel like "Colorado" ends at Denver. Frankly they can have the eastern plains if they want
You picked the right old windmills to visit - the ones still pumping. In a lot of them the bearings are mostly gone and haven't been greased in decades, but the vanes still rotate in a stiff breeze, and they make the most ungodly continuous racket, screeching and skrawing and rattling of metal on metal. They may seem like a picturesque thing to camp next to, but if the wind picks up you won't get any sleep.
@@johnbob4545yeah, those roving gangs of hoodlums on the wide open prairie will gitcha every time if’n ye ain’t strapped. Amiright?!? /s Gimme a break…
For those who choose to do so, it’s generally dependent on which part of the country you’re camping in. If a person is camping in bear, or cougar country, the risks are higher. But you’re not likely to see much of anything dangerous out in the open prairie. Certainly no roving bands of gangbangers…
Wonderful episode. Far too many people neglect features like our National Grasslands. Often the unexpected can be a worthwhile adventure. Comanche National Grasslands several hours to the South is similarly beautiful and contains petroglyphs, dinosaur tracks, historic missions and ranches, as well as portions of the Sante Fe trail.
