Teepees Overlook Traditional Cache

Short uphill hike in Denver Mountain Park.

Do you see any teepees in the valley below?  No, me neither.  You would need a time machine to see the touristy teepees that once housed a gift shop at the top of Mt. Vernon Canyon in the 1950s and 60s.  U.S. Highway 40 was the main road at the time and El Rancho was owned by a friend of President Dwight D. Eisenhower (which might be why the I-70 exit - once it was built - was identified only as "El Rancho" for many years). 

The teepess were torn down in 1970, so I never saw them myself.  Evergreen Parkway had just opened when we moved up here in 1995 and this was mostly open land.  The county comissioners OK'd a rezoning of the large parcel east of the parkway shortly afterward and Evergreen would never be the same.  The addition of Wal-Mart and Home Depot had the biggest impact - and not necessarily a positive one.  Home Depot drove a stake through Evergreen's wonderful old hardware store (called "The Hardware"), which was housed in the historic Hiwan "Showbarn," seven miles to the south.  The Showbarn is a log structure with all kinds of back staircases and secret passages that my young children loved to explore while I sought out the knowledgeable old gentlemen who stood by, ready to find just the right tool or part to finish my project.  I think The Hardware closed about 3 years after Home Depot opened.  It's now a high-end home furnishings store.

Evergreen Drug was another cherished local institution, located next to the Safeway in central Evergreen.  With various quirky sections (knitting and crafts, model rockets and rocket engines) that couldn't be found in a chain drug store, it was one-of-a-kind. It soldierd on at least 5 years after Wal-Mart opened, but the owner wanted to retire and couldn't find a buyer.

There certainly are a wide variety of goods and services available in the shopping district below you - many conveniences that we don't have to drive "down the hill" for anymore.  At the same time,the big boxes knocked a couple key pillars out of our mountain community, and Evergreen has never been quite the same.

You are looking for a camoed tennis ball tube.  Enjoy the placement and the parkland that surrounds you - parkland set aside by the City of denver back in 1920s, predating all thes either changes.    Thankfully, some things will never change.