This course is offered through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) at Colorado State University. You must be a member of Osher to enroll in this course.
Isabella Bird’s A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains is a classic Victorian travelogue, originally written as letters home to her sister in England. The book provides unique insights into territorial Colorado. In September 1873, Miss Bird tried in vain to reach Estes Park from a humble squatter’s camp at the mouth of the Big Thompson Canyon, the site of today’s Sylvan Dale Guest Ranch.
In this course, we will revisit Miss Bird’s adventure after some 140 years, reading her words in context as we follow the trails she traveled, to discover the sights she saw - some greatly changed, some essentially intact.
The first session will be in old downtown Loveland (the Bonnell Building) for lecture/discussion to give context to Bird’s life and explorations. Our second session will be a field trip to Sylvan Dale Ranch, a short drive just outside of Loveland where Miss Bird spent part of her trek. Our third session will involve a field trip travelling toward Estes Park (car pool options will be discussed).
Readings: Bird, I. L. A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains.
Western Frontier Library, University of Oklahoma Press, 1873, ISBN 0-8061-1328-6. (Various editions are available.) Benedict, A. D. The Naturalist’s Guide to the Southern Rockies, 2008, Fulcrum Publishing, Golden, CO, ISBN
13: 978-1-55591-535-3.
Dates/Times: Mondays (3 days)
Sept. 28, 9 - 11 a.m.;
Oct. 5, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.;
Oct. 12, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.
Noncredit courses do not produce academic credit nor appear on a Colorado State University academic transcript.