Cheyenne Mountain State Park, Colorado Springs, Colorado
A fool gives full vent to his anger, but a wise man keeps himself under control. ~ Proverbs 29:11
We’re getting out of Colorado just in the nick of time!
The end of August marks the beginning of the Great Tarantula Migration here in Colorado. And believe it or not, it lasts for several weeks! I first heard of this when we were planning our trip to Arizona, and silly me, believed it was only there and we’d be long gone by then. Great hoards of the male gigantic, scary, creepy-crawlies, in search of a mate as they cross roads, fields and anything else that gets in their way. Just to get killed by her when the deed is done. Yuk! Tarantulas are one of those “Why?” questions to ask God when I get Home! Although I don’t really see myself being concerned with them once I get There, because surely there are no spiders (especially large ones) in Heaven. 😊 Maybe He was thinking that since there’s so much extreme scenic beauty out here, He’d throw in some less-desirables, otherwise, everyone would want to live here!
But, just in case you don’t believe the tale I’ve told, here’s the article published on outtherecolorado.com that popped up on Google, which alerted us to the event:
Campers beware! It’s about to be much more important to zip up your tent. The annual tarantula migration around Colorado is set to begin at the end of August as thousands of male tarantulas hit the road in search of a mate.
According to an article published by Colorado State University, the tarantula migration typically starts in southeastern Colorado at the end of August, lasting through September. It is followed by a southwestern migration that typically peaks in October. Following the mating season, all males typically die within months if the cold weather doesn’t kill them first.
According to The Denver Channel, one of the best places to see these tarantulas is at Comanche National Grassland near La Junta, Colorado. This is located in southeast Colorado, so expect a mid-September peak.
Two more great spots to see this natural phenomenon include just north of Ordway on Highway 71 and between La Junta and Kim on Highway 109, according to the La Junta Tribune-Democrat.
The fall breeding season involves a few different species of tarantulas found Colorado including aphonopelma echinum (nicknamed the Colorado chocolate brown), aphonopelma coloradanum, and aphonopelma hentzi, also known as the Oklahoma Brown Tarantula. These hairy eight-legged critters can grow a leg span of up to 11 inches – that’s nearly twice the length of a dollar bill!
Male spiders wait 10 years to reach sexual maturity. To find a female mating partner hidden in a burrow about a foot underneath the ground, male tarantulas use their hair and legs to detect vibrations. Sadly, they’ll mate once and die, often killed by the female they mate with. Female tarantulas can live up to 20 years or more.
According to a report from the Durango Herald, a male tarantula will wander about a half-mile a day searching for a female mate.
While you shouldn’t attempt to touch or grab wild tarantulas you might spot during this time of the year, tarantulas are pretty harmless and rarely bite humans. However, when bites do occur, they’re very painful and contain venom.
Wishful thinking on my part, but maybe it’s all just another example of fake news . . . . 😊
And I just have to say it. Remember our matchy neighbors from yesterday? This morning they added matching knit jackets to their ensemble from yesterday, and as we were packing up, they changed clothes and came back out in identical neon green t’s and gray shorts. . . .
Makes one wonder – – do they have any clothing of their very own? Another thought popped into my mind as we watched them . . . maybe they’re fraternal twins rather than a married couple as we assumed! That would explain it a little better. At least in our minds. 😊
Today was a very long moving day. It took about 6 hours to cross 299 miles of asphalt to reach our destination, and that’s without including the one-hour time change. We’re now just an hour different from home in Ohio, instead of two.
Large bugs seem to be plentiful in Kansas, so I apologize for the condition of the few travel pictures I took today. Since the entire windshield was covered, I couldn’t even be-gin to repair them. Gross!!
I think we saw more windmill farms than corn.
We stopped at the Visitor Center just across the border.
That’s wonderful since the coach is thirsty!
Wakeeney KOA, Wakeeney, Kansas
For dinner, we dug into a sub sandwich we bought at a local SafeWay grocery store yesterday. We picked it up on a whim, and truthfully, based on the way it was shrink-wrapped, we expected to find meat – roast beef, smoked turkey and ham – laying across the top of a ton of lettuce. But that wasn’t the case at all! It was all meat, with a thin layer of lettuce and few pieces of cheese! Two pounds of sandwich for $6.99! I doctored it up some by making a spread of butter, garlic powder, red wine vinegar and parmesan cheese. I put it on both halves of the bread and baked then broiled them to a nice golden brown, heated the meat that I topped with an additional slice of cheese (swiss for me, provolone for Blaine), and voila! A sandwich beyond good! And a very easy meal on such a long travel day, which is important. We stuffed ourselves, but only ate half.
Have you ever seen so much meat on a sandwich?!?!?
