Our first Christmas together we spent in the trailer in Gunnison. We wanted a christmas tree. Believe it or not, there were no tree lots in Gunnison. Why? For 3 dollars, one gets a permit to cut down one in the National Forest. The permits clearly define where you can cut. You pick the size and cut away. Usually the one you get is too tall and has to be resized.. as our did. We went up on the Taylor River above Altmont and six miles into the National Forest it was free grame for any tree you wanted. We found one just as we crossed into the snow laden road up on a slope. We brought a tree saw and hacked it off. It was great. We tagged it with the permit plastic tape and we were in business. It was fresh cut and lasted forever. We added some cute little lights and we were the only trailer with a tree in the park.
The year we were in Monte Vista Colorado.. about 60 miles south of Gunnison, we did the same thing. We got the permit and off we went. We were off in the 1962 Chevy pickup truck that Grandma and Grandpa Campbell had given us. About 20 miles up the road from Del Norte, the road was completely covered with snow and started to get icy. We slipped off the side of the road and got stuck. Sue and I thought we were goners. It was quiet and pickup truck was not going to get us out. We had not seen any traffic on this road the entire time we were on it. We were desperate and thinking about how we were going to survive.
When all hope was given up, we heard this loud rumble from seemingly nowhere. It grew louder and louder as it seemed to come near us. It was a road blade. It was clearing the snow and the operator was happy to throw a chain around our axle and haul us up on the the sturdy pavement. We thanked him and proceeded right on home without a tree. We were happy to live through this tough moment. We have not gone looking for a tree in the National Forest since. : ) Pat
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