Off the Road

Absurdly, this vintage 2005 residential structure next to the Burlington Northern Santa Fe rail lines on the northern edge of downtown Denver is known as the "Jack Kerouac Lofts." Poor Jack--known far and wide as the most beat of the Beat, in Denver he's now a form of yuppie housing. I tried to give this photo texture by including the broken pallet and the scooper part from some unknown piece of earthmoving equipment, but there's no escaping the fact that the purchasers of these lovely neo-Modern lofts (and I have to say, despite the unfortunate choice of name I actually do like the architecture) look out on industrial wasteland, and despite being only about 150 yards from the Platte River Bike Trail, residents here would have to go about a half mile (down to the other side of 20th Street where there's a sidewalk and underpass, then under the railroad tracks, and then past the skate park).

I took this photo this morning, on my second bike ride of the year (refer to last week's posting as to why I'm so lazy in the winter). After an easy ride north to Clear Creek (at Lowell), then a quick jaunt to its confluence with the South Platte, I faced a fairly strong head wind for most of the way home. This photo was just a good excuse to stop fighting the wind.