 n her famous book, A Lady's Life in the Rocky Mountains, Isabella Bird describes the journey from Longmont to Lyons and into the foothills beyond on her 1873 trek to Longs Peak. Writing of the St. Vrain canyon, she describes it as "a narrow, fertile, wooded valley, through which a bright rapid river . . . hurries along, with twists and windings innumerable . . . Very fair it was, after the brown and burning plains, and the variety was endless". A world traveler and writer, Bird visited Tibet, Persia, Hawaii, Japan, China, Korea, and Australia. Isabella Bird was an Englishwoman, yet her account of Boulder County remains one of the best known descriptions of the area. She was honored as the first woman fellow of the prestigious Royal Geographical Society. |
