Misha the Plant Lady

Misha seems to be taking after her mom with her growing plant collection. I helped her pick out her first plant, gave her one of my Chinese Money plants, and now she has added three more plants to her room.

Hiking the Ceran St. Vrain Trail

Chris and I have made a concerted effort to get out and hike more this summer. Since he isn't traveling, he doesn't feel as though he has so much to catch up on during the weekend (but talk about someone who misses traveling!). It gives him more time for biking and hiking.

We hiked a lovely trail today—Ceran St. Vrain. It was my first time hiking it. The sky was overcast; the path was surrounded by trees and covered in pine needles. Much nicer than some of the rocky paths we've encountered lately. There were even people camping along the trail.

Seminary

Well, no pictures of seminary. Following the lead of the school district, our stake opted for online seminary for this semester. It isn't ideal, but everyone is making it work.

I still have a team teacher and we currently have a class of 19 students. The stake decided to mix all of the students up, so we only have three students from our class last fall. It is fun to get to know new students, but it would be so much easier in person.

I don't mind not having to drive somewhere for seminary, that part of this is nice. Kristen wakes up around 6:07, sits in her bed, and starts her class at 6:10. I'm just waiting to see how long it will take before she starts falling asleep in class. She isn't in my class this year, so I only know that so far she is getting up and attending.

New Job for Misha

Misha started her new job on the same day students started back to school. She works as a custodian for the school district. She works in the evening and has an elementary school that she is responsible for. While there are no students in the school her job is probably a little easier than normal, but there are still teachers and staff at the school each day.

Back to School

Back to school this Fall has had a few twists. For a while, the students were going to be back in class with staggered attendance so that not all students would be on campus at a time. Then, a week or so before school started, the school district announced that through the end of September, all students would attend online school. 

I am so glad I don't have littles to try and keep on task. Kristen does a fantastic job of starting classes for the day and making sure her assignments are done.

We'll see what decision is made at the end of September, but until then, Kristen has set up her home classroom in Amy's room (Amy sleeps in the basement). She definitely misses the social interaction.

When your dad photobombs your first day of school photo.

Happy 23rd

I remember thinking back on our first anniversary that 20 years seemed so far away. Now, 23 years after the best day of my life, I can't help but think that our years together have been the best years of my life. 

I love us.

Hiking to Ouzel Lake

Shortly after Christmas last year, Chris and I got away for a couple of days. One of the cool things we did was to hike to Calypso Falls in Rocky Mountain National Park. The Falls were cool, but we both remarked that we needed to make the hike in the spring when the snow would have melted and spring run off would be high. We didn't make it in June, but finally got back there in August and the run off was still significant. 

The hike was so much easier in the summer. The parking lot right off the trailhead was packed with cars and even small lots all along the way to the trailhead were filled with cars. It was going to be a busy trail. Chris and I sat and waited and after some patience, were rewarded with a parking spot.

We planned to hike to Calypso Cascades then on to Ouzel Falls. When we got going and saw how far it was to Ouzel Lake, we decided to try and make it. Ten miles would be a good distance; we hoped we could make it.

I was taking pictures of Ouzel Falls and suddenly Chris popped up right under the cascading water.

After we moved on past Ouzel Falls, the trail opened up and we saw fewer and fewer hikers. I was a little dismayed when the trail started moving downward (knowing of course, that we would have to hike back up on the return trip), but it evened out for a mile and half as it seemed we walked the ridge pole of the mountain top. 

We finally reached Ouzel Lake after a couple of hours of hiking and were happy to sit and rest for a bit. Smoke from a fire in Ft. Collins had been filling the sky for the afternoon, thus the pictures are a little hazy.

It was about 4:30 as we began to make our way back to the parking lot. It was getting cooler with less hikers on the trail. 

Chris and I walked at a fairly good clip and returned to the parking lot dusty and dirty and quite exhausted.

Sunset at Pelican Shores

Chris and I walked around the lake Sunday evening after a week away exploring Southern Colorado. It was nice to be home and nice to be out enjoying a beautiful evening. Chris snapped this photo as we walked. Isn't that a fantastic sunset?

State-cation Day 9: Archuleta Trailhead

Chris and I were headed home today, but since we had to pick up Kristen from the airport at 9:30 pm, we weren't in much of a hurry. We had a leisure morning before packing up, nice since we had so many early mornings throughout the week.

Chris found a hike for us that would give us about three hours of hiking on the way home. We packed up a lunch, loaded up the Pilot, and were on our way between 10 and 11 am for the two and a half hour drive to Creede and the Archuleta Trailhead.

We parked at the Big Meadows Lake parking area and started walking around the lake to reach the Archuleta Trailhead. It was almost a mile circling the lake to the trailhead. The lake or reservoir seemed to be quite popular with lots of people fishing along the banks and a campground close by.

Once we passed all of the people fishing, the traffic on the trail thinned out; we did not pass too many people throughout our hike. It was a last great adventure on a week full of excursions.

We drove the rest of the day and arrived at the airport two minutes after Kristen texted that she was ready. Can't beat that timing.

State-cation Day 8: 4x4 and the Alpine Loop

If I had really known what I was in for in driving the Alpine Loop in a jeep, I am not sure I would have gone. Chris rented the jeep for the full day and we made an early 7:00 am start. I was thinking we would be driving some bumpy roads, but nothing in my mind suggested that our ride would be switchbacks up the side of mountains. 

Let's just say I unnerved me. A lot.

We stopped first at Animas Fork, a preserved ghost town at the beginning of the Alpine Loop. 

Look at the craftsmanship of the door hinges.

They were proud of their "indoor" bathroom facilities. I'm thinking it must have smelled pretty awful in the house all of the time.

I watched as some jeeps and side by sides started taking off on these small roads up the side of the mountain. I had no idea this was the plan for the day. It was pretty much a grim, white-knuckled day for me the entire time.

However, there were a number of old mining ghost towns, a broken dam, and numerous waterfalls along the way.

Chris mentioned that there would be fields of wildflowers at the top of the mountain. Looks as though we had just missed the most brilliant blooms by a couple of weeks.

Chris got a number of great photos as well.

I was happy to return the jeep at the end of the day and finally relax.

State-cation Day 7: Mesa Verde

Chris and I have lived in Colorado for nineteen years and have always wanted to visit Mesa Verde National Park. 

It was recommended to us that we make an early start for Mesa Verde to avoid crazy crowds and to visit at a cooler time of the day. We left the hotel 8:30 am. I'm not sure we managed to avoid the heat, but the crowds did increase as the day progressed.

We arrived mid morning and from the visitors center just outside the park, we still had a twenty minute drive to reach the top of the mesa.

We spent most of the morning checking out the ruins and cliff dwellings on the Chapin Mesa, starting first on the Cliff Palace Loop. Since all ranger-guided tours were canceled due to Covid-19, we only had the luxury of looking at each of the sites from a distance.

Cliff Palace

Soda Canyon through the telescope

After a stop for lunch, we explored the Mesa Top Loop with the featured Square Tower House. I found myself wondering how the Pueblo people climbed down to their homes using small footholds and ladders? What about small children? Did these homes keep intruders out?

There were markers at different locations noting three different fires over the years. Much of the mesa top was pretty barren and dreary.

State-cation Day 6: Kayaking in Durango

An early start for a morning of kayaking the Animas River in Durango with Mountain Waters Rafting-Durango Rafting Adventures today. 

We left the hotel at 8 am and only had to drive about five minutes to the storefront next to Albertsons. With the helmet and personal flotation device and mask, it was shaping up to be a day for looking stylish! 

We put into the water after being transported about fifteen minutes. Our group had four rafts (each raft carried five people) and four kayakers along with our guide Marcos. With the water as low as it was, kayaking was the preferred mode of running the river. It was a rather docile trip for all of the rafters. I might have wished I was in the rafts just a teensy little bit. 

Chris booked a half-day trip on the river. 

The city of Durango had created a “water feature” with a class three section and then smaller rapids. We hit those about two and a half hours into our excursion. Chris and our guide ran the class three sections a bunch of times. Pulling out of the river shortly after the rapids gave everyone a chance to rest, have a snack, and swim the rapids (for any of those brave enough to try). 

The guides were great about having fun with the guests. Emma, the only female raft guide, even got in the water with a young girl and went down the rapids with her. I was impressed. 

We set off again for about 45 more minutes. Thus far I had managed to stay upright in my kayak, but with twenty minutes to go, I got stuck on a rock and it just dumped me over despite my best attempts to lean in. 

Our guide helped me climb back onto my kayak, and...I was pretty much done. 

Chris had a short work meeting in the afternoon; it was a good chance for me to rest for a bit before our next adventure.

Prolotherapy, Again

My second round of Prolotherapy for my foot. I’m not exactly sure what else Dr. Mazzola did, but something on either side of my calf to release the nerve. He hit a blood vessel on the inside of my calf and had to start again; the bruise has persisted for over two weeks now. Even more so after seeing the physical therapist who massaged the area for me. 

Lucky me. Look at that bruise. It migrated down to my ankle!

State-cation Day 5: Durango

Chris was looking forward to mountain biking today. 

I am happy that he enjoys it so much. Bounding face first down a mountain is not my gig. 

Though we traveled all over Southern Colorado with Chris' bike rack, it turned out he didn't really need to do any bike transporting as the trail was only a short distance from the bike shop, Pedal the Peaks. He chose one of the premium bike options for $65 for a half day and rode until 1 pm on the Twin Butte Trails. (We had a train ride scheduled in the afternoon, or he might have been tempted to ride even longer.)

I stayed at the hotel and did laundry and blogging. Woohoo for me.

Chris returned to the hotel bringing some lunch with him. We had a train ride scheduled for 3:30 on the Durango to Silverton train, so after lunch and a quick shower for Chris, we took the scenic route to Rockwell Station and drove first to Purgatory ski resort. There were a number of restaurants at Purgatory, but I believe only one was open during the summer. 

On to the train ride. We arrived a little early and watched as the steam train full of passengers left at 3:15 pm. Our diesel train left at 3:30 pm. The trip along the rails to Cascade Canyon lasted for about one hour before the train turned around and returned to the Rockwell Station. If your train car is full, just know that whatever scenery you don’t see on the way up, you’ll see on the return trip. 

For the first part of the trip, the views were on the right side of the train for the first twenty minutes. The train crossed over a trestle bridge and the scenery switched mostly to the left side of the train. Our train car wasn't that full so all of the passengers switched from one side to the other throughout the trip. 

Don’t forget your sunscreen and sunglasses. 

As we started our drive back to Durango, we spied cars driving into the parking lot of James Ranch Market and Grill on the left side of the highway. We had no idea that we had just happened on to one of the top five things to do in Durango. Since we had passed by, we drove a little further and turned around using  the  Honeyville Factory parking lot (on the right). 

I took a quick peak around the market after ordering our farm to table dinner. Chris found a table in the shade of the deck overlooking the farm, the happy cows grazing in the field, and many socially distanced tables.

State-cation Day 4: Chimney Rock and Vallecito Trail

If you are in the Pagosa Springs area, I highly recommend taking a tour of Chimney Rock National Monument in the San Juan National Forest.

Discover the ancestral homelands of the Pueblo people, an archaeological site that suggests that the Puebloans were sky watchers and lived by sky wisdom. They relied on the sun, stars, and moon for their living, growing seasons, and festivals. 

Every 18.6 years, the moon reaches a point in its orbit where it rises between the two pinnacles. Apparently, the next big event will begin in 2022.

Relying on the Alltrails app for hike suggestions, Chris drove to the Weminuche Wilderness for our next hike.

If you are into tent camping, trailer camping, staying in a tiny homes, this area of Colorado looks as though it would be a great place to explore. Chris and I saw an abundance of RV parks everywhere we went. 

Chris and I found the Vallecito Creek Trail parking lot and got set for another day of hiking. 

The distance of this trail was 12 miles total. We’d just have to see how the weather held up. We walked a half mile skirting the campground, stopped for a quick lunch at an empty site with a picnic table, and FaceTimed with our girls. Gotta check in on them. 

The Vallecito Creek Trail hike involved a lot of up and down hiking along pretty rocky paths. We had to key a close eye on the path to avoid twisted ankles. 

Chris and I got rained on and hailed on. I just pulled out my umbrella so that I could keep me and my camera dry. Chris didn’t care so much about the first sprinkles. 

Then, thunder clapped and the rain just started to pour. Fortunately, the rain didn’t last too long before blue sky was peaking through again. The scenery was beautiful as we skirted the river—sometimes we were right next to it and other times we were a couple hundred feet above it. We forded a small stream before reaching the first bridge. 

Three and a half miles in and the entire sky was dark and rumbly. We had reached the second bridge and decided it was time to turn around and cut some miles off our hike. Seven miles wasn't too shabby though.

The drive from the campground to Durango followed the backroads and it was incredibly picturesque. I much prefer meandering along the back roads while listening to a good audio book. 

Daniel Silva seems to be our go-to author. Though I am sure we have missed a few in the Gabriel Allon series, it still engages us for hours as we travel. This trip, “The New Girl” was our listen. 

We tried to eat at Steamworks Brewing Co. in Durango once we arrived. The wait was an hour and a half! Finding many of the restaurants equally busy, we settled on a 25-minute wait at Tequila’s, a Mexican chain.