Colorado Part II

Yee haw! Happy Friday, dudes.

I hope you have all had a good week. It seems Spring Fever has hit Minneapolis, although I guess we get the most snow in March, so we'll see what happens!

As you might remember from my last vacation entry, R and I were about to leave Golden, Colorado. The trip was a snowy one through the passes, and we drove near the Red Rocks Amphitheater and saw some beautiful scenery. We were heading south to visit sister JB and future bro JF in Salida.


Side Note: The "S" on the mountain glowed white at night, and alternated with the outline of a red heart. JB hates the signs! I loved them, though.

JB and JF are starting a guest hostel in Salida!



We chillaxed Tuesday night and saw the town. JB and JF know so many people already. There is a real sense of community and camaraderie in Salida. On Wednesday we were going to Monarch Mountain to ski and snowboard! Here is a webcam near one of the lifts!

I've only skied three times in the last twelve years, but ski design has advanced a lot since then, making it easier for beginners, and I feel somewhat confident. It was really crazy to be on a real mountain, however! Monarch was very beautiful, and other than biffing it and not being able to put my skis back on (for a while) it was really fun. Our cardiovascular endurance suffered from the altitude, though! We decided not to bring our camera, but did pay a photographer for this photo:



After skiing, JB and I checked out the local thrift store, where I scored a work out tank for ten cents! Then we checked out one of the many hot springs in the area. It was fun to soak in the clothing-optional, 95 degree pool! We wore swimsuits, but there were two women soaking with us in the nude. It was amazing to watch the sun set across the valley while enjoying a natural hot tub! I especially loved the geothermically heated creek, which was lined with strange green plants.

Too soon, however, it was time for R and I to return to Minnesota.





Gotta love a buffalo sculpture!


One of JF and JB's housemates has this ADORABLE puppy:


I hope you enjoyed these photos! Next I'll present a few creatures we saw in Colorado!

xooxoxox
Wendell!

Colorado Part I

Hello everyone!

I hope March has started out smoovly for you. Is it my imagination or are the buds on the trees looking more prominent? (CG, whom SH and I joined yesterday to see the Minnesota Roller Girls, said it was just my imagination!)

Shout outs to pan flute player PG, upon her acceptance to the U of MN for her doctorate!

R and I have returned from our Colorado vacation, obviously. It was a great time! We left last Saturday, the 1st.

Highlights of I35 and I80 in MN and IA:
* Tons of windmills
* Brick silos

It turns out Saturday was the warmest day of our trip. As we entered Nebraska I started sweating to death; it was 65 degrees outside! We enjoyed some Subway out on the grass.

Nebraska features:
* Beauty
* Thousands of cranes, both in the air and in the fields.

Colorado features:
* It was dark, we couldn't observe any beauty. Somehow we got to 5,000 feet above sea level, however.



It was great to see KH and finally meet her hubby, JH! (In front of the Coors factory!)


JH has a fancy camera!

The warm weather abated and it snowed on Sunday. KH, R and I went shopping. Here we are in front of the mall.


Then we drove to the hills.

(The sign in the background warned us there were cougars in the area!)

The four of us played trivia at a local restaurant in Golden. Our team was in third place for a while! R and JH knew things like presidential history, world capitals and the Federal Reserve Bank. KH and I knew things like the Romantic period in music, and what song was from "Les Miserables". We didn't win though.

R and I took a nature walk in the hills.


We spotted the western bunny!

(Actually I think it is an Eastern Cottontail.)


If you touch a cactus it might poke you. You heard it here first!

Also, these yucca plants were really spiky.


We searched for goats, thwarted perhaps by the adjacent State Trooper school, where drivers appeared to be whipping shitties while driving in reverse.




Could it be...a sign of the wild goater?!


After that high altitude hike, we needed to rest with K and J's doggies!

R and Roo D.


Keku and I!

The cuteness of Keku is better exhibited in this picture:


We took a tour of the Coors factory:


Thankfully, goats were represented in Coors advertising:




Before R and I left Golden, we decided to drive up the mountain to see Buffalo Bill's grave.




It was certainly a scenic and quiet resting place; except for the howling winds that day!




The crazy thing was that the road up the mountain was super steep, with tons of sharp corners (duh) and cyclists were winding their way up alongside our car! And zooming down, as well. As beautiful as the mountains were, I am a little scared of driving up there. It seems the possibility of a violent death is much higher!

Here is another photo of Golden. It is weird to consider that these mountains and buttes used to be at the bottom of the ocean!




Stay tuned for stories from the rest of our trip!

xoxoxoxo
Wendell!