Last week, I wrote up a long and detailed post about the San Juan Skyway Scenic Byway, which passes through the scenic mountain town of Ouray (pronounced ‘you-ray’). We were only in town for a few hours so there’s a lot I still don’t know about the town. But I do know that the Ouray… Continue reading Colorado Day Hikes: Ouray Perimeter Trail
It only takes a few minutes of researching “best things to do in Colorado” – or some form of that sentence – before the Million Dollar Highway turns up. This 23 mile (37 km) section of Highway 550 stretches from Ouray to Silverton, and it’s iconic for a reason. The views are indescribable, the steep… Continue reading Colorado Bucket List: Driving the Million Dollar Highway
(Read part I of this post here) Most people don’t know this, but one of my majors in college was anthropology. Granted, it was anthropology with a biological focus. But I still took all the introductory classes, including archaeology. In fact, I initially signed up for an anthropology course because I wanted to be an… Continue reading Life on the Edge of a Cliff – Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado (part II)
A couple years ago, I wrote all about Mesa Verde based on my visit to this fascinating park back in 2010. But Pat had never been there and it’s a place I was happy to return to, so in early July of last year we headed out for a week long exploration of southwestern Colorado,… Continue reading Into the Past – Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado (part I)
What strange times these are. I don't know about you all, but I'm definitely missing the mountains and my usual weekend warrior adventure schedule. I know I'm doing a lot of vicarious living right now through everyone else's adventure posts, and I hope that I can provide the same for all of you. I have… Continue reading Rocky Mountain National Park Hikes: Mills, Jewel, and Black Lakes
I must admit, within about two minutes of beginning our hike up Mount Sniktau I was regretting our decision. I know summiting 13ers and 14ers requires some substantial climbing, but this hike gave a whole new meaning to the phrase ‘elevation gain.’ The trail basically goes straight up the mountain, gaining 1000 vertical feet (305… Continue reading Conquering our Second Colorado 13er: Mount Sniktau
In late June 2019, my mom and I were lucky enough to snag spaces on a Women Who Hike overnight backpacking trip in Rocky Mountain National Park. She’d already purchased her plane ticket to come visit me for the week, so it worked out perfectly when this hike was scheduled for the very weekend she’d… Continue reading Colorado Day Hikes: Browns Creek Falls
Pat has been wanting to visit New Mexico since the day we arrived in Colorado. He didn’t really know anything about the state and, as a result, I think there was an aura of mystery surrounding it. I have to admit, I see his point; New Mexico rarely seems to be the topic of any… Continue reading In the crater of a volcano – Capulin Volcano National Monument, New Mexico
Memorial weekend 2019 in Colorado was a snowy mess, so it was fortunate that I’d already made plans to fly home to Montana and visit Bighorn Canyon with my mom. Despite the fact that it’s only 4 hours from my hometown, I’d never been there before and was eager to explore a new place. We… Continue reading Wild Mustangs and Montana Skies – Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area
This happens to everyone, right: you do something wrong and you get corrected and then you can never remember which version was wrong and which one was correct? As a preteen I attended Chief Joseph Middle School and, in one of the more embarrassing moments of my time there, I misspelled the word ‘chief’ at… Continue reading Colorado Day Hikes: Chief Mountain
