Annual Colorado Trip

MLK Day is very special to me, and though I admire and respect Dr. King, it’s not because of him. On January 15, 2007 Jason and I both had the day off of work, so we walked through the snow to a coffee shop in our neighborhood. Although we’d done this millions of times, on this day we didn’t read newspaper articles to each other, work on a crossword puzzle, or play Rummy. Instead we decided to talk about our dreams – what we wanted to do/achieve in our lives.

After agreeing on a 5 year timeline, Jason and I got down to business. Luckily, we share a lot of the same goals and dreams, so it was easy to make a list that included what we both wanted. One major thing on the list was to find new jobs, possibly overseas, that we enjoyed. Check! Another thing on the list was to buy some land in Colorado. Check! I know there were other things on the list, but we didn’t save the dang thing and that’s all I can remember.

Since buying land in Colorado, we’ve tried to visit whenever possible – which usually ends up being once a year. We camp out, cut down dead trees, clear hiking paths, and enjoy the beautiful view. This year, we spent an entire week camping on our property. Since we had more time than usual, we were able to make some real progress. We started clearing an area for our future cabin. So far, the area will accommodate our gigantic tent. We splurged this summer and bought a 20 x 12, ten person tent. If you feel like joining us next year, we have plenty of room!

We were also fortunate enough to meet up with our wonderful friends Jeff and Lara from Minnesota. They flew in for a few days and we lived it up in Fort Collins and got lost in Rocky Mountain National Park together. It was a really, really fun time and I love both of them dearly. It was the perfect way to end our Colorado trip and a highlight of the summer.

Downtown Westcliffe

Westcliffe's (one and only) Super Market. What a nice background, eh?

Our new home away from home. It didn't leak at all even though it rained every evening.

View of the Wet Mountain Valley.

Our kitchen...it's a great place to eat oatmeal in the morning.

Squatters! These little guys like to roost in the trees on our property. They run and flap their wings as fast as possible and try to jump up onto the lowest branch of a tree - sometimes it takes a few attempts. Then they spend some time hopping from limb to limb until they reach the top of the tree where they spend the night.

Another view of the valley.

Wild Flowers

On our way back from town one day, we spotted a beautiful rainbow.

Our favorite trail in the Sangres is the Rainbow trail. It runs the entire length of the range and there are a ton of trailheads along it. My goal is to hike the entire trail - section by section, of course.

It's a very peaceful trail...so much different than the rush hour style trails in Seoul.

We went for a drive one day to the other side of the Wet Mountains. We had heard about Bishop's Castle from someone a few years ago, but hadn't made it there before. Suffice it to say, it's quite an interesting place.

The castle was/is being built by Jim Bishop. It's a work in progress that started in 1969.

It's beautiful and peculiar at the same time.

Apparently, the dragon's head is a chimney. There's also a hot air balloon burner attached to it that allows the dragon to breathe fire - on the weekends only. Unfortunately, we were there on a Monday.

We were pleasantly surprised by Lake Isabel. It's a nicely developed lake/campground/cabin area with a small general store, church, and a restaurant.

While walking around the lake we encountered several groups of people and small families. Everyone was extremely friendly and one such bloke snapped a picture for us.

The new camp pad! It was a lot of work...but it was worth it. We're going to be so set up the next time we go camping there.

Lara is one of my best friends in the whole wide world - even though she made me sit in the hot sun. ;) haha!

We rode on an urban bike trail that runs along a river in Fort Collins. It was a great day!

Unfortunately, I'm getting old...and I had to wear a knee brace while biking. I think I rocked the look though.

We did the touristy thing and stopped by some of the breweries on our bike tour. O'Dells is my new favorite brewery in town. I love New Belgium, but it feels a little too kitchy these days.

We had sushi on our last night in town. It was owned by a Korean man so there were a few Korean delicacies on the menu, including Soju. Our friends were keen to try it...but at a 10,000 percent mark-up we just couldn't do it. Jeff and Lara - I'll bring you a whole bottle the next time we get together.

The view from our campsite in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Even though the woman at the main entrance tried to frighten us with bear tales, we boldly went on a few hikes in the area.

Jeff and Lara looking lovely after our hike on the Fern Lake trail.

Hippy ingenuity at its best - A VW bus with an added VW bug top soldered onto the roof...sweet.

Lara and I got lost a few times in Colorado. We were too engrossed in our conversations to pay attention to where we were going. Thankfully, we only went an hour out of our way on this trail.

Pretty Bird

I didn't realize how matchy-matchy we were. Next time we'll have to call each other to uncoordinate our outfits.