**There is so much to do now that we are back from vacationing. However, I knew that I wanted to share our trip with you and knew that it may never happen if I didn't do it now. There is too much beauty in Colorado not to share, so bare with me... ;)
Jeremy and I have always shared a love for the outdoors. When we first started dating, we took every chance possible to be outside. However, now that we are all grown up our time outdoors is somewhat shortlived...partly because we work, partly because we have kiddos, partly because of time (living in the suburbs requires time to drive to the great outdoors ;). So, when we started planning our trip to Colorado we knew we were ready...more than ready. Well, the beginning of our trip was off to a great start until Claire came down with a fever. We knew right away she wasn't feeling well because I can count on my hand the number of times she's been sick in her little life. What we thought was being tired, overheated quickly turned into a little girl who had a bug of some sort. After day 2 of having the blahs we took her to urgent care. We were told she had an ear infection, so we were sent home with meds thinking this would be the end of it. Well, we couldn't get the medicine down her. As soon as we tried, it came right back up. :( So, the next day we went back to the urgent care...this time seeing a different doctor. He didn't see any signs of an ear infection. What? And lo and behold, while we were there she started picking up some energy that we hadn't seen over the past 3 days. The doctor agreed that this didn't seem like the signs of an ear infection, but gave us some new meds to try to be sure that it wasn't. By the next day...day 4 into our trip, she was starting to act and feel a bit more like herself. The downside was that we camped out (in our rental house) for a few days trying to get her back to normal which left us with 3 days to absorb Colorado. Day 1 for me was hiking Mt. Bearstadt. I had hiked Pikes Peak a few years back and was excited to be able to hike another 14er while we were there. I guess you could say that I have found a new addiction. There is something about being up in the mountains overseeing some of the magnificent beauty that God has provided for us. I was in complete awe... This was how our hike started out. We were hoping for sunny skies, but the way the clouds were rolling through...I didn't mind.
This was about the half way point...about 2 miles with a 1500 climb in elevation.
Loved the little flowers along the way...
The view from the top. I'm not gonna lie...I didn't train in a way that totally prepared me for the hike we experienced. Pike's Peak was a 13 mile hike to the top, so I thought 4 miles up...shouldn't be too bad. Well, you'll see that that the last mile or so of the hike was more like being on all four's climbing over rocks. It was rough, but I loved it! There is something to be said for climbing a mountain and overcoming obstacles along the way. Sure, I was sore the next day, but there were no regrets...not one.
We made it to the top...and this is how we knew. ;)
I hiked Pike's Peak with Jeremy's dad...glad we got to hike another one together. We are so blessed to have such wonderful parents!
L to R: Jeremy's brother, Josh, Jeremy's Aunt Donna, and Jeremy's dad.
The rocks to your left...yes, that is what we climbed over the last part of our hike...hands and knees.
Absolutely amazing....
I really could have stayed here all day...
This was our path slightly below the peak of the mountain. There was somewhat of a trail...
These pile of rocks are found as you are moving up (and down). Over time people have placed rocks there recommending that you hike in this direction. From there, you kind of made your own way up and down. ;)
About 8 miles later...we finished the climb. Due to a hit in elevation, the whole crew didn't make it up. However, the effort was made and the reward was still sweet. Here we are trying to get the mountain in the background using the car as the tripod.
Day 2 was a trip to the Royal Gorge...wow! That's all there is to say.
This bridge is a suspension bridge which means you can see it move when the wind blows which means multiple times of having heart failure which means...craziness!
This was near the beginning of the bridge. Once I realized what she was doing I put the camera down and started to panic. ;)
It was warm, but these hit the spot!
A pretty amazing view...
People have actually tried this??
Yes, there were cracks like this throughout the entire bridge. Yes, I had to breathe through the walk across and back. My heart beats faster just thinking about it.
I wasn't about to ride in that...no thanks! The bridge was enough.
Day 3 involved leaving Colorado Springs and heading north to check out Estes Park next to the Rocky Mountain National Park. All I can say is that we will be going there again. Wow!
These little guys came right up to us...
Yep, we got to see a number of these guys too.
Many rainbows showed their face that day...
I'm kind of proud of the next two shots. They were taken while we were driving back down. Believe it or not, they were sharp...and sharp where they needed to be. I didn't think the angles were too bad either. ;)
So, there you have it. Our trip found moments of relaxing, being parents, visiting family, enjoying scenery...enjoying life. |
