Favorites!

Four Corners National Monument

We made it home safely!  No truck break downs although there was a lot of radiator fluid leaking out and Tim will take it in the shop but at least we made it home!  We stopped by four corners on the way home which was neat.  Here is a list of our favorites:

Daddy:  Favorite Campground: Wahweap at Lake Powell or Mancos State Park in Colorado  Favorite Hike:  Mesa Verde Balcony House hike  Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab, Kayaking at Lake Powell and cliff jumping with the kids Favorite Memory: Train with Donna and Nelson, Leah climbing the ladder at Mesa Verde and climbing through the tunnel, seeing the inside of the dam at Lake Powell Favorite National Park: Mesa Verde National Park
Mommy:  Favorite Campground: Mancos State Park in Colorado Favorite Hike: Delicate Arch at Arches National Park Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab, mountain biking in Moab Favorite Memory: Spending time with Donna and Nelson on train, deer watching every night at Mancos State Park Favorite National Park: Arches National Park
Noah: Favorite Campground: Mancos State Park in Colorado Favorite Hike: Mesa Verde Balcony House hike Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab Favorite Memory: Staying the night with Donna and Nelson and having a great breakfast!, watching Daddy squeeze through small tunnel at Mesa Verde Favorite National Park: Arches National Park
Megan: Favorite Campground: Wahweap at Lake Powell or Mancos State Park Favorite Hike: Mesa Verde Balcony house and Delicate Arch at Arches Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab Favorite Memory: Staying at the hotel with Donna and Nelson, going through the tunnel and ladder at Mesa Verde, seeing all of the deer in Colorado Favorite National Park: Mesa Verde National Park
Leah: Favorite Campground: Mancos State Park Favorite Hike: Mesa Verde Balcony House hike Favorite Activity: White water rafting in Moab Favorite Memory: Staying at hotel with Donna and Nelson, climbing ladder at Mesa Verde with ranger, seeing deer every night at campground in Colorado, making houses in the forest at our campground in Colorado Favorite National Park: Mesa Verde National Park

Colorado Day 5 7-18-12

 Leah climbing the 30 foot ladder with the ranger into Balcony house

 Inside Balcony House at Mesa Verde National Park

 The small tunnell we all had to fit through- even Daddy!

Spruce Tree House

Today was our last full day as we visited our last National Park. It is called Mesa Verde National Park and has hundreds of dwellings from the Pueblos that are 800 years old. We decided to start off by doing a ranger guided tour at a place called Balcony House. I was a little nervous as it required a climb up a 30 foot ladder just to get to the site and going through a couple of tunnels to get from room to room. Leah was picked as the first one to go up the ladder with the ranger which was really cool. There were about 40 of us in the group and that ladder was scary. The drop below would have you falling off a cliff but it was the only way into the huge alcove that had the dwelling. When we got in there it was really amazing to see the site…it had a lot of rooms and several kivas. The ranger gave us a lot of interesting facts and then we had to climb through this little tunnel to exit and up 2 more ladders to get out. The kids just loved it and thought it was so fun. We then went to a self-guided dwelling called Spruce house which was similar. The kids got to climb into a kiva this time which was fun. We then stopped in the museum where the kids got their Jr. Ranger badges and we looked at a lot of the exhibits. This is a really neat park with a lot of interesting historical facts…it is wild to imagine how people lived in these canyons and alcoves and how different life has changed. After the park it was back to camp to start packing up. We played games outside including horseshoes and UNO and had our traditional celebration feast of steaks, fish and mashed potatoes. Time to go back home to reality…we all feel like we have been gone forever and miss our family, friends, dog, and much larger home! I will miss the sleeping in, simplicity, being active outdoors, intimate time with the 4 I love, and marveling at God's creation. It has been an amazing vacation!

Colorado Day 4 7/17/12

 Finally saw the Colorado Columbine- the states flower.

 Leah bungee jumbing at Mountain Village in Telluride

Our hike along the river in Telluride

Today we ventured to Telluride. We took a gorgeous drive along the scenic byway of highway 145…truly one of the most spectacular drives I have been on. It was so scenic with the mountains, trees, meadows and rivers. We steadily climbed in elevation until we reached Telluride. We started off on a trail along the river at the base of the mountain. We then went into town and walked around a bit. Telluride is a really beautiful town, with mountains on all sides and green everywhere. Everyone is walking with their dog or on a bike. She shops are very quaint and every shop is a boutique. We stopped for lunch at Brown Dog Pizza and had some great pizza and salad. We then headed to the free gondola that goes over to Mountain Village. It was a very scenic ride up the mountain. When you dismount, it feels like you are in the Swiss Alps! The architecture is very European and there are villages everywhere with hotels and limited shopping. Leah saw the bungee trampoline and just had to do that. We walked around a little more and then headed back down to Telluride. More shopping and peeking in stores. Then it was back on our river trail to our car and the beautiful drive to camp. We rested for a while, had dinner and then took a family hike around the lake until the sun set. Then it was bed time! Lovely day and I am so glad we got to experience Telluride. Next time we will definitely spend more time in Telluride hiking and biking…it is the thing to do there in the summer!

Colorado Day 3 7-16-12

Today is about our little gem of a park and campground. We slept in and had a lazy morning and big breakfast and enjoyed the cool weather and the wind whirring through the pine trees. The girls met a friend this morning who was a precocious little 9 year old girl who was adorable. We then took the kayaks out onto Jackson Lake which is right at our campground. It was a great time as it was only us and 1 other sail boat on the lake. We explored the beautiful lake which was totally different from Lake Powell. It is obviously a lot smaller but has the pine trees to the shoreline and it is just so green and lush beyond the lake. We stopped on the shore and had a picnic and Noah took a lot of time to fish from shore and the lake but didn't catch anything. While the boys were fishing the girls were admiring the Great Blue Herons on the lake and a momma duck with her 2 babies. We saw some ominous clouds coming in so decided to pack up. The rest of the afternoon we spent around the campground relaxing with some short strolls here and there. Tim and I later did a trail around the lake on our bikes which was just gorgeous! Tons of wildflowers, meadows, the lake and pine trees. Then it was dinner time and after that we headed back to the lake for Noah to try fishing from the shore. It is incredible to have this whole lake to ourselves! It is so peaceful and quiet and we just stayed on the shore for hours. The kids were fishing and I was laying on the dock listening to music…it was heavenly! We watched the sun go down and then headed back to camp. On our way back we saw a herd of 7 deer. It was a beautiful day here in the San Juan valley!

 Kayaking at Jackson Lake at Mancos State Park

 The girls on the dock

Noahs trying his best fishing!

Colorado Day 2- 7/15/12

 The train going over a pass

 Donna, Nelson, and the kids in front of the train

Here we go on the train!

Today was all about the train ride with Auntie Donna and Uncle Nelson. Tim and I got ready with peace and quiet since the kids stayed the night with Donna and Nelson. We arrived at the train station to meet up. The kids were so happy to see us and they were well fed, rested and clean! We got the first peek at our train. The Durango Silverton Railroad has been in existence since the late 1800's and is one of the last coal fired steam operated engines around. We had an open air gondola and to our surprise, Tim was on the train with us! When I booked, they were short 1 seat so he agreed to go in a different car, just on the way there but they must have had a cancellation and put us all together. The ride up is beautiful! First of all, the whistle is so loud and you are spattered with coal and steam throughout the entire ride. It is also very bumpy and precarious at times as you are hugging the edge of the mountain and literally feel like you are going to tumble down the river below. The train climbs 3000 feet in elevation and stops in this cute little old mining town called Silverton. One of the highlights on the way up was watching a glider plane go by and then a couple of minutes later it landed right in front of us! But overall, the sweeping views of the mountain, trees, and river were just amazing. We arrived in Silverton just in time for the rain to come pouring down! We had a good lunch at the Brown Bear Café and walked around town a bit. Then it was back on the train. We had a couple of delays on the way back but it was nice to have time to catch up with family and just hang out on the train. The train ride is over 3 hours each way so it was a full day! We then went back to our camp and hung out listening to some Casting Crowns and relaxed. Then it was bed time. A great day with family…we will miss Donna and Nelson! 11, 23, 24

Colorado day 1- 7/14/12

We arrived in Colorado! Ahhh the cooler weather and pine trees are wonderful! We have a great campground at Mancos state park which is on a small lake. I think it will be a perfect base for all we have to do. We unpacked quickly and headed off to meet up with Donna and Nelson. We met at their hotel in Durango and it was so great to see them. We headed off on a trollie to downtown for dinner where they treated us to a great diner at a Mexican food restaurant. This is so my auntie Donna...she brought her own avacado to the restaurant! Love her! Feeling sorry for her though as her foot is in a lot of pain. It was great to catch up and spend time together. The kids will be spending the night there while Tim and I get some peace and quiet back at the campground. Tomorrow we meet up to ride the Durango silverton train. It was a great day!

Moab Day 4- 7/13/12 (Friday the 13th!)

 We made it to Delicate Arch!

 That's us in the arch!

Landscape Arch

Our day started off at midnight…yes, midnight with Megan yelling "I need help!" Tim of course sprang into action and discovered Megan had thrown up all in her bed. So, we were all up helping Megan and cleaning…not a good start to our day! We did it quickly and went back to bed. We have no idea what happened as she is not sick at all, she just woke up getting sick. Not fun when camping and no water hookups. Thankfully today is laundry day. We started early in the morning heading to Arches National Park. We did a quick stop at the visitor's center and asked about the hike I have been debating about doing for months called Delicate Arch. I have never wanted to do a hike so bad but had so many things pointing to not do it. The hike is labeled strenuous even though it is only 3 miles. It goes to Delicate Arch which is the symbol of Utah; it is on their license plates. Anyhow, everything pointed to a no…on the river we heard a man died on that trail last week from dehydration, Megan was up sick, it was Friday the 13^th, it is really strenuous, Leah hates hiking and it is supposed to be 95 degrees today, on and on… If it was up to me, I would have honestly given up that dream but Tim pushed us forward and was convinced we could do it and for me to get over stupid superstitions. So we did! And it was so amazing, I will never regret doing that hike and I am so proud of my kids for doing it. Delicate arch is a huge arch with an amphitheater of slickrock surrounding it…it is awe inspiring! Yes, the hike was difficult, uphill all the way but the payoff was worth it. After that we did a picnic lunch at Devils Garden and then headed off on the Devils Garden trailhead. I would NEVER do a hike in Arizona in 95 degree weather, let alone 2 hikes but we just plugged along and there were tons of people right along with us! On this trail we saw Landscape Arch which is one of the longest natural arches in the world at 306 feet. Arches is full of tall spires, beautiful red canyons and just all kinds of rock shapes and sizes to delight your imagination. It is a really special park. A lot of the really great arches and rocks you can see from the roadway so we enjoyed those on our drive back to the visitor's center where the kids again got Jr. Ranger badges. Then it was laundry time for me at the Moab Laundromat while Tim and the kids got ice cream and shopped in downtown Moab. Tonight we will be packing up and getting ready to head to Durango Colorado tomorrow morning. Can't wait to see my Auntie Donna tomorrow! Moab has been great; we saw all of our destinations and enjoyed God's handiwork!

Moab Day 3- 7/12/12

 Mesa Arch at Canyonlands National Park

 Grandview Point at Canyonlands

Upheaval Dome

This day we ventured to Canyonlands National Park which is only a few miles from our campground. We started off at the visitor's center and decided what to do for the day. Canyonlands is a mini version of the Grand Canyon…half as wide and half as deep. Much more remote and rugged with a lot of it unexplored and some of the most rugged parts of the western US. We first took in a Ranger program about Bighorn sheep. Then it was off to our first hike which was to Mesa Arch. The arch is really pretty but the canyon background is magnificent. Next it was a stop at Grand View lookout which had a great view of the canyon and the rivers below. We stopped for lunch and then did a short hike to Upheavel Dome. The scenery is great but boy is it hot! We ended our time back at the visitor's center for Jr. Ranger badges. Then we were back to camp for the rest of the day to relax and hang out. We made a quick jaunt to our parks visitors' center for ice cream and Jr. Ranger badges there as well. We had a nice dinner and the kids played outside for a long time playing hide and seek and having fun. I know we are in the Wild West because the girls have been playing cowboys and Indians a lot and that has been fun to see. Then it was our usual game of UNO and bedtime. We need to get an early start tomorrow to avoid the heat at Arches. 6, 15, 24

Moab Day 2- 7/11/12

 Deer on the trail at Dead Horse Visitors Center

 A break on our mountain bike ride at Dead Horse

First time mountain biking- fun!

What had a super fun day doing some of the "must do's" of Moab. We started off going to the visitor's center of our park. We saw our first big wildlife sighting with a mule deer on the nature trail and Leah was loving that. Then we went to downtown Moab and did a little shopping. Tim knew one of the owners of a gift shop there so we stopped in and said hello and bought some t-shirts. After that it was off to spend our day on the Colorado River. We went with a tour company called Moab Adventure Center and they were fabulous. We did a whitewater trip that was 4 ½ hours and included lunch. The bus ride up was beautiful as we meandered through the red canyons next to the river. Then it was off on our trip! Our guide was Patton who is a high school English teacher in Vermont but comes to Moab every summer to lead rafting tours. He was so funny and interesting and we called him "General". There was a great family on our boat from Florida so we had so much fun talking and sharing with them. The river was tame with only a few class 1 rapids so most of the time was spent with water wars with the 4 other boats and families on them. Each boat had one of those 5 gallon buckets and the goal was to steal the buckets from the other boats and constantly declare war by filling the bucket with water and dumping it on the other passengers in the other boats. The kids had a blast with this…they also spent a ton of time in the water swimming and trying to steal those buckets off the boats. Oh, another interesting fact was that we passed on the bus and then floated by a big movie set. Johnny Depp was there filming The Lone Ranger that comes out next summer. It was really neat to see all of the trailers and the production that went on. General said Will Smith just finished filming a movie with his son called After Earth due out next summer as well. My movie lover Noah just thought that was the coolest thing ever! Another highlight was lunch which was at a winery on the river. We just floated to the shore and had a fabulous meal of BBQ, great fresh sides and cookies. It was delicious! It was really a fun time and the kids were just in heaven. When we came back to our campground…Tim and I decided to try the mountain biking trail at our campground. So off we went and that was a lot of fun. It was a 4 mile trail called the Intrepid trail that had a lot of dirt, slick rock and some sand. I was more afraid doing that than white water rafting but it turned out to be a lot of fun. We had beautiful scenery as we stopped and looked down into the canyon. Then it was back to camp for dinner and then an evening walk around the campground. We saw a fox! That was a first. We also saw another deer. It was a great day! Tomorrow we will be heading into the canyon that we keep looking at from our campground. It is at Canyonlands National Park. 44, 45, 47

Moab Day 1- 7/10/12

Our hike to Dead Horse Point

View from Dead Horse Point- this is the canyon at Canyonlands

We arrived in Moab, Utah safely! Wow, what a difference a day makes. We went from swimsuits all day and frolicking in the water to hiking shoes and Camelback backpacks right away. First of all…Moab is really beautiful. It is full of red rocks towering above the side of the freeway and you just know there is so much more to see on the other side of those rocks. We drove by Arches National Park on the way to our campground which is at Dead horse Pointe State Park. I must admit, it is a little more secluded and remote than I thought it would be. It is only 3 miles from the entrance to Canyonlands National Park but it feels far from everything else. Also, all of the scenic overlooks and canyons that I thought would be right at our campground are actually miles away. The campground is small though with only 20 sites. The visitors center was closed so we just set up camp quickly, ate dinner and then noticed the sun was about to go down. Even though it was 8:00 at night, we were determined to see Dead Horse Pointe, the namesake of our campground so off we went on our hike. The map made it seem like it was only 1 1/5 miles away but when we got going, the signs said 2 miles…then we felt like we were lost because the trail was not marked and we kind of meandered for a while. I think around here, the trails are marked with cairns (stacks of rocks) instead of signs. And of course it wouldn't be a hike without Leah crying over something…this time it was her shoes hurting her. But the views were very rewarding! We are 2000 feet above the canyons of Canyonlands and the Colorado River is below. It is similar to the Grand Canyon but not nearly as deep. Unfortunately, I have no pictures because by the time we got there, it was 9:00 at night and it was too dark for the photos. We then walked back and decided to stay off the trail and just walk on the road…in the dark…with Leah wearing no shoes. We must have looked crazy! Tim did have compassion on her and put her on his shoulders the last mile or so…what a great dad! Finally we were back at 9:45 at night. The latest hike we have ever done! After that it was a quick game of UNO and bed. Tomorrow we head into Moab for some white water rafting on the Colorado River. 4, 7

Lake Powell Day 4- 7/9/12

 Our stop at the Coves

 Mommy and the kids at Lone Rock

Daddy and the kids at Lone Rock...gorgeous water and white sand!

Today is our last full day at Lake Powell.  We decided to kayak again.  We left from the same beach near our campground and off we went.  We went a lot farther this time as we wanted to visit Lone Rock which is a huge rock formation that just sits in the middle of the lake.  It also is a place to dry camp on the beach so we wanted to check that out.  It was a great day of kayaking and stopping at some amazing little spots to swim and eat.  First we stopped at the coves.  There were fish right there on the surface so Noah tried to fish but didn't catch anything.  Then we stopped at a little peninsula that had some beautiful red sand and we had lunch.  Next it was to Lone Rock where we stopped at a white sand beach that had crystal blue water.  Then back we went...pretty much a full day of kayaking.  We were all hot, burned and tired but it was a lot of fun exploring.  We spent the rest of the day swimming at the beach and then guess where?  The pool.  The night will be spent packing up!  We had a great time at Lake Powell and hope to come again.  Tomorrow we are off to Moab, Utah to visit Arches and Canyonlands National Park. 

Lake Powell Day 3- Part 2

Rafting on Lake Powell

Our Campground with a view of the Lake in the background.

I forgot to mention earlier that in between our 2 tours, we had lunch at the Lake Powell Resort restaurant.  It had a beautiful view overlooking the lake.  We had a lovely waitress by the name of Flower.  Flower was from Bulgaria and said she flew over with 75 other Bulgarian students to spend the summer working at Lake Powell.  Flower had a distinct accent and high pitched voice and was constantly saying "Here you go".  When Megan asked for Root Beer to drink she look horrified that my child was asking for beer as she said "You want beer?".  She was very interesting and we later found out she overcharged us $9 to boot.  We will never forget Flower.  Later in the evening after resting from the tour, we went back to the beach and the kids took their big raft and had fun with that.  Leah took a nap on the beach.  Then it was back to the pool again!  Then it was time for a late dinner and bed.  It was a fun day!

Lake Powell Day 3- 7/8/12

As much as I enjoy the recreational activities on our trips, I love learning about and immersing myself in the history, geography, and way of life in each of our parks we visit. That was what today was about…tour day. We started off with an early morning boat tour of Lake Powell called the Canyons Adventure Tour. It was a 2 ½ hour boat tour leaving from Wahweap marina that took us around Lake Powell. It started off visiting the dam, then went through Antelope Canyon and Navajo Canyon. It was fun to see all of the different water crafts on the water and dream of being on a houseboat one day. We learned a lot about the Lake as well. Did you know Lake Powell is the second largest manmade lake in the US? There is more shoreline on Lake Powell than there is on the entire western coast of the US. Lake Powell used to be a Canyon (named Glen Canyon when explored by John Wesley Powell in 1869) with the Colorado River running through it but was dammed up in 1963. It took 17 years to fill Lake Powell to its full capacity. Lake Powell is like a savings account, it is available to most of the western states as a reserve if there is ever a drought and those states could be sustained for 1 ½ years just from Lake Powell's water. This lake provides water for Phoenix and parts of California. It also provides power from hydroelectric power… which leads to our next tour. We took a tour of the Glen Canyon dam which was really cool! We have been in the visitor's center several times on our way to Zion National Park but this was our first time to take the tour. We had an hour to wait for our tour to begin so the kids did the Jr. Ranger program and got sworn in. Then off we went! We took an elevator down to the top of the dam where we walked around. The tour guide was very informative about how the building of the dam took place. Then we took an elevator down into the dam to the bottom. It was so cool to be down there and we got to see the turbines in the power plant as well. Overall, it was very interesting to learn how we get our water and electricity to maintain the quality of life we have today. The damming of the Colorado River was and still is quite controversial as Glen Canyon is sacred ground to many Native Americans. It is interesting to see how our modern way of life impacts other cultures, animals, and can dramatically change a landscape which is home to many different animals and vegetation. Without Lake Powell, we would not be able to have our quality of life that we have today. And…it is a lot of fun too!

 Photo from Boat Tour

 Tour of the Glen Canyon Dam

Kids sworn in as Jr. Rangers

Lake Powell Day 2- 7/7/12

Noah in the kayak!

Tim and the girls have their own kayak.

Megan doing some cliff jumping...she's the brave one!

Loving this little cove and the crystal blue water!

Tim and I started off the morning taking a run to Utah.  OK...it is only 1/2 mile away so that's not too impresive but it was a nice run along the path with a great view of the lake.  After that it was breakfast and getting ready for our kayak trip.  We decided to stay in Arizona and just go to the beach area by our campground instead of the boat launch in Utah.  That worked out nicely as we headed off in our Kayaks to who knows where.  We took about an hour on the water and came across this beautiful little rock formation that formed a cove with clear water in between.  We decided to stop there and have lunch...and we didn't leave for the next couple of hours!  We spent time swimming there, watching all of the boats and climbling on the big rocks.  Then Tim and the kids decided to be brave and jump 20 feet into the water from the top of one of the rocks.  It was hilariaous to watch them trying to talk each other into doing it.  Who do you think the first one in was?  It wasn't big, strong Daddy but Megan.  Daddy was next and then Noah.  Even Leah jumped but it did not turn out as well for her...she did a belly/face flop and got the wind knocked out of her.  She's fine but was a little scared.  I found out later that Daddy bribed all of them with $1 to jump!  He was so impressed with them, they each got 5.  After that we had an hour long kayak ride back to the beach where we just swam and enjoyed the water more.  Then we were so done!  Back to the trailer for snacks, water, and air conditioning!  Tonight we will go back to the lodge to the pool and spa.  Tomorrow we head out on a boat tour to see more of the lake.  It was a great day on the water!

Lake Powell Day 1- 7/6/12

It was an uneventful drive to Lake Powell. Tim stayed awake, we were safe and had no truck problems...what more could you ask for? Tim did spend the first 2 hours remembering all of the stuff he forgot so that did require a stop at Wal-mart in Flagstaff to pick up a few things. I love the drive through the Painted Desert; the red rocks are so beautiful. Northern Arizona is truly a gem! We arrived at Lake Powell and settled into our campground nicely. Lake Powell is gorgeous with all of the mountains, canyons and huge expanse of water. The campground is nice but it is the low desert so it is mostly dirt. After setup we had a big dinner and then went exploring. Just 1/2 mile walk there is a sandy beach area on the lake. The kids were all the way in the water immediately! Even though it was 7:30 at night the beach was pretty crowded. We noticed that most people were speaking another language and we kind of felt like the foreigners! We even saw a lady change into her bikini on the beach and she did not leave much to the imagination! Next it was off to explore Lake Powell lodge where the kids enjoyed the pool and spa for awhile. We went inside the lodge and looked around and Leah bought a stuffed animal at the gift shop. Then it was back to the campground. We did more in day 1 than I thought we would. I have a feeling our days here will be filled with a lot of time in the lake and then a lot of time in the pool after. Today we spent our day on the Arizona side of Lake Powell and tomorrow we will be taking the kayaks for a spin in Utah, which is only 1/2 of a mile away!

And we're off! Right now we are on the road to Lake Powell. All of the packing and prepping is done and it is time to have fun! I'm watching Tim like a hawk...I had a very vivid dream of him falling asleep while driving and I could not wake him up. The end of the dream just cut away to me viewing the truck and trailer driving away on the us60 onramp and it ended. I'm going to pretend that dream ended well. Reality is that he is tired but excited so we are anxious to arrive and get this drive over with! This 2 week trip will include 4 days at Lake Powell, 4 days in Moab Utah and 6 days in Durango Colorado. And hopefully lots of memories made (please Lord, the good ones! I can't handle another truck break down!)