Colorado, cont.

Although my visits to Colorado are frequently to the Denver Airport for layovers, I've actually been visiting the state itself since I was little. Last summer I was lucky enough to spend a week in Boulder for a conference! It reminded me a lot of Eugene with all the college hype and outdoor peeps. This year I got to know Fort Collins.

On the haul from SW to NE CO we made sure to detour through Denver. We didn't get out of the car or anything but we liked what we saw anyway. We arrived to Fort Collins just in time for dinner at my godmother's house and reveled in a delicious meal after a week of camping and car snacks that were getting old. Old in every sense of the word. We slept like a pair of food drunk babes in an adorable guest room.

We had decided to stay an extra night in CO to regroup for the rest of the trip. The stops are now much fewer and further in between and we still have a lot of driving ahead of us. 500 miles to Omaha, 500 to Chicago, 500 to Toronto and one last 500 to New York, New York! (roughly) The car is doin' pretty good, I mean it's still running, so I'm thinking we'll make it! 

We spent our last day in the West leisurely at Rocky Mountain National Park. The mountains were still capped with snow and we even saw some falling at the highest point of our drive. We walked around Sprague Lake and made friends with some fellow ducks and later ran into a gang of elk who didn't seem to mind us at all. The short visit was a nice touch to end our western excursion.

We headed to Old Town Fort Collins to sample the local New Belgium and Odell brews followed another fulfilling dinner. We snoozed another night just and prepared for a big day of driving east.

Sand in My Pants, Colorado

Ever since crossing into Colorado we've been all eyes closed and smiles happy. With the Rockies in every inch of our peripherals we felt a big sense of comfort compared to the desert. We winded through Highway 160 and some teeny tiny towns like Center, CO which really isn't the center of much until getting to Great Sand Dunes National Park.

Once again we arrived to a FULL campground at 8 PM. Blast! The website AND the lady I talked to on the phone said the campground almost never fills so don't worry about it. We drove around the loops to scope it out anyway and ended up coming across a group of 6 Coloradoan angels who offered to share their 40 person campground. YES!!! We settled into what would be our last night of camping. Our tent was complete with a library, hydration station, electronic board complete with a stereo, a safe for valuables and of course sleeping quarters. Our party of two was quite the contrast to our neighboring children's playground that played Kumbaya into the night.

The next day we approached the tallest sand dunes in North America to climb 650 feet to High Dune. From our first steps into the sand this hike proved to be way harder than climbing out of the Grand Canyon. We took our time, like a lot of time, until reaching our destination that is apparently the windiest and painful place in the world. We perched up on the ridge of the dune where the wind would not stop blowing sand into every cranny of our tired bodies. The feeling was mainly unpleasant with a sense of rewarding. 

We tumbled down to shake the sand out of our everywhere just in time to beat the clouds and sprinkle storm rolling in. We caught a quick meal on our way out and loaded up on crystals and gems at the gift shop on our way out to add to our dashboard shrine of sacred trinkets that serve as our road trip spirit guides. Fort Collins here we come!

Four Corners USA

The Four Corners Monument is a place I've always wanted to visit. The thought of Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Arizona at the same time seemed very exciting. I've always thought these four states are particularly cool states, so their intersection must make up one awesome mega center where anything could happen, or something.

I will maintain my optimism because that's just how I roll and also because I do still think this place is cool. However, others might disagree and find the stump in the ground to be a waste of 150 miles in the direction of nowhere. I will counter to those disappointed tourists that the site is at least more exciting than when it was originally established in 1912 and was actually just a survey stump. The site has been updated (minimally) several times since and now is a much fancier survey marker and flags! More importantly, the site also represents the boundaries for the Navajo Nation and the Ute Indian Tribe. 

All in all, I'd say the stop was a success. My dreams were fulfilled and I was in four places at once.

ALERT: MOST of Arizona does not recognize Daylight Saving Time. The American part does not but the Navajo Nation, both parts of which we drove through, does. This is always so confusing! I should have learned my lesson in March (the 12th - just TWO days after the time changed - in MOST places) when I scheduled a phone call to Chicago from my layover in Pheonix - terrible idea. I still don't know if I was on time or not for the call. Anyway, the time definitely changed here as we officially crossed into Colorado and Mountain Time heading to our next destination.

Note: Sorry for the flashing Utah and Colorado border. And you people in Utah are doing just fine minding your own business.