Weekend Getaway

Now that school is out and the schedule is a little more flexible, we decided to ride along with Tyler on his business trip last week. As he usually leaves town a couple of times a month, it was a treat NOT to get left behind for once! Plus, I think that we have a new appreciation for all the driving Ty does when he is out of town. Anyway, we thought leaving for our "adventure" on Lily's birthday was perfect timing, so last Thursday off we went. We left Thursday morning and headed west on I-70. Our first stop was Edwards, in the Vail area, then on to Grand Junction for another appointment. After that we headed to Montrose for one more appointment, then on to Durango for the night. Phew! See what I mean about all the driving? In order to get to Durango, we had to go over Red Mountain Pass, which he does a lot these days but I have never done. WOW! What a view. It is absoutely breathtaking. I don't know what took my breath away more, the views or the fact that I am apparently more afraid of heights than I realized, and the road runs right on the side of the mountain with a sheer drop off and no guard rail! He wanted to pull off to the side and take a picture of the kids by a waterfall, and I said NO WAY! I know, I'm a chicken! When we got to Durango we celebrated Lily's birthday at Applebee's. She was thrilled to tell our waitress that it was her birthday, who then made sure that everybody sang happy birthday to her.

Friday morning Tyler had some appointmens in and around Durango, so the kids and I headed to the hotel pool for a morning swim.

Then we got showered and dressed and headed out for a "hike". The Animas River Trail ran right behind our hotel, so we loaded the stroller and off we went! The scenery was beautiful, and Hunter was disappointed when Lily got worn out and it was time to turn back.

Then it was time to load up again and head for more appointments in Telluride. Once Tyler was done with work for the day, we ventured up the hill to ride the Gondola between Mountain Village and Telluride. It is also a beautiful view, and the kids loved it. I was surprised, but the one who had the most fun was Sophie. She asked to ride the "gonnola" all weekend!

(Notice the St. Sophia. Obviously not named after anyone we know!)

The elevation at the highest point of the Gondola ride

We spent the night on Friday night in Montrose, and then Saturday morning headed to Ouray, the "Switzerland of America". It is a beautiful little town nestled right between the mountains. We headed first to the Bachelor Syracuse Mine, where we hoped to do a mine tour, but the equipment was broken so we decided to pan for gold instead. Hunter and Lily had a good time, and we spent most of our time trying to keep Sophie from falling in!

Before we left Ouray we headed up to Box Canyon Falls, where you can take a short hike right back to the waterfall. It was so cool to walk around the side of the mountain and hear the water roaring down through the crevice.

We walked along the scaffolding and then down five stories into the gorge. I have already metioned my phobia of heights, and couldn't believe I walked down all those stairs! It was really fascinating and beautiful though!

The view of Ouray from up near the Falls

We arrived home late Saturday night dirty and exhausted, but full of fun times and good memories. Thanks for letting us tag along Daddy! Let's do it again sometime!