Colorado 2014: Day Four

Saturday was our last morning with Candice and Andy. They were packing up to head back to Houston while we were heading west to spend a couple days at Mesa Verde National Park. We helped them clean up as much as we could and then we were off on a couple of adventures of our own.

The Continental Divide was on our list of places to visit, and it is only about 15-20 minutes from Pagosa Springs. The brass line in the picture below shows the divide; the waters on the east side (where Gene and Henry are) flow to the Atlantic (including the Gulf of Mexico) while the water on the west side (where Will and I are) flow to the Pacific Ocean. As you can see, the elevation here at Wolf Creek Pass was more than 10,000 feet.

While we were there, we learned that the Continental Divide Trail runs 3102 miles between Canada and Mexico.  

We decided to hike a tiny portion of the trail. 

On the way back down to Pagosa Springs, we stopped at the West Fork Valley Overlook.

By the time we arrived back in downtown Pagosa Springs, it was time for lunch. We love beer, so we chose Riff Raff Brewing Company in downtown Pagosa.

Gene and I shared a flight and came away with a growler of their kolsch to enjoy later.

Our afternoon adventure took us to Chimney Rock National Monument.

Chimney Rock sits on a high mesa in the San Juan Mountains and was home to the Ancestral Puebloans more than 1000 years ago. There are over 200 homes and buildings on the mesa, including this pithouse. Pithouses were usually dug into the ground, but this area sits on bedrock, so it is mostly above ground. A flat roof would have been constructed of interwoven sticks supported by poles and covered with a layer of mud.

This Great Kiva was the first of many that we saw over the next few days. Kivas were gathering places for the Ancestral Puebloans, and would have been used for ceremonial, religious and social meetings.

The Ancestral Puebloans were sky watchers, and used the twin peaks of Chimney Rock and Companion Rock to build an impressive calendar. They were able to track astronomical events and they used what they learned about the cycles of the sun and moon to monitor weather patterns, which in turn helped them determine optimal times for planting and harvesting. The astronomical events would also have influenced religious rituals and ceremonies. Chimney Rock is a beautiful place.

After visiting Chimney Rock, we traveled west of Durango to the little town of Mancos, which would be our home-base for the next few days. We arrived at our rental house at dinner time and whipped up a quick meal.

Sitting on the porch and watching the sun set over the mountains was the perfect way to end the day. 

Colorado 2014: Day 3

This is the sight that greeted me Friday morning as I made coffee in Colorado. What a beautiful way to wake up!

The rain departed and we had big plans for the day, so all ten of us were ready and out the door at 8:30. Our first stop of the day was the Rocky Mountain Wildlife Park, just south of Pagosa Springs. It's a wildlife park and they have horseback riding! We did it all.

Here's Gene with the grizzly bear in the background.

We explored the park while the employees got our horses ready for the ride.

The kids all got baggies of feed to feed the ducks and goats.

It's a beautiful place.

Then it was time to go horseback riding. It has been at least 20 years since I've been on a horse, but the employees told me it was like riding a bike -- once you know how, you don't forget. But, this was a first for our boys and let me tell you, they absolutely loved it.

Henry rode Dolly

and Will rode Flip.

And we were off! 

We chose the hour-long ride around the park and it was perfect. The scenery was beautiful and the kids all loved it. Henry is already talking about horseback riding here in Texas. The only mishap was when my saddle came unbuckled and I slipped all the way off. I managed to hold on (mostly because I didn't want to drop my camera!) and slide off without falling in the mud, which was something of a miracle. This is the picture Gene took of that mis-adventure!

Happy boys after horseback riding.

For our next adventure, we decided to head into the San Juan National Forest for a hike to Opal Lake. It was about a 30 minute drive into the forest, and our information said the hike was 1.2 miles. We weren't sure if that was one-way or round-trip, but either way, we knew the kids could handle it. We grabbed snacks and water bottles and headed straight up a mountain, through the aspens, with the kids in the lead.

It was absolutely gorgeous.

We hiked up mountains, through meadows, and across streams but with no sign of Opal Lake.

Finally, after hiking two miles, one way, we came to the lake. The lake was pretty green the day we were there, but it is supposedly named Opal Lake due to its normally-milky color caused by mineral deposits.

 Candice and I were thrilled that we finally found the lake! 

We all decided that the hike was absolutely worth it and that if we had known it was four miles round-trip, we might not have attempted it.

The boys found a little island and promptly proclaimed it "Boys' Island."

But the girls were there too.

Gene had a conference call and was trying so hard to find a signal, but we were in the middle of nowhere and he was out of luck.

The kids played and we all snacked before heading back down to our cars.

Four miles, done!

The kids all did really well with the distance, especially since it was hours past lunchtime when we returned to civilization. Will proclaimed four miles to be his max distance.

After our hike, we made it back to Pagosa Springs and celebrated with beer and rootbeer floats at the Pagosa Brewing Company. Beer never tasted so good!

Will drank the whole thing!

 Back at home, the kids played outside with Rocky

while the grownups prepped dinner (fajitas, corn salad, and cake!) and relaxed on the porch. A bat flew right past Gene's head and landed on the side of the house, where it stayed til dark. I'm pretty sure it's a little brown bat.  

We also celebrated Will's birthday a couple of days early.

Chocolate cake with chocolate ganache icing is his favorite!

The day ended much like it began, with a beautiful sunset.

From sunrise to sunset, this was one perfect Colorado day.