Go: Colo-Rockin'

(Welcome back! It now time for me to briefly recount my first time in Colorado (not counting the Four Corners). Please forgive me for the lack of vivid detail and photos, read on to be reminded why...)

The most unfortunate thing started to happen as we left Oklahoma and headed to Colorado. AGP’s itchy throat and slight fatigue that had been plaguing him as we explored the panhandle got progressively worse, and by the time we reached Boulder, it had turned into a case of double pink-eye!! I won’t mention any of the gruesome details because he would probably get embarrassed, so I will just assure you that once we finally realized that it was what it was, we were able to clear it up in a few days (and that I was blessedly left uninfected).

After our hike up Black Mesa, we cruised across the northeast-most traversable part of New Mexico and into Colorado toward Lake Trinidad, where we going to spend the night. We were treated with our first view of the menacing Rocky Mountains towering over us and some other things yet un-experienced. 

Now, I have heard tell of how awesome the winds of the prairie are, how they sweep mercilessly and unrelenting day and night, their roar deafening you as you sit trembling in your home, yet all across Oklahoma we were treated to calm, peaceful nights and days. This was not so at Lake Trinidad, where we sat at a precariously high elevation above the lake and the winds whipped frighteningly at our tent to the point where we had it anchored down with at least fifteen ropes. We had to eat very quickly and then hide in the tent the whole night and hope that we didn’t end up blowing away! To bad you can't really tell how hard the wind was blowing from the pictures! 

We did a little exploring in the morning, but were otherwise on the way up I-25 to Boulder to meet up with some of AGP’s family who had agreed to host us for the weekend. AGP spent a semester at UC: Boulder a few years ago and was excited to show me some of the things he fondly remembered. Sadly, the case of double pink-eye held us back a little. We did enjoy a swim at the creek, the nightlife in downtown Boulder, and some wonderful live music in between nap times and recovery periods. And I enjoyed meeting some more of AGP’s quirky family. Oh and check out these amazing pictures of the area in Boulder the family lived-- only a few years ago, a massive wildfire destroyed the mountaintop, mercifully sparing their home. It is estimated that the nearby ridges will remain barren for the next 50 years:

 

(What it should look like.)

(What it does look like.)

Wild! After we left Boulder, we were heading northbound towards South Dakota, where we had agreed to WWOOF at an organic vegetable farm mid-June. So when we left Boulder, we headed east again. We had sadly forfeited our chance to cross Rocky Mountain National Park off my bucket list to the pink-eye, but as I was nearly sick with excitement from exploring Nebraska, it seemed a small price to pay for AGP being well again and me getting enough time in the Cornhusker state. 

If you aren’t yet hip to my strange love of flat, unpopular regions, I will pre-empt the next chapter of my story with the note that: I unsurprisingly loved western Nebraska so much that once we were done with the trip and I was on my way back east, I drove miles out of my way to visit western Nebraska again! 

Here is Colorado according to us: 

A: Black Mesa State Park, Kenton, Oklahoma 

B: Lake Trinidad State Park, Trinidad, Colorado 

C: Boulder, Colorado 

D: Lake Minatare, Scottsbluff, Nebraska 

The reasons I adore Nebraska will be illuminated if you stay tuned for Go: Zy loves Nebraska.

~~

Want to catch up with all of 'Go'?
Go: Intro
Go: Cloudy, With A Chance of Death From Above
Go: Okla-home

Boulder on Dwellable