Colorado part 1

It's tuesday night. After an intense day of teaching, reading, writing about said reading, and home improvement projects (I fixed my shower!), I found myself at 9pm with some *gasp* time on my hands before bed! I settled into bed and started perusing Netflix for free time options, and came across what is in my opinion, one of the best films of all time...

"There Will Be Blood"

As the movie opened upon the rocky western landscape I was reminded of my recent trip to Colorado and suddenly realized that I still needed to write an entry about it! So as I sit in my bed enjoying these well deserved moments of relaxation, I will use this time to share the first part of our trip to the Rockies and report on some of our adventures while the infamous Daniel Plainview offers the Sunday family "quail prices" in the background.

As soon as I was out of the "second year exam woods", five of my very best friends came to rescue me for a week. We rented a brand new Ford Expedition, and headed west toward the Mississippi River.

After a couple of hours, we stopped for gas, and splashed our feet in the Mississippi!

Piling back into the car, we settled into another 12 hours into the car. Most of us slept.

But we stopped for dinner in Des Moines, Iowa for some German food (and refreshment!)

Before we knew it, those of us snoozing in the back of the car were waking up at around 6am to the sweet smell of mountain air and the most beautiful red rock canyons any of us had ever seen.

Our family owned campsite was beautiful and quick to give us all the information we needed to set up our home away from home. By the time we'd set the tents up, it was time for a brief nap and then some midday hiking (you know, so we could adjust to the elevation). 

In the early afternoon we decided to go hiking at "Seven Falls". As you've probably guessed from the name, this park had seven waterfalls. A 200 step staircase followed the falls. Upon reaching the top of the stairs, a wooded trail began, which led to the top of the canyon. 

There was a good photo op at the top of the falls, so we took it :)

The next morning, we went horseback riding through the Garden of the Gods.

Garden of the Gods is probably the most beautiful place I've ever been. Everything is colorful: the bright red rocks, and red dirt, the dark green trees. We rode the horses over a stretch of about five miles, and even galloped UP a rock formation (like a cowboy). I promise you, this vacation could not have been any more amazing, and it was only the first day.

The next day we went to the Arkansas River for some white water rafting. Naturally, cameras were unwise on this adventure, but it too was an incredible experience. Our group actually went over a class 5 rapid! Luckily we work well as a team and everyone managed to stay in the boat...

We did have some professional pictures taken, and those will hopeful be up soon. In the meantime, I'm starting to feel my long day. Part 2 is coming soon!