fletke

[fletke]

Dear friends/family,

Thank you all so much for helping to make this trip a reality for Gardner and myself. It truly was a “dream fulfilled” to be able to take this trip together, not to mention the fact that I was able to enjoy all of the hiking and creek-wading and rock climbing on a completely new/healed/restored right big toe after having surgery this May. [shoutout to Emily’s brilliant idea of asking Brett to take a look at it back in December!] Praise. God. This was also a big trip for Gardner, as he had just stepped away from the company he had been working with in NYC for the past three years. We arrived in CO expectant, and boy did God take us on a journey! Feel free to read it all, or just scroll through the pictures; in any case - THANK YOU ALL! 

[Just north of Ouray... prounounced “yur-eh”] 

Day 1 - NYC to Denver

Arrived into Denver around 8am, rented a car from the airport (bless you, Nissan Rogue), and headed over to Golden where we picked up gear and supplies from Tyler and Nikki and their two awesome boys! (bless you Tyler and Nikki!) Tyler had everything staged for us in his garage, ready to be packed into the back of our vehicle. What a reflection of God’s provision it was to be outfitted with literally EVERYTHING we could have needed for wilderness camping. I must have muttered something along the way, but I mainly remember feeling speechless. We only wish we could have spent more time with their family; these people radiated some serious love! Maybe next time! :-) 

Drove down to Tom and Claudette’s place in Littleton for a heavenly nap (bless you Tom and Claudette!) They were gracious enough to welcome us into their home on short notice (Ben, you have some amazing parents!) A good hard nap equipped us for an afternoon DSW and TJ’s run. Came back for burgers, cantaloupe, testimonies, and ice cream sandwiches on the back porch with Tom and Claudette :-) We were super grateful for a day to let our bodies adjust to the altitude and the drier climate.

(thank you, Tyler, for making sure we didn’t leave without the straw hats!)

Day 2 - Denver to Rocky Mountain National Park

August 1st ... Colorado Day!! We took an early morning trail walk via Littleton’s beautiful canal trail to Jackass (yes, jackass) Hill Park for a preview of the Rockies! We saw two hot air balloons being sent up into the sky! Plus hawks, horses, goats, a hen, and geese along the neighborhood walking trail! Eggs and coffee and bagels on the back porch with Tom and Claudette. Claudette is quite the chef! She also sent us off with some amazing zucchini bread and cookies :-) 

We did a quick Walmart Run to make sure we had batteries, Ziplocs, and baby wipes (IMPORTANT), and drove into the mountains via Route 6 West to 119 North, passed through the Arapaho National Forest, Roosevelt National Forest.

Erin, the employee who got us set up with our National Park pass at the entrance, got instantly and somewhat violently weepy when we told her it was Gardner’s first time camping in the mountains! That was a sweet moment. On our way up and over the pass, we saw a lone elk, chillin’ in the valley, just 40 feet from the road.

Camping in Rocky Mountain National Park: Timber Creek Campsite

Rocky Mountain National Park

Gardner, taking it all in!

A number of Elk visited us at this campsite!

Really cool drive across Trail Ridge Road!

Day 3 - Rocky Mountain National Park to Summit County

We drove from Timber Creek down to Frisco via Grand Lake and over the mountains through Winter Park. We wanted to hit up Berthoud Falls, but it was strategically marked by locals with “private property” signs to discourage tourists from stopping. Next time...

The Dillon amphitheater (where I spent a couple of summers in college working) was totally redone - completely new! The small wooden building where I had performed was empty and basically ready to be torn down. 

We spent the next couple hours locating some warm gear (we had been very chilly for the evening/early morning in Rocky Mountain). The cashier at the mountain supply store recommended camping in Arapaho National Forest via the Ute Pass; Ute Pass sure had a stunning view, but the cashier forgot to mention that the area was also on fire. Unfortunately, we didn’t check fire updates before driving that way. We ended up at the Frisco Holiday Inn for the night. 

Again, thank you, Tyler, for supplying us with gear; coffee was CLUTCH. 

Grand Lake (above)

Smokey sky above Ute Pass.

Day 4 - Summit County to Grand Junction

Butterhorn Bakery goodness for breakfast. Lovely rainy drive through Vail west on I-70.

Entered the White River National Forest and drove through Glenwood Springs and Glenwood Canyon. We did the Hanging Lake hike in the canyon, and it was AMAZING.

As you approach Glenwood Springs, the terrain changes again completely! And the drive from Glenwood Springs to Palisade is JAW DROPPING.

Stopped in Palisade for peaches! (Thank you Amy for that recommendation)

Spent the night with Amy and Derek in Grand Junction, CO. They live in a spacious ranch-style home with three amazing kiddos, Brinley, Parker, and Arlo. They had a taco salad dinner waiting for us when we arrived. Derek also had all of his CO and UT maps all laid out for us on the kitchen table and helped us plan the rest of our trip. We ended up completely pitching our plans to drive down to Zion, Bryce, and Grand Canyon after hearing his suggestions.

Hanging Lake

Glenwood Canyon

Palisade

Just outside of Grand Junction

Day 5 - Grand Junction with the Hrubes (pronounced “Roo-Bish”) family.

Eggs, potatoes, and sausage for breakfast with Fam Hrubes before a hike to Devil’s Kitchen inside the Colorado National Monument, which is a National Park filled with impressive canyons and giant rock formations. We had some unforgettable moments driving along the canyon rim cliffs toward Fruita.

We came back to the Hrubes home and enjoyed some sandwiches, plums, Cheetos and “fizzy water” :-) and watched the two oldest girls play “Life” with Amy in the playroom upstairs.

Later on, we joined them for a community pool house birthday party.

We came home and watched “The Greatest Showman” that evening with the girls, finish route planning, and then to bed. Derek popped in just before he turned in to ask us if we needed anything. What incredible hosts they are!

Chet Hrubes guest bedroom sunrise views. 

CO National Monument

Devil’s Kitchen, CO Nat Monument

Canyon Rim Driving, Co Nation Monument

Day 6 - Utah, Arches, Moab

We headed out of grand junction around 9:30am and hit up Target before driving west toward Moab.

The land was so vastly different from anything I’d ever seen; a true desert land. The temperatures climbed quickly to above 100, and the dry heat was merciless. The views were like something straight out of an old western.

We found the campsite that Derek recommended and set up camp. Then we drove through Arches National Park for 4 hrs, stopping at various lookout points along the way, and taking a brief sunset hike through Devil’s Garden. Then back to camp where we attempted to sleep in 100-degree heat...without much success.

Day 7 - Mesa Arch, Canyonlands National Park

This was a highlight; well worth getting up at 5am! Emily enjoyed meeting a French family of photographers who had traveled long to get this iconic photograph. Emily was delighted to work on her sunrise skills; getting the camera settings just right to capture the beautiful sky, and a bit of the foreground as well :-)

After no sleep, and dreading another day of desert heat we decided to drive straight back to southwest CO into the San Juan region. 

We entered the forest via Dolores; ah to see trees again! We celebrated how quickly the temperature dropped as we climbed further into the mountains, and ended up finding dispersed camping 20 miles south of Telluride, right off the highway in a beautiful basin surrounded by mountain peaks. (We chose to save Goblin State Park and Capitol Reef National Park for next time ;) Snacks for dinner! And no night sweats! 

Day 8 - Telluride, Owl Creek Pass at the Wetterhorn Basin

We got up just before sunrise (chilly!) and made breakfast; our dispersed camping neighbors suggested we check out the Telluride gondola (we did!) Telluride is glorious; the stream views are quintessential Colorado. We also picked up a couple ginger molasses cookies from The Butcher and the Baker off of Main Street - #cookieperfection

We drove north and picked up some groceries and water at Walmart in Montrose; then headed up a dirt county road into the mountains (toward Courthouse mountain and the Wetterhorn Basin). We found a spot for dispersed camping (and shortly thereafter found ourselves in the company of a large, yet friendly herd of black cows). We cooked dinner, enjoyed the creek for sunset, and then got cozy in our sleeping bags, as it got chilly quickly after the sun went down.

Lizard Head

Creek in Telluride - above

Dispersed Camping near Lizard Head at Sunset

Day 9 - Wetterhorn Basin Trail Hike (9 miles round trip!)

I got a small blister, but it was worth it! It was so fun to watch Gardner experience his first high altitude mountain hike! Exhilarating! The Wetterhorn Pass had an awesome view of the other side of the mountain range from its 12,000 ft summit! We’ll save the 14-ers for next time ;)

By the time we got back to base camp, we were ripe for a nap! And we did just that! We got up and made tacos for dinner; cooking a meal over a small gas stove in the middle of the wilderness sure does make one feel like a super-conqueror!

near Owl Creek Pass - above was the mountain ridge view from our campsite! The jagged ridges were so impressive.

Courthouse mountain (above)

Day 10 - Ouray

We had quite a time finding dispersed camping in this area; when google maps show you county roads in CO, be warned that they most likely require 4-wheel drive and a HARD-CORE vehicle. 

We ended up finding a spot just south of Ouray near Ironton; we quickly set up our tent and jetted back to the hot springs for the rest of the afternoon! They had public showers, which was a gift after our long hike the day prior. 

We drove down toward Silverton to explore the area a bit before sun-down and got to see a stunning sunset before heading back to our campsite for the night. One of my favorite photos from the trip.  :-)

Million Dollar Highway/Governor Gulch area

Rainbow firey sunset just north of Silverton.

Day 11 - Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Stormy weather and beautiful views. This place was a gem! We learned that the Empire State Building would only come halfway up the canyon wall! 

That evening we drove up to Spring Creek to camp with the Hrubes family and two other families just north of Gunnison. 8 adults, 8 kids, 4 dogs, 2 campers, 3 tents, and a lot of love!

The Painted Wall (iconic viewpoint) Thank you again Derek Hrubes for this rec!

down in the canyon along the river (above)

Day 12 - Spring Creek

Hammocks and creek time. Sm���oreos. Gardner wrote a song; more on that later...

Gardner gettin’ creeky :-)

Spring Creek reservoir

Quintessential Colorado! Thank you, Amy and Derek, for welcoming us into your camping weekend!

Spring Creek at sunset

Day 13 - Lizard Head Pass, Telluride 

At 3:45pm, just as we re-entered the Uncompahgre Forest, Gardner received an email notifying his acceptance at Alliance Theological Seminary. We stopped at one of the overlooks to rejoice and celebrate the news as we took in the views. 

We drove into Telluride again; we needed to get a quick photo for Gardner - he had received news a few days prior that he’d been cast in a 54 Below staged concert of “Revelation” the musical. We stopped in at a coffee shop so I could edit and get wifi and drink an iced cashew milk latte (yes please). 

We drove down to Lizard Head, 25 min south of Telluride to meet the Coes and their dear friends Brian and Paul around 5pm. We set up camp together and dipped back into town for chicken sandwiches and beer. Hallelujah. 

glory

This campsite was dope. 

Not even sure how the sky did that. 

Day 14 - Alta Lakes Hike

Watched the sunrise, cooked eggs + bacon over that faithful Coleman stove (thank you again, Tyler and Nikki), and made our way up to the Alta Lakes Trailhead (beautiful hike with a stunning view). After some good hiking, we headed back into Telluride once more for drinks at The Butcher and the Baker and an early dinner at a noodle and whiskey bar next door. We took the gondola up to watch the sunset; the sun behind the smoke from the recent fires was a blazing pink-orange color! Back to camp for our final night of camping for the trip! 

breakfast at our campsite near Trout Lake (dear friend Mary above)

above - Driving into Telluride from the West

Top of the gondola ride at sunset - above

Day 15 - Telluride to Denver

Drove back to Denver through Gunnison and Buena Vista for a different kind of scenery. Much “ranchy-er”. We dropped gear with Tyler and his boys just after 4pm and then headed to meet Joni for dinner in Littleton. Rich time together, enjoying margaritas and catching up on life. Headed back to Tom and Claudette’s just after 8pm for some laundry and a solid re-packing for our flight home the next morning!

around Buena Vista

Day 16 - Denver to NYC