Colorado, you’ve been good to us – and now it’s time to say goodbye.
So many great memories of mountains, people and places! I invite you to walk with me through a recap of places we’ve visited and perhaps you’ll add some of them to your own bucket lists. Jerry and I had decided long ago to take full advantage of Colorado and have gone from corner to corner. Blue skies and pine trees, columbines and snow – those are a few of our favorite things!
Here’s some other favorites:
Bent’s Old Fort – La Junta – reconstructed 1840s adobe fur trading post on the Santa Fe Trail
Pueblo – HARP – Historic Riverwalk, Ghost Walk where actors depict scenes from Colorado’s past.
We lived in Pueblo for many years, attended a great church – Pueblo Christian Center – and nourished a special group of friends others fondly called “The Clique.” You know, the kind of friends when you pick up just where you left off. San Isabel Lake and lodge and Westcliffe were fantastic mountain towns in that area.
Breckenridge – International Snow Sculpture Contest – we were so cold the last time! But amazing art work in snow – it’s held every year in January.
Canon City – Home of the Royal Gorge and also birthplace of Dane Russell!
Cripple Creek, Victor – campout on Mount Pisgah where we read our term papers by the campfire and took tours of the city cemeteries and bars, learned about Baby Doe – what a history class! Wolf Creek Pass – scary in the winter! But beautiful.
Colorado Springs – Air Force Academy, Seven Falls, Cave of the Winds, the Broadmoor, Flying W ranch for cowboy music and barbeque.
Georgetown – The Happy Cooker for breakfast, then a drive over Guanella Pass to view the aspens turning.
Steamboat Springs – Strawberry natural hot springs a must!
And of course Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park – fun town
Aspen, Vail and Glenwood Springs were regular trips – even once on 1he train. And you HAVE to hike up to Hanging Lake outside Glenwood Springs! 'Would be a sacrilege not to.
A favorite trip was to Durango – Bar D Ranch, over the Million Dollar Highway to Ouray – little Switzerland of North America – Ridgeway – where they filmed the original movie “True Grit” – John Wayne memorabilia store, Telluride – that short airplane runway – yikes! and the “free box”- coming back through Palisade and staying at the Wine Country Inn in the middle of a vineyard.
And of course, Denver/Aurora where we’ve been the last 12 years – and the birthplace of Yes! I Said No! We'll never forget the people at another great church - the Potter’s House who became our new family. Counseling classes, groups, interns, retreats – what a time we had!
Downtown Denver offered some treats like waiting in line for a great breakfast at Snooze, wandering around Larimer Square and Union Station and were impressed with the new McGregor Square. And there’s just something majestic about the view going toward the mountains on I-70.
Yes, Colorado, you’ve been good to us and as we leave for Oklahoma to be closer to my family, we say, “thanks for the memories.”
