Memorial day in Angelfire

So Karla and I went to Angel fire this weekend, and our goal was to summit mt Wheeler, clocking in at about 13,100 ft.  Unfortunately we hit snow about 12000, so we got reasonably high. The funny part is we hiked with a guy who was intent on summiting, but he was slightly Ill equipped with only a lunchable and a slimjim. 

Otherwise it was a great relaxing weekend before I start my new job.  Hope to get back soon!

Adventures in Trail Running

We've been to Red Rocks Park a few times to run the trail.  Its about 4 miles or so, has good elevation change, and really cool scenery.  The first time we went was nice, we saw deer and ended up not too sore the next day.  This last Tuesday we went and there was a concert at the park, so we were stuck in traffic for about 20 minutes longer than expected.  We ran the trail the opposite direction this time, which I thought was easier, but Karla wasn't sold.  I was running ahead of her and right at the end a few bikers coming the other direction put up their hands and were slightly panicked.  Why you ask?  Well there was a rattlesnake in the trail that had just killed a little field mouse.  Yup, a rattlesnake.  I lived in Texas for 20+ years and don't recall seeing a rattlesnake.  We learned quickly he was not to be moved, and so I turned around and jogged back to run with Karla, hoping the snake would be gone by the time we get back.  I don't tell Karla until I see that he's still on the trail 15 minutes later, with a digesting mouse in his body.  Karla does well in not completely freaking out and we take the high road to let him finish his dinner.  Hopefully we'll be back soon, as its pretty rare to see a rattlesnake out there.

Weekend in Angelfire

On Wednesday we decided to go to Angelfire for the weekend.  This was a big change from our usual Angelfire planning which takes months, plane tickets and usually a 10 hour drive from DFW.  A day and a half, 4.5 hours in the car and we were there.  Ryan and Naomi were able to come too, and because Ryan's car is a diesel we made it there and back on almost 1 tank of gas...impressive!

Weather was fantastic.  We went on some hikes, cooked some good food, and drank our Cosentino Reserve Cabernet Franc.  Other than Ryan getting a speeding ticket in Cimmaron, it was a great weekend.  Also in Red River Karla got to learn how to play tennis, and actually did pretty good.

Other fun stuff we've done so far

So since we're not live on this blog yet, but we're still trying to keep a record of all the cool stuff we've done, here's a list of fun stuff we've done so far, in no particular order...

1) Skiing wasn't to good this year.  Hell Vail only got maybe 45 inches at its best, and it was never a good cover.  Matt did manage to make it to Loveland Ski Area a few times.  That base got to mid 50s and was only 45 minutes to an hour from the apartment, which made it really accessible.  The skiing was wide open, there weren't too many trees and also you can see Greys/Torreys from the top.  So all things considered it was pretty good skiing.
2) Biking to Cherry Creek State Park to meet Jamie and Doug for lunch.  Karla, Ken and Matt braved 20 mph head winds and uphill for 22 miles to meet Nancy and the Egleseders for lunch.  We were so tired to we didn't even really feel like biking back, but it took us about half the time and only had to pedal a few times, so it wasn't too bad!
3) Rock climbing - Matt went up to North Table Mountain to climb a few times.  While no ropes, he had his shoes and decided to not go too high, or at least tell Karla he didn't go too high.  Lots of people climb there, so it would be great to get to know people who go and let them belay and hope they have ropes.

4) Driving with Karla's Parents - we had a nice drive through evergreen and back through the Golden Canyon -  got to see Big Horn Sheep in the canyon - very cool.

Hikes so far

Here's the short list of hikes we've done since moving here:
1) In Boulder there is a place called Chataqua Park, that has a nice trail system.  Royal Arch is one we did with       Kris and also by ourselves.  Its about an hour and a half round trip, good elevation and access to the Flatirons, which I'd love to climb soon.
2) Lookout Mountain and Chimney Gulch trail in Golden - You can park at different places, and I almost always have seen deer.  Buffalo Bill's grave is at the top.
3) Mt. Sanitas in Boulder was a nice hike with Kris - steep at parts going up but pretty low key coming down.
4) Red Rocks Park - We've hiked this and trail ran it, really cool scenery and the stairs kicked our asses.
5) I don't remember the name, but with Ryan and Naomi we started at the government building in Boulder that was fun

The Big Move...

On March 30, 2012, we packed up all of our belongings (with the help of Ken, Kristin, Kristen and Adam) and started our trip out west.  Big thanks to Jeanne and Patrick for letting us crash there for a night!  Two days of driving (with Ken, Matt and Karla sharing the driving duties), with Matt battling 40 mph headwinds, and an overnight stay in North Platte, NE, we finally made it to Denver!  Yay!!  It was sad to say goodbye to all of our Chicago friends, but we were looking forward to our new adventure out west!