P52 - Week 31 - All who wander are not lost

My guy just LOVES to hike! Put a pack on his back and set him off where you can no longer hear the sounds of city life and he can motor up and down the trails from dawn to dusk. It's his happy place. And thankfully, it's mine as well!


This particular snap was taken on our last full day of hiking in Colorado this summer, on the Palmer Lake Reservoirs trail. We had tried to make our way to the upper reservoir the day before, but got rained out. We were so pleased when the clouds dispersed and gave us one more day on the trail to give this hike a second go around!

The trail was not technical by any means, but it climbs almost 900 ft in elevation in only about 2 miles of trail and that makes for one heck of a workout!

We say it every year, but it bears repeating ... you just can't go wrong in Colorado! No matter what direction you turn, Nature's beauty surrounds you. While we enjoy the challenge of some trails over some others, it still never fails to take my breath away! And I really hope that we can make it four-in-a-row next summer!

P52 - Week 30 - The mountains are calling ...

The mountains are calling .... and I must answer!

Each summer as July turns into August and we here in Texas turn up the A/C another degree or two (or ten!), the call of the mountains becomes SO strong. And I am blessed beyond measure to be able to answer that call again this year.


We have been lucky enough to be able to enjoy a Colorado vacation for the 3rd year running now. This summer, we ventured back to the Colorado Springs area. But unlike our visit here in 2015, we wanted to avoid the more touristy areas this summer. So we kicked off our great summer escape of 2017 with a hike through Cheyenne Mountain State Park. We put in about 6 miles covering the Coyote Run, Boulder Run, Blacker Loop, Medicine Wheel, and Zook Lop trails.

This photo was take on the back section of the Blacker Loop trail. And it was pretty much the perfect way to begin our time on the trails for this vacation.

When we left Texas, we were suffering through almost a solid week of triple digit temperatures and the kind of humidity that feels like a slap in the face when you venture out of your air conditioned home or office. But on this day, Colorado was "enduring" a warm spell where the mercury climbed all the way to 83F! Needless to say, for us it was literally a walk in the park!

The park was beautiful! The trails were well marked and there was plenty of parking at the visitors center. We met several other groups and families along the trail. And the weather was just PERFECT! I am very glad that the park came so highly recommended or I am not sure we would have made our way here. It's a bit off the beaten path, near Fort Carson on the southwest side of Colorado Springs. But if you find yourself in the area, you would do yourself a disservice if you did not check it out!

P52 - Week 18 - New Orleans

The last day of the orchestra trip to New Orleans included a bus tour of the city, which in turn included stops at a few not-to-be-missed New Orleans attractions.


The tour took us through the French Quarter and included a stop at the City Park for beignets and cafe au lait. But no trip to "the Big Easy" would be complete without at least one stop at a local cemetery. It's well known that, because NO is a city that was built below sea level, that you cannot bury the deceased. So the cemeteries are full of above-ground crypts instead.

This was a wonderful trip. I enjoyed each and everything we did - the dinner jazz cruise was a true highlight - and all of the amazing food that we got to sample. But I'll be honest, I really didn't want to come on the trip. I volunteered to be a chaperone way back in the fall. And I could not have foreseen the loss of my mom less than 2 weeks before this trip. But, it was really too late to back out. And while *I* didn't want to be on the trip, I was certainly glad that Wonder Boy had the trip as a distraction from all of the family business that had consumed us leading up to the departure date.

But with that said, I have to admit, I think I got every bit as much out of this trip as the Boy.

My mom loved New Orleans and I felt her presence each and every day. I guess things work out the way they are supposed to in the end.