Colorado Road Trip

Having just returned from a wonderful "girls trip", it still feels a bit unreal that at this time last month I was settling in for one of the best meals ever in a tiny town in Colorado with 2 of my closest friends! We had such an amazing time together---so much laughter and sharing and fun adventures. We started the trip with a day full of travel. Since this was the first time Debbie and Valine had spent much time together, it was a time filled with getting to know each other through some of the most ridiculous stories you can imagine. All three of us are doing the monthly Instagram challenges, so it was fun to brainstorm ways to interpret each prompt. We had so much fun together and I took so many photos, so I should warn you that this is a PHOTO-HEAVY post!  And because of the sheer number of pictures, I am posting them SOOC, with absolutely no editing at all. :-) But, as you will learn, I had lots of battery issues, so there are not as many as there COULD have been.

Debbie's baby, Cassie, joined us for the trip. What a sweetie!! She is so cute and well-behaved that both Valine and I came home wishing for puppy just like her!

Debbie's house in Colorado is beautiful and we had fun exploring the yard surrounding it our first morning. It was quite chilly that first morning and we got our feet wet jumping over the spring-fed stream, but had enough time to dry them a bit before we headed out on our first real adventure.

Debbie's good friend, Ruthanne, took us on an amazing journey up the mountains and through the passes in the four-wheel-drive side-by-side. 

 Everywhere we looked there was beauty--from the towering evergreens that still showed the effects of a wildfire to the quaking balls of gold and orange that clothed the aspen trees.

I completely forgot to charge my extra battery and my phone battery was not cooperating after the latest OS update, so I had no photography equipment for the second half of that adventure. Not to worry though: Valine let me use her camera while she used her phone and of course, I captured it all in my memory forever!

One of the really fun things about this whole trip were the somewhat impromptu, unplanned stops we made during the week.

• Lavender Ridge Farms in Texas

• Searching for, and finally finding, the ruins of Morley Church, all that is left of an old mining camp near Trinidad, CO.

• Stopping for pictures of old churches and buildings along the Highway of Legends, as well as the rock formations in Stonewall, CO.

Learning of a different route up to Lake City, that took us through tunnels of aspen trees and up to North Clear Creek Falls

Spending time in Lake City, CO (food, gardens, galleries, churches and deer)

• Watching the colors of Lake San Cristobal turn to fantastic shades of turquoise as the north wind blew in.

• Stopping to find a mama moose and her baby at Deer Creek Lakes

• The fun and quirky Tumcumcari, NM

• and of course, stopping by Cadillac Ranch on the way home.

Sometimes, when you put 3 women together, one of them tends to be left out. But, that was not the case with the three of us. We shared stories, laughed till we cried, relaxed when we wanted and explored the beauty of nature together without even a touch of uncomfortable vibes. Seeing such beauty will stay with me forever, but the very best part was the friendships that were deepened. As different as we all are, we shared something incredible that connected us in a way that is difficult to describe. I am so very thankful for the hospitality of a dear friend that allowed us all to spend that week together!