Mt. Evans

Just when I thought the scenery and amazing drives couldn’t get any better, I go and visit Mt. Evans today and dude.  Seriously.  Absolutely incredible.  I feel like I use that word a lot but I don’t care.

Mt. Evans is worth the trip.  It’s about a 14 mile drive up a treacherous road with switchbacks and no guardrails but it’s worth it.  The mountain tops out at 14,285 feet so I conquered my first 14er!  Let me tell you, oxygen deprivation is real!   And you know what?  I didn't "climb" it.  I drove it.  And I'm totally ok with that.  Maybe one day I can actually climb a 14er.  Fun fact:  The road to Mt. Evans is the highest paved road in North America.

Check out the video I made from today’s experience here:  https://youtu.be/pQ9H5zQanOw

Here are a few photos from the ride up and from the top:

Rocky Mountain National Park

Let me start by saying this:  these pictures and the video do not do Rocky Mountain National Park justice. Just flat out, they don’t.  Also, I know no one is reading this, so there’s that too.  But WOW!

My day started slow after my 22 hour day yesterday.  I slept in.  Jocko, I slept in.  Yep.  I did.  And I feel a little like garbage because I didn’t work out, but I’m hitting it tomorrow you can count on it.  Thanks Jocko.  That means a lot.

I Googled a few things this morning and happened upon he Ridge Trail Road and decided that was a winner.  So I set out on the journey rolling through Boulder and then stopping in Lyons for a latte(sugar free....yep I’m one of those guys) and a bacon, egg and Swiss on Everything bagel. It was what a bagel in Lyons, CO should taste like.  But the girl behind the counter said today would be a perfect day for a RTR drive.  Her thoughts on the drive were better than her bagel.  Ok ok.  The bagel was actually pretty good.  Not sure why I’m being so hostile to, let’s csll her Julie.  Sorry Julie.  You were really helpful today.  This is just me being a little sleep deprived posting on my web log.  Yep that’s what “blog” is derived from.  You’re welcome.

The drive to RMNP was incredible and once I got in there....wow.  Blown away.  I stopped near the highest point (around 12,000 feet) and got out and took a walk on the trail.  I couldn’t stop walking.  It was too daggum beautiful.  I sat and talked with an elderly gentlemen and we both gushed about how stunning the beauty of the tundra was.  I’ll be honest, after he left I had a moment where I was overcome with a lot of emotions from joy, sadness, fear and peace.  It was a powerful moment that I couldn’t help but think was made possible by being in nature, not having any cell service and just sitting and being quiet.  For me, that’s where I encounter God the most.

That’s really what today was about.  Connecting with nature.  Seeing the most beautiful landscape that I’ve ever seen.  LEARNING that I like to be outside.  It’s been quite a journey for me the last few years for me to figure out who I am and what I like to do.  Lots of times people will ask me, “what do you like to do?” And I give them a blank stare. At least for today I can say, “I enjoy being ourside, doing some light hiking, and seeing amazing sights!”

Here is a video of the experience in Rocky Mountain National Park:  https://youtu.be/KGggqGDd_SU

And here are a few pictures:

Elk near the Alpine Visitors Center

The one trail I walked had the markers throughout.  

I thought this was an amazing quote.

Here you can see the treeline.   Trees(with a few exceptions) 

can't grow above 11,400 feet of elevation.

Red Rocks

I made it.  What a whirlwind of a day but I made it to Red Rocks to see Ryan Adams last night.  Absolutely gorgeous venue.  Great vibe.  Fun people.  I chose to take the shuttle bus out there and I believe that was the right choice for me. Parking seems to be a bit interesting out there.

The venue itself is absolutely perfect.  It has it’s fair share of stairs and hills to climb to get to it, but it’s worth it.  There are staff members EVERYWHERE and tons of choices of food, drink and gear.  Between the opener(First Aid Kit who was pretty good) and Ryan I had a chance to explore a little and found a museum underneath the venue.  I get the feeling there is more to Red Rocks than I saw yesterday.  Guess I’ll have to come back

Ryan played a good show and actually played one last song after the venue folks told him time was up.  He said it was going to cost him $15,000 and I believe him.  He played it solo acoustic which I love.  He was having fun all night and I could really tell he liked playing there.  He was as communicative as I’ve ever seen him live playing an awesome mix of old and a little new.  It was a great show and I’m glad I made the trip to see it.

Thanks to Ken and Candace from Savannah and Dani from Minneapolis for the conversations before the show.  I was able to meet them at the Thirsty Lion while we waited on the CID shuttle. Talking with them was really a good reminder about what I love about travel.  Yes I love seeing new parts of the world I haven’t experienced but more than that, I love talking with new and different people.

Here are some of the views of Red Rocks!

Ryan’s last song

The song that started it all for me.  Thanks to Justin for the introduction 

The museum 

Walking up to the venue

The walk from the parking lot

Lloyd, John Denver really isn’t full of it(sorry D and D fans, can’t bring myself to curse)

The girls behind me were way more into their selfie that I was into mine