Journeyers from the East

Journeyers from the East (Kansas City and St. Louis) passing through Colorado Springs picked up Nana and Papa on their way to Aspen, CO. But first, a layover in Colorado Springs to hit the WW2 Aviation Museum, the Paint Mines at Calhan, Chibar Bar in downtown, and Water World up in the Denver area. Then and only then was it time to head for Aspen via Independence Pass (using mostly Colorado Highway 24). First stop was the Hungry Bear in Woodland Park; they've gone overboard with stuffed bears and the food is quite good with a wide-ranging menu, great for hungry road warriors. We stayed at the Snowmass Village in Snowmass, CO. And then for the Great Kahuna, the pinnacles of the trip - the Maroon Bells just southwest of Aspen. Pay attention to Maroon Bells access which for most of us is only by shuttle bus. For sustenance, we visited the Aspen Public House in Aspen and Kenichi in Snowmass by our place. And don't miss Paradise Bakery in Aspen for gelato and baked goods. On our way home, we had breakfast at the Daily Bread in Glenwood Springs then on to ride the Beaver Creek Gondola to the top (almost) of the ski area, messed around a little, then back down to I-70 for the finishing lap to get one of our visitors to the Denver airport. The three remaining journeyers enjoyed a dinner at the West Main Taproom in Parker on the final leg to Colorado Springs. The rest of the trip we exercised (some of us) and  lounged around at the pool. The last supper was at Margarita at Pine Creek; we really should go there more often; the food is exceptional. All the photos are here (in roughly chronological order).

WW2 Aviation Museum (Colorado Springs).

Paint Mines near Calhan, CO.

Chiba Bar in downtown Colorado Springs.

Water World in Denver area.

Hungry Bear in Woodland Park.

Independence Pass.

Maroon Bells near Aspen, CO.
This was the main point of the trip.

Downtown Aspen.

Paradise Bakery gelato and cookies (Aspen).

Kenichi in Snowmass, CO.
Spicy tuna on crispy rice. The food was fantastic.

Beaver Creek gondola.

Denver-Moab Rocky Mountaineer

Sandy and Bob joined Lynn and Jamie for a train adventure west from Denver, CO to Moab, UT aboard the Rocky Mountaineer's "Rockies to the Red Rocks." We started with a couple days at our favorite Brown Palace in Denver during which we visited the American Museum of Western Art right across the street. Also had a great meal at the Water Grill. Then "all aboard!" What a fabulous journey. And if you are into geology, railroading, and photography - this is the trip for you! We overnighted in Glenwood Springs at the Hotel Maxwell Anderson (was Hotel Denver) - really cool place. Then on to Moab where we spent a couple extra  days at the Hoodoo Moab (Hilton Curio). Our big dinner in Moab was at our favorite restaurant there: Desert Bistro. See the last photo below for our big adventure in the rapids (shoutout to Cam of Moab Adventure Center). Then we took to regular roads for the trip home with a wonderful stop in another favorite spot, Breckenridge. All the trip's photos are here. For a little more detail on the train portion, see Jamie's ToShinyRails.com entry. We learned on this trip that Utah has a new state flag.

At the Western Art Museum

Brown Palace

Rocky Mountaineer

Yaks!

Met the California Zephyr (twice!)

From our room in Breckenridge

Float trip outside of Moab with the
Moab Adventure Center. Great trip.
You're pretty lucky if you get Cam as your guide!

Happy Birthday Lexi

After a crazy month of graduations and several birthdays, we finally got a chance to have a proper birthday party for Lexi while the boys were at the pool. She had four friends over and a great time was had by all.