I've been thinking about John Denver lately. Love him or hate him, if you grew up in the '70's, the music of John Denver became embedded in your brain due to the continuous airplay of his songs on Top 40 radio stations. While I was never a big Denver fan, I still know most of the words to his biggest hits. (Why is it that I can remember forty year old song lyrics but not the code number to my debit card?) John Denver's music focused on his love for nature and for Colorado, his adopted home and I can see why. It's been a dream of mine to live in Colorado since I was dancing under a mirrored disco ball back in the day and now, for a time, I am.
Jack, Coco and I have been staying in Winter Park, Colorado for almost two weeks now and we really love it here. Located about an hour west of Denver, Winter Park is a ski town in the Fraser Valley. It is VERY small but it has lots of restaurants and a nice wine bar so all is good. We are renting a condo in the middle of town so we can walk to everything. There is a river that runs right in front of our building and we've been enjoying sitting outside listening to the water and working on our crossword puzzles together.
Hiking trails and biking trails are right at the edge of the condominium complex property and we try and get out every day for a walk or a run or a bike ride. It makes it so easy to get motivated when you can just walk out the door into beautiful scenery. This morning on my way back from a run I saw a fox in front of one of the buildings.
Last week-end the three of us went for a hike at Monarch Lake which was about a forty minute drive away. The trail is a beautiful, four mile loop with a waterfall, a river, and, of course, the lake.
Jack and I agreed that Coco earned a hiking Merit Badge because she walked the entire loop and seemed to love it. Lots to see and investigate.
When you look at Coco on the trail with Jack you can see how small she is and what an trek it was for her. Even small rocks can be a tough climb when you are that small.
My favorite part of the day was sitting on a bridge watching the river tumble over the rocks below. It was a nice spot to catch our breath and take some pictures. The altitude really takes a lot out of you!
Jack and I were hoping to see some moose on our trek but we were out of luck that day. We did see some beautiful Calypso Orchids, or Fairy Slippers, which are endangered here in Colorado.
While Jack and I don't know if we could ever live in this small of a town long term, we are really enjoying mountain living and we're glad that we have another month to explore and enjoy that "Rocky Mountain Hiiigh".
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