Gotta Go to DuranGO!!

Yes, we are a little crazy…that’s one way to describe taking three girls under the age of five on a 7.5 hour road trip (one-way).  But Chief and I made one of our goals this summer to explore Colorado to see and experience some of the sites that we have yet to see…and boy did we do that!

We drove on Thursday night from Greeley to Alamosa, down I-25 through Colorado Springs and Pueblo. 

One in the car and the little one said...

Two big sisters ready to hit the road!

Attempt at a selfie of all the girls in the car.

The drive was pretty good as A&E both fell asleep, but C Rose took the opportunity to talk and talk and talk, as Chief said it was a great example of taking advantage of A not talking – I guess when you are #2 you learn to jump when the opportunities arise.

We got to the hotel late and despite having a suite with a crib booked, E slept on her play mat on the floor, C and Chief cuddled in the king bed, and A and I slept in purple sleeping bags on the pull out couch.

Our first outing on Friday was awesome!  We went to the Great Sand Dunes National Park, where in addition to sand, there was a fantastic shallow river for us to walk across in order to get to the dunes.  We made it about 10-15 steps before both girls were splashing and playing without any semblance of inhibitions.  Chief and I smiled, let them do their thing (see pictures below), and thought how awesome it must be to be 2 and 4, respectively.

The dunes were almost an afterthought, but were incredible.

When we finally got the girls out of the water we walked towards the dunes and C Rose wiped out
(#faceplant).

As you can see A thought it was amusing…is it bad that we let her walk around looking like this until we got back to the car?  The girls rolled down the dunes, played in this giant sandbox, and we generally relaxed in awe of this super cool place.  We will definitely go back.

Great Sand Dunes - tallest sand dunes in North America

 The drive to Durango was beautiful and Chief was already talking about moving there before we even arrived.  We pulled into T&L’s house just in time to have a superb dinner of freshly caught trout that L and a friend landed the day before!  On Saturday we trekked out to our second national park: Mesa Verde N.P.  to see ruins of Native American settlements that had been carved in the mountains.

We even got to climb down into a kiva which was a lower level part of the dwellings where they often cooked. 

It was hot and we were all tired of being in the car, but it was very interesting and cool to see.  The ruins were small compared to others Chief and I have seen (i.e. Parthenon, Ephesus, Rome, India - Chief) so it was hard not to compare them, but it was fun to see and the girls got another N.P. Ranger autograph for their US N.P. books.

I walked with T up the mountain right across the street before dinner on what was a fabulous hike.  The views were stunning, and it was awesome to see how immersed we were in rural/wilderness while being right in Durango as well. We got rained out on fireworks that evening, which was a bummer, but everyone was tired and a little extra rest was a good thing for a few (me!).

On Sunday T, L, and I golfed 18 holes at Durango’s municipal golf course – it was my first time playing 18 in almost 5 years!  I even birdied hole 6 and hole 10 (I think).  It was great fun!  The girls found a park to play at and watch skateboarders.

They also played with a most obliging dog, Mia.

The highlight of the trip in Durango was a date lunch out for Chief and myself.  We went to Carvers and had the most awesome meals. 

Bad selfie, but we had fun

Chief also imbibed in a delectable craft beer, while I had a homemade root beer.  It was really nice, not just for good food, but it also allowed a few minutes together for the girls to play dolls with L.

We said goodbye that afternoon and took the long route home through Silverton, Ouray, Montrose, and on to Gunnison.  The drive to Ouray was out of this world with Rocky Mountain views.

 

I received a timeout from A (not sure how that happens) on the way home.  Other highlights included C taking a roadside bathroom break in pitch dark conditions in the middle of the mountains, where Chief encouraged her to hurry by telling her a mountain lion might jump out and eat her if she didn’t squeeze it out a little faster.

We cancelled our reservation in Salida after delays, rain, and an interesting debate over why we took the long way.  The hotel in Gunnison was great and we all swam in the morning before heading the rest of the way home.

Big girls asleep - in the same bed - they were too tired to know that they were sharing.

Our happy traveler. 

We cannot wait to go back – there is so much in Durango that we didn’t even come close to having time for – white water rafting, the train, 5 breweries, beautiful hikes everywhere, swimming, etc.

A’s favorite part of the trip (other than becoming one with the Sand Dunes River) was playing with her new friend Mia.

Mia and A

And we all had an amazing time with our two fabulous hosts T&L.  Thanks so much for a great weekend and we look forward to another trip to Durango soon!