Travel: Colorado

 

After a long journey we made it to the museum!

In early January we took the opportunity to head out to Colorado for a few days of skiing and outdoor activities in the mountains. Little dude and I left early and high tailed it to Denver to visit the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.  The museum has wonderful exhibits on space, dinosaurs, and the natural environment. Our two and a half hour visit was definitely not enough time.

 

 

Moose. They also had a great exhibition on the work that goes into creating the nature dioramas.

 

 

Dinos! 

We learned that a T Rex would replace all their teeth every four years, and constantly replaced their teeth throughout their lives. Little dude also got to hold a T Rex tooth- it was huge! The educational components of the exhibitions were truly fantastic, and there were lots of volunteers and interactive stations to provide more information.

 

 

The view of Denver and the Rockies from the museum.

 

 

Super moon in the dawn's light.

After meeting up with Joe in Denver, we headed up to the mountains, where we stayed with Joe's Aunt and Uncle. They are always so hospitable, great to ski with, and have a lovely log home. Enjoying their company is definitely a plus of visiting the Rockies. We spent the next two days skiing at Copper Mountain, with little dude in ski school and us on the slopes.

 

 

Ski selfie.

 

 

Top of Super Bee.

 

Little dude- pro skiier in training.

 

Ready for the mountain.

 

The village at Copper- I love the festive feel.

 

 

Ski scenery.

  

Blue run.

  

Back up at the top.

  

Alpine.

The last day of our visit we went up to Rocky Mountain National Park to snowshoe. The park turns 100 years old this year, and is always a treat for us, no matter the season. We visited the west side of the park, which has far fewer visitors than the east side- in a given year park attendance is 3.5 million, but only 300,000 people make it to the west side. In winter it is very quiet- we only saw a handful of other people during our visit, but we did see a moose up close!   

  

RMNP!

 

Snowshoeing.

 

More snowshoeing.

This was little dude's first snowshoe on his own (he was carried on past trips), and he loved it. For us it was a short trip (just over a mile), but for him I imagine it felt quite long.

 

Park scenery.

 

More park scenery.

Before we left for the day, the munchkin completed the Park's Junior Ranger program- he was so thrilled to get a badge and try on the ranger hat! 

 

RMNP's newest junior ranger.

Colorado skiing

 

My travel posts seem to be running about a month behind this year.... 

In early February we headed out west for a long weekend of skiing at Copper Mountain in Colorado. We drove late Thursday and Friday morning, catching a few afternoon runs on Friday. It was snowy and cold at the top of the mountain on Friday, but great to get in a little bit of skiing.

  

The following day brought perfect blue skies and great skiing. This was the munchkins first time skiing, so we enrolled him in ski school for the day. My Dad joined us for the morning, which was great fun. 

  

Sunday we spent the morning skiing with the munchkin- about the cutest thing I could imagine. Joe's aunt and uncle joined us in the afternoon. The rest of the photos are ski shots, the local beers we enjoyed, and the last photo is the last run of the day, half way down the mountain, our condo visible at the bottom of the photo.

 

Get Outside

A few weeks ago, in the midst of a stressful summer, we took a week long camping trip in Colorado.

Being outdoors for so many days was a great recharge. A great way to relax and get away from those ever-present screens that dominate our lives. A way to breathe and remember how amazing nature is. A way to slow down.

A few things struck me about our trip. First off, before we left nearly everyone we talked to asked us if we were taking our 2 year old with us. When we said yes, many asked if we were tent camping. This is weird to me, as the definition of camping is sleeping in a tent, but we replied yes. Many seemed to think we were brave or crazy or getting into something we didn't understand. Actually, camping with a toddler is about the easiest thing to do with them. Our sprout didn't have a tantrum or meltdown the entire time. He played in the dirt, explored the campsite, watched the birds, built cities out of sticks and rocks. He ate smores and drank from a water bottle and even learned to pee in the woods (which he felt qualified him to be a "mountain boy"). He had free range of our camp and exhausted himself hiking and playing. I honestly believe that some hard-wired part of him understood the dangers of the woods, and so he stayed close.

We often forget that being outdoors is a natural state. Sitting inside with the t.v. and the demands of constant e-mail, artificial light and air, this isn't how we evolved. Kids who play outdoors have a lower incidence of nearsightedness. Outdoor play develops skills and judgmental abilities that are not possible with indoor play. Yet, fewer and fewer people are getting outdoors. This is the other thing that struck me about our trip- we saw noticeably less people in campgrounds and on hiking trails. Some of this may be due to the massive wildfires that struck Colorado in recent months, but we've noticed less people at campgrounds in the Midwest as well, and fewer folks hiking in all the regions we've traveled in the past few years. This type of outdoor play is relaxing for adults and crucial for kids. Not only do we need it for brain development and to lessen the anxieties of our modern world, but we also need to teach kids to appreciate the natural world so they will take a role in preserving it.

Camping and hiking can help put things in perspective- I know when I get home I'm grateful for a flush toilet, a plush bed, climate control, and running water, things that most citizens of the world don't have and that we can easily take for granted. Hike a few miles up a mountain on a rocky trail and you will have a new appreciation for cars and paved roads. I appreciate the luxuries of modern life, but I think our entire family looks forward to our next wilderness trip.

Driving back

Tuesday the 22nd took us back to Kansas City. While most of the drive was flat and dull, we did see a huge rainbow in central Kansas and the first part of the drive, through the Colorado mountains, was quite scenic.
I'd also like to send out a huge thanks to Fran and Steve for their hospitality!

Copper Skiing

The view from near the summit of Copper Mountain, where we spent Monday the 21st skiing.

Rocky Mountain National Park Snowshoe

We spent Sunday March 20 visiting with family and snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park. If you haven't snowshoed, it is quite a workout and a lovely way to view the forest in winter. Luckily we weren't breaking trail, which we've done frequently in Minnesota, and which is really challenging, but an extra 25 pounds of toddler-in-a-backpack (as seen here on Joe) will take a snowshoe workout to the next level. We traded off carrying the kiddo, Joe on the way out, me on the way back. The vistas in the park were beautiful, and the contrast of the pine trees, snow, and blue sky was gorgeous. It was also fun to see the trail signage, usually at eye level, at foot level, indicating that we were floating on about five feet of snow-packed trail.

Colorado skiing

At the end of January we spent a long weekend skiing in Colorado to celebrate my completion of the Art History M.A. exam (I passed!).
We spent Friday driving across the vast expanse of Kansas, arriving in Winter Park that evening. We walked through the snow covered town to the local brewery before spending the night at the Gasthaus Eichler.

The view from our room included this icicle covered building and the mountains beyond, which were not visible in the morning because of the falling snow.

















In the morning in front of the Gasthaus.















We had a fantastic breakfast at the Mountain Rose Cafe in Winter Park, Joe had the Breakfast Burrito, I had the French Toast. Yum!






































Breakfast filled us up for a full day of skiing at Winter Park. The snow continued to fall throughout much of the day, making for great skiing.
















We went to the top of Mary Jane, at over 12,000 feet. The wind chill was about -24, and it was tough to see very far. The little bit of hair that was sticking out from my hat froze at a 90 degree angle to my head.

















After coming down from the top.































Taking a break from the cold for water and snacks.


























































Coming back to the base of Winter Park at the end of the day.















The shuttle bus back to town.
















On Saturday evening we met up with Joe's Aunt Fran and Uncle Steve, who graciously accomodated us at their house and cooked some fantastic meals. On Sunday we all went skiing together at Copper Mountain.

















Some photos from Copper, the sky was beautiful and clear in the morning.
































At the end of the day, heading back to the base at Copper.

On the way back to the house, the sunset was fantastic near Ute Pass.

Meow.
















Fran and Steve in front of their beautiful home in the mountains.
















After two great days of skiing, we headed back to Lawrence, tired and happy.