Sixth Year Anniversary Trip

Natalie and I had our sixth year anniversary a few weeks ago and decided to go to a state that had been on our radar for a while. The destination was Colorado, a place neither of us had been before. We were both seeking cooler weather and knew Colorado would be nice this time of year. The heat had just swept across Southern Utah and it was time to get out of here.

Our first stop was at our favorite restaurant in Moab called Pasta Jays. We visited this place for Valentines once and were really impressed. I got the manicotti and Natalie the asparagus and artichoke raviolis with tomato cream sauce. What I love about this place is the food comes out piping hot and tastes amazing. So much better than Olive Garden.

Our journey to Colorado began by traveling behind the La Sal mountains. The mountain range still had a dusting of snow on top, which seemed quite surprising due to the extreme heat. These mountains were beautiful, but I had a feeling the mountains of Colorado would be far more majestic.

The drive into the new state started out quite interesting. A truck ahead of us had suddenly pulled over and it soon became apparent that the man inside and the woman were fighting. She immediately got out of the vehicle and when we drove past them she held up her arms as if to say "come pick me up!". We slowed down, but kept on driving. I'll admit, I kind of felt like a jerk. But I honestly could not tell if she wanted a ride or not. We then noticed that she had gotten into the bed of the truck-- strange. While driving along they would pass us multiple times. They would drive ahead, pull over, and we would pass them and then a few minutes later here they came again. We noticed she was no longer in the cab.Maybe they worked things out? At one point, we saw the truck pulled over a ways off the road. We drove past, and never saw them again. Whatever happened, I hope they worked it out. Also, while driving Natalie passed one of the locals going ten under the speed limit. As we passed he graciously flipped us off. This was our first experience of Colorado. Good thing the mountains were coming into view by now. We could not get there fast enough.

The San Miguel river with towering pines was a refreshing site to drive along.The river was roaring from a heavy winters snow pack and I kept wondering what it would be like to fish when the flows were down. Soon enough the valley opened a little and we could see the tall mountain peaks that towered above the town of Telluride. The peaks were unlike any mountains I had yet seen in Utah. They were tall, spiny and wild as ever. Driving into town felt like going into a city that was a cross between Jackson Hole and Park City. The old western style vibe was there but it had a definite modern presence.

That evening, after unloading our gear at the Victorian Inn, we went for a walk along the river that runs through town. Looking up out into the distance, the elegant bridal veil falls seemed to be the main supplier of this river. It was beautiful, and the river provided some much needed cool air. We passed over a bridge where some locals were hiding out and we were met with a peculiar scent. Now this felt like more of the welcome to Colorado I had forethought. Cool rushing water, towering mountain peaks, and the scent of mary jane. We had landed.

"To Hell You Ride" as the nickname goes

Chocolate Milk

Sunset walk

For the following two days in Telluride, our adventure consisted of all things both Natalie and I love. We of course did some hiking. One early morning we took the gondola up for pristine views of the entire valley which did not disappoint. During the ride, a couple local guys rode with us and after what seemed like countless minutes of awkwardness due to none of us speaking, I broke the silence. Mainly in part due to the Howler Bros and Simms clothing that covered them. They were of course fly fisherman, and it was fun to chat with some locals about what the area has to offer. They told me what I already knew, all the rivers were muddy, but the lakes were beginning to produce. Of course, one major item missing from this trip was the fishing. Yes I brought my gear, but I never had high hopes of clear water. Being that our anniversary lands in June, I am always facing the spring runoff hurdle.

Regardless, the morning's richness was amplified by the cool crisp air and wildness of towering peaks above us. If I could not fish, at least the surroundings were on point. The Bridal Veil Falls hike was another great one that actually unveiled numerous other water falls. At one point I climbed up onto a big rock and was met with a spectacular view of the entire surroundings.

Can you spot me?

Second guessng my efforts

Picture at the gondola drop-off

After hiking we went to what was one of my favorite parts of Telluride. The Friday farmer's market. It puts our local Cedar City one to shame. Beautiful local fruit and vegetables piled out of baskets, local decadent fine chocolates (the kind ladies selling gave us a free one because we told her it was our anniversary), hand carved cups made from wood, fresh baked pastries, local flowers and herbs, grass fed meat, and the bread! At one particular booth, a local artisan had a beautiful assortment of bread. Though everything looked amazing, my eyes eventually gazed upon the cheese bread. We bought some, sat on a nearby rock, and were both experiencing the best cheese bread we had ever had. Mmm.

Telluride Farmers Market

Maverick Cheese Bread is no comparison to this

Chocolatey goodness

Of course we hit main street and explored the local shops. They were what you'd expect in just about any mountain town. Numerous shops selling local attire branded with Telluride. Countless coffee shops, fine and casual eateries, a weed shop, and of course, my favorite, a fly shop. Most fly shops to me are roughly the same. You walk in and the guy(s) at the table are usually friendly. Most all have beards and look as if they have spent countless nights in the mountains. My kind of people. The man at the counter was talking with another who seemed to be a local about saltwater fly fishing and drag strength. They discussed the new reels coming out in our modern time and how drag is essential for big fish. Someday I will experience saltwater fly fishing.

Anyone there?

Dog Parking

Crazy locals

On the way out of town we hit the local pizza pub and snatched a bbq chicken to go. This seems to be a tradition of Natalie and I's. It seems our favorite mountain towns all have a great pizza place that we cannot wait to try.

Mmm tasty

Leaving Telluride

Our next destination was Durango. My sister and bro in law had been there before and gave us a slight glimpse of what we'd expect. We were both excited, and quite nervous as well. In two days time we would be running the Animas river during peak flows. The only visual I had seen of this river was on the internet. It looked big, but I knew I would have to see it in person to really feel it out.

The first destination in our new area was Mesa Verde National Park. The park was small, but housed beautiful ancient Indian dwellings. There was not much hiking here that we found, just short walks to look-outs of different dwellings.

An obstacle for our first night in Durango was finding a camping spot. A light bulb eventually went off in my head and we were soon heading toward the local BLM office. They, of course were not open. However, there was a detailed map we took showing countless camping sites and minuscule information about each area. We picked a place about ten miles out of town, along a river, and hoped there would be an open spot.

We finally reached the area and it was perfect. Not too rugged for our Mazda 3 rental and there were numerous open camping sites. Although we could not see the river from camp, it was still a nice area. There was river access down below, and you can be sure I will be back with rod in hand. We pitched our tent, set up the new hammock, and enjoyed a moment of solace as the pines swayed and the birds sang us their tune.

That evening, around midnight curdled up in my sleeping bag I woke to the sound of something outside our tent. Startled, I sat there for a moment trying to decipher the scene. Finally, I determined it must be cows grazing that we saw earlier near camp. I peeked out the tent window and looked out and confirmed my theory. At least thirty cows had invaded our camp and were munching away. Dang cows.

The following morning Natalie and I boarded the Durango and Silverton Railroad. We sat in an open train cart so we could have a true experience. After passing north through town we were soon into the canyon section where the Animas runs through. The ride was nothing short of spectacular. We passed along steep ridges that looked down into the valley, and rode right along the river for the majority of the trip. The canyon section was beautiful with the roaring Animas and tall mountain peaks. Everything was green with wildflowers abound.

During the ride we met a nice Japanese guy who was taking photographs. He was a true mountaineer, having climbed numerous mountain peaks and explored many national parks. We each talked about our own individual adventures and we came to find out that he would be getting off soon in the canyon to climb four more mountain peaks that were at least fourteen thousand feet. He was going solo, and I couldn't help but think how dangerous that was.

About a third of the way through, the train stopped and let off a youth group going on a fishing expedition and the lone Japanese man. As he was setting up his backpack below I gave him a thumbs up as we rode passed him and thought to myself, "be safe dude."

The town of Silverton felt like going back in time to an old western town. There were no paved streets, and no traffic lights. The buildings were all old and had that classic western style look. This was an amazing place.

After spending time scouring the shops we were soon picked up by the rafting company to take us back to Durango for our float. The ride back was beautiful, as we were now above the canyon we had just gone through. We passed by multiple rivers and it was definitely a place I will come back to fish and explore.

After a quick change into our wet suits at Mountain Waters headquarters, we were anxiously waiting to get out on the river. The temperature outside was in the 90's, and it was time for some cool mountain water to break the heat. We loaded up into an old school bus and were on our way.

Our guide, and 6th year veteran river runner.

After a quick briefing alongside the river about safety and what to do in worst case scenarios, we were off and floating. We were riding along with another local family from Colorado. They had two children, whom took the bow for the first part until we reached more treacherous water. Natalie, being quite scared, rode right in front of the guide. I did my best to try and calm her, but her face told me she was fearing for her life. Luckily, our guide was awesome and provided reassuring words of comfort to her as well. After ten minutes of non-threatening rolling water, her nerves seemed to lift a bit and she was smiling.  It was fun to see the boys up front get wet and scream when we hit bigger water. I kept thinking I wish I was riding with my nephews, they would love this.

Eventually, we approached the class four section and let the kids out and picked up another guide to provide more weight to our raft. Another guide company had just set off toward the rapids and we all watched with intent as they rode the class four. As far as I could tell, they made it down, though it was hard to tell due to the decreasing slope of the run. Our safety guide raft team then went down and we would soon follow. The two man team was along for the entire ride to provide backup assistance if needed.

Our guide then gave us instruction as to the various scenarios that could play out during the run. I'll be honest, at this point I couldn't really focus on what he had to say. The only thing I remembered was to keep rowing through the waves and to not stop and celebrate that we had made it through. Or, worse yet, to grab a-hold of the rope along the side of the raft if we were to fall out. With GoPro filming and clenching tightly to my oar, we set off.

I could soon see the first drop, and it was a good seven foot descent into a white whirlpool of splashing water. Within a matter of seconds, we hit the drop and my footing came out from the bench seat in front of me. I felt for sure I was going to fly out. There was a matter of a few seconds where time seemed forbidden and my thoughts were blank.  Few moments provide this experience in life. For me, it's times of great adrenaline rush and the unknown of what is about to happen. For instance, a time when I rolled my four wheeler on top of myself along a cliff side. There was a matter of seconds of total blackout, and when I was finally laying on the ground looking up at the sky, I felt numb, both body and mind. This is what it felt like on this first drop. Water came surging over my head and I could not see anything. My footing came out and I did not know where I was. When the water finally cleared, luckily I was still in the boat, but leaning half in and out. I quickly re-positioned myself and put my feet back under the seat and surveyed the surroundings. Natalie was right beside me. She had flown into the section of boat I was in. Later on I found out that the guide had actually been jolted into Natalie's seat. It was a powerful drop. Luckily, all others were still inside the boat, and we were soon bracing for the next waves. During the madness, our guide had lost one of his oars and was scrounging for another. Luckily, we were now positioned in an eddy and he was able to grab a spare oar. We ended up making it through the class four section, and what a ride it was. The remainder of the trip was easy going with fun waves that got us all a little wet. The kids were riding up front again, and having a blast. All in all it was quite the experience, and one that I'd love to have again.

Words from previous river runners

The highlight to our last day was four corners. It was in the middle of no-where, but I'm glad we made the stop. Local artisans surrounded the area with all kinds of goods. Everything from jewelry, art, pottery, and various crafts. We picked up a couple gifts for family and ourselves and made the long boring drive back to Cedar. The trip was a huge success, and Colorado left an impression on us that we will never forget.

"The Wedding Vase"