Here's the run-down of our vacation to Colorado for Matt and Amber's wedding. We had a very full week, so I'll summarize the best I can.
Saturday: Mike and Sarah picked us up drove to Exira, IA to spend the night at a campground Mike went to a lot during his growing up years. It was a cute little place with a little lake and pretty trees. His Aunt and Uncle live in the area met us at the campsite, and after finding out we were unprepared for a campfire dinner, they offered to feed us at their house. We determined they are good people, and had a blast hanging out with them. Back at the campsite, the cicadas tried to be as annoying as they could be while we slept, but all in all: good camping. AND there was a cute little kitty who followed us around. She probably had worms and other disgusting diseases, and there was an owl that I'm pretty sure was stalking her. But, still cute. See Pictures Here!
Sunday: We drove from Exira to Colorado, and after a long car ride and limited convenient camping options, we opted for a hotel in Woodland Park, CO. We had a disappointing meal at the local pizza hut ("uhm, sorry we don't have breadsticks, deep dish pizza or cheese...") Mike and Sarah retired to the hotel while Rob and I went to see what the Woodland Park nightlife had to offer. I think the bar we went to was Buck's, and although the bartender was friendly, a shady group of men sitting at the bar moved to a table near us once we sat down, eyeing us suspiciously. It was our cue to leave quickly.
Monday: We checked out of the hotel and drove to Colorado Springs to see the Garden of the Gods. The last time I was here was with a couple of girlfriends of mine back in 2001, so it was fun seeing the park again. The Kissing Camels, Balanced Rock, Three Graces, Cathedral Spires, etc. It's just as impressive to me the second time around. We took the long way out of the park on a windy dirt road, which took us up and back down a small mountain, with plenty of places to snap pictures of the views.
Our next stop was the Cog Rail, which took us to the top of Pike's Peak and back down again. I had a little anxiety about going up all the way to 14,000+ feet. I've been at high elevations before with limited negative effects, but I don't know... the cogs, the rail, the windy road... the falling down the mountain... The ride up was gorgeous! The change in scenery along the way was interesting. It started with forest with a few dribbling streams, and along the way the tour guide pointed out old homestead foundations and other points of interest. Then as we ascended the trees became more spread out, and more pink-tinted rocks were visible. (Pike's Peak has a lot of feldspar which gives the granite a pink color.) The tour guide also pointed out a few trees that were hundreds, if not thousands, of years old. Some ponderosa pines with reddish bark had been described as smelling of butterscotch. (I later had the opportunity to smell the bark of one and it's true!). Past the tree line, dispersed along jagged rocks and spilling over boulders, were pretty flowers bunches that couldn't have been arranged better by even the most talented of florists.
The top of Pike's Peak was amazing. The lack of oxygen really affected us. I was out of breath by merely walking, and I remember feeling a little dizzy and sort of giddy. It was also very cold. We boarded the cog rail again after only 40 minutes at the top, and arrived back at the station to find some very scary weather had moved in. Thunder, lightning, near flash floods. However, back at the South Meadows campsite in Pike National Forest, our tents were mostly dry. We loved our campfire, and went to bed happy.
Tuesday: We did a little sight seeing on the road to Estes Park and ended up at the Red Rocks Ampitheater. They were setting up for a Daft Punk show, but we were able to walk around a bit and get a feel for the place. Afterwards, down the road a ways we had a picnic lunch. I met a smelly man who walking to the Daft Punk show and had run out of water. I filled his water bottle up from our gallon and made small talk. He was very polite and seemed relieved someone had watered him.
It was almost an after thought, but we decided to see the Coors Brewing Factory in Golden, CO that day as well. Rob and Mike were in heaven when they got out of the car in the shuttle bus parking lot. The whole town smells like beer! Although the tour didn't teach them anything about brewing beer since they make their own at home, it was still cool to see the facility. Plus we got free samples. One can't refuse free beer, even if it's Coors. Rob says it's not so bad, now that he's tried the real stuff as opposed to Coors Light which is marketed so much. He enjoyed his free sample so much that he decided to buy a whole pack of it at the liquor store down the street from the brewery.
We found a campsite for the night and settled in. Sarah and I turned in early, while the guys stayed up to enjoy their beer. See Pictures Here!
Wednesday: We finally arrived in Estes Park! Mike and Sarah went off to do some shopping downtown while Rob and I had dinner at a place near the hotel. A whole family of mule deer lunched on the grassy "courtyard" of our hotel as we settled in. Later that evening Jon and Kim arrived in town and the six of us went out to dinner, which was followed by a little informal party at our hotel room.
Thursday: Though we knew we'd all be in the mountains for this trip, we were strangely unprepared to spend any time in them. Mike forgot hiking boots and Rob didn't have enough advil to soothe his knee pain. Plus having Kim along, who is six months pregnant, we didn't want to push ourselves too hard. However, the six of us did a little hike around Bear Lake, and up to Alberta Falls. I enjoyed seeing these places that, on our honeymoon last May, were frozen over or had three feet of snow on the trails.
The real reason we went to Colorado was for our friends' Matt and Amber's wedding. Thursday evening we all had plans to go to the rehearsal dinner. After a little run through of the ceremony at the lodge, Matt and David finally got to town, so the now eight of us, plus bride, groom and family headed up to the lodge where dinner was to be held.
Friday: Day of Wedding. While Sarah and I had spa and hair appointments, Mike, Rob, Matt, David, Jon and Kim drove up Trail Ridge Road to see the sights. I'm not sure what all they saw, but we've got pictures somewhere in this mix here!
The wedding itself was beautiful. It was an outdoor wedding on Lake Estes. Mike ushered, while Sarah played maid of honor, and Rob was best man. MacKenzie played her flower girl part very well, complete with white dress and white gloves. Amber herself was radiant. She looked beautiful, calm and happy. In place of a unity candle, Matt and Amber along with Kenzie and little Serenity, together layered colored sand in a jar as a family. It was a very creative way to show their bond. See Wedding Photos Here!
Saturday: The group was up early despite having a late night celebrating. We headed off to Fort Collins to have breakfast, and all went our separate ways after that. Rob and I decided to ride home with Matt since he drove solo on the way out. We arrived back in Eagan about 2am Sunday morning, exhausted.