Mountain Clams

Vacation, day 3 of 4.

My wife, daughter (16), son (15) and I took a short 4-day vacation to the western slope of Colorado, from Friday to Monday. I thought I would share a couple stories from that trip.

On Sunday, we rolled out of bed bright and early - around 10 - and made our way down to the Black Canyon near Montrose. This is the national monument that was recently expanded in area by President Clinton. On the way down, we saw a car on the northbound lane that was overheated and spewing steam. Before we could call it in, a state policeman was already moving in to help them out.

We drove up the access road, making stops along the way to look at the canyon. It's so deep so suddenly! It's gorgeous (no pun intended)! It's amazing to me that the Empire State Building puts up so many things to keep people from jumping to their death, but you come to the Black Canyon and there are a couple small pieces of wood separating you from a 2,500-foot drop straight down.

We made it to the end of the northbound road and had a quick bite to eat from what we brought with us: elk sausage, dried fruits, some nuts and water. With my daughter not feeling well, three of us took an hour and hiked the ~1.5 mile trail at the end, reading through the guide booklet as we went. Towards the end of the trail was a bird in a tree, making quite a lot of noise as if to say, "hey tourist - take my picture!" So I did.

(Anybody know what kind of bird this is? It looks like a gull, but sounds nothing like one.) Right as I put the camera down, the bird took off from its tree perch and flew RIGHT AT ME. It buzzed past me on my left and flew out over the canyon.

It was starting to get late, so we got back in the van and drove down to the highway, then made our way back towards Grand Junction. We stopped for dinner and returned to the hotel. The kids and I went swimming in the hotel pool while my wife relaxed and showered in the room. The pool water felt warm until I went and sat in the hot tub for a few minutes. Then suddenly the pool lost all its appeal, so I showered off and went back up to the room.

I think we all went to sleep pretty early that night.

Labels: vacation

posted by Brett @ 1:16 PM