What quote am I vibing? "You often hear people speaking as if life was like striving upward toward a mountain peak. That is not so. Life is as if you were traveling a ridge crest. You have the gulf of inefficiency on one side and the gulf of wickedness on the other, and it helps not to have avoided one gulf if you fall into the other." Theodore Roosevelt
Road Day: 31
Audiobooks Finished: 3 (Great Courses - The American West: History, Myth and Legacy. This was an awesome listen. Lots of talk of places I've been visiting, and TR's role in the west.)
Trails Hiked: Coyote Ridge Trail (Coyote Ridge Natural Area, Ft Collins, CO). 4.1 miles. Elevation Change: 564 feet. Trail Surface: packed down dirt and gravel
It was back to work today, and I worked from the local Toyota dealership while my oil was being changed. A little air in the tires, a little washer fluid, and she's good to go the rest of the way. I had planned to do a hike in Rocky Mountain National Park today, but honestly, it takes a good long while to get in there, and I had to make up for some time at work, so I went to a local trail. I considered it a failure when I made the decision, but I did get in a wonderful hike. And, I can see Rocky Mountain National Park another time. I think I need to ease into the mountains, anyway.
The trail started with prairie, and was basically unshaded the whole way, until I got to the last loop of the ridge where the mountain was self-shading me. I passed prairie dog towns without noticing. They squeaked. And SQUEAKED! I finally saw them. I thought maybe they wanted to interact, but I think they just wanted me to know they were alive. A familiar feeling. They're so cute. Like land otters. The video of them below is from when I was on the way back to the car. (Apologies for the vertical format, I know it's horrible.)
I walked up and across a ridge, down and across the porch of the creepy little house pictured below, and then up, up, up. Gosh I hate up, up, up. The only thing that was great about this hike on the prairie and ridge was the wind. It was constant and invigorating. The kind of wind that makes you throw your arms up in the air just to feel alive. If reincarnation is a thing, and I can't come back as a human, I'd like to be wind, please.
Conversations with myself
Up up up.
Why am I wearing jeans?
Ticks.
Ticks? This is a gravel path.
You didn't know.
I should have known.
Up up up.
At the top of the ridge, I posed for the picture overlooking the gulf that I hadn't walked, sat on a bench letting the wind center me for a bit, then down down down.
As I drove home, I remembered what I kept forgetting to mention! There is this magical time between 7:30 - 8:30 at this time of year when the mountains just look ridiculously beautiful against the darkening sun-setting sky. Dark and looming. Huge. Outlined so magnificently by a hint of sun. I tried to get a photo of this after I parked at my home here, and walked to Benson Sculpture Garden, but the mountains weren't visible. I did find some beautiful sky, though. That's pretty easy to do here.
Tomorrow I work half a day then head to Utah! I have had such a top-notch experience at my air bnb here - lovely basement to myself and welcoming outdoor space. Another wonderful host. I'm convinced that the people who host air bnb are the BEST people.
This post is dedicated to Digger Nelson-Kosik. The noisiest cat I've ever known. I'll miss your constant meowing in the background while I talk to David.
Comments