Colorado ROAD TRIP!

Once again it's time for a road trip! My Mother called me last Thursday night, and asked if I had any plans for the weekend. I was planning on volunteering for a triathlon, but when she proposed the idea of road trip with the family . . . I couldn't refuse! It had been about two years since the last time I was cramped in the car for an extended period of time. 18 hours of driving time in less than 48 hours time just makes my heart skip for the adventure that always follows!



The destination was the San Luis Valley of southern Colorado. "Spanning 8,000 square miles, the San Luis Valley is the world's largest alpine valley. The average altitude is 7,500 feet. Everywhere you go here, majestic mountains surround the many attractions and provide the ultimate environment for the outdoor enthusiast." To learn more, click here.



This is a picture of a barn that my great grandfather built in La Jara, CO at least 50 years ago. Not sure of actual time frame, just a guesstimate.



This house is where my great grandparents lived in when my mother was a child. She spent many a summers within these walls.



Not only is the elevation 60 feet above the average for the valley, but the booming metropolis of Sanford has the residence of a whopping 750 people! My great great grandparents walked from the Salt Lake valley to Sanford, CO as children to settle this area. Over 560 miles by foot in the blistering heat of a desert summer. Gross, if you ask me. It's amazing it only took us 9 hours, while it would have taken them months!



Because I can only spend so much time in a small town before I get restless and since we were so close to New Mexico, I was determined to go down to the border and take a walk in New Mexico. Too bad the picture had to be taken from inside the car because of the wind . . . the blurry spots are the bugs we hit during the trek! Here is Teri, my cute little sister, Tara, my cute little cousin that I had not ever met before, myself, and my Father.



And us returning to Colorful Colorado!



This point of interest was something we weren't planning on experiencing, but it was an added treat! In Conejos, CO on our way back to Sanford, we came across the oldest church in Colorado! Now that I'm looking through my pictures, I realize that I didn't get the name of the Church, but it's the oldest, nonetheless. Cool, eh? Never thought you'd get a history lesson didja!



Here is my Mother's cousin Ron. That would make him my first cousin, once-removed, right? Anyway . . . this weekend was the first time I remember meeting him, along with many other family members. So he built this hot rockin' cooker thingy where he smoked a LOT of ham, potatoes, carrots, and corn and we had a major feast!



This is the license plate on the cooker trailer. Appropriately named, I must say.



Teri and Tara were pretty sad to have to leave on another. Tara is Teri's favorite cousin, although they only met two years ago. Actually, if you want to get technical, Tara is Teri's and my second cousin, as our parents are cousins. Teri doesn't actually have any first cousins her age, because our parents are the youngest in their families, as is she!



As we were leaving Sanford, my Mother asked if I wanted to go meet my great grandparents! Or at least, see where they are buried. Since we've been working on Genealogy the last couple of years, I of course did. We visited our families burial places, and I even saw the headstone for the great great grandmother from whom I got my middle name! As we were heading out of the cemetery, I saw this little plaque on a headstone, and I thought it was pretty cool. These people were pioneers in a handcart trek.



What is at the end of the rainbow? Who knows, but it sure made a pretty picture!



Ahhh, the power of sunsets. Some of my favorite kinds of pictures. My little sister Teri took this one, she's got some real potential for photography, I think!



I took this one, and love how the beams of light are coming off the sun. Pretty good for snapping pictures while speeding down the highway, eh?



This one is one of my favorites though. It's currently my desktop on my computer. I actually made my Mother stop driving to capture this one. Ahhh, the power of sunsets!



Okay, so I admit it's kinda blurry, but I really wanted to get a picture of the river in the canyon we were driving down. Mom wouldn't stop again, so this is as good as it gets. But just imagine what it could have looked like had we stopped and I'd been able to frame it properly. Basically though, the weekend was a quick blur of driving, chillin' with the family, and taking great pictures from the backseat of the car!