Glenwood Springs!

This week Tyson and I spent four days (sans kiddos!) in Glenwood Springs, CO for a slightly belated 15 year anniversary trip. First we had to drop the kids off with Grandma Susan and Grandpa Bill and then we drove to our destination which was definitely further away than Mapquest had led me to believe. We did make a fairly long stop in Grand Junction where we ate at Famous Dave's BBQ though. After we arrived in Glenwood we did a little shopping for things we needed for our rafting trip and then just explored downtown Glenwood. There are lots of little souvenir shops to explore and tons of restaurants. It's definitely a tourist town!

We woke up the next day to clouds and rain, which was not ideal considering it was the day for our river rafting trip on the Colorado river! They didn't cancel though so we got to experience river rafting in the pouring rain! It was surprisingly awesome! They gave us splash jackets to wear that helped to keep us warm, mostly. The rapids were class 3 and minus 4 which were fun, but I think we could have handled 4's and 5's. We had a great river guide and the morning went by really quickly. We stopped at one point to see where the hot water comes into the river and some spots were really, really hot! We were supposed to do a full day trip but the rafting company put us on a half day one instead because of the rain. It was probably for the best though because we were starting to get cold by the end. If I actually had a bucket list, river rafting would have been on it. It's something I've wanted to do for a long, long time! Unfortunately we don't have pictures of us on our rafting trip. I considered putting one of the pictures Tyson took of other rafters, but that might just be weird! 

That evening the rain had cleared (of course!) so we hiked up boot hill to the cemetery where Doc Holliday, the outlaw, was buried. No one is really sure where he is buried in the cemetery even though there is a marker there for him. The hike took you to the top of the hill overlooking the town and it was a pretty view. After that hike we went to the Glenwood Canyon Brewpub and ate the most amazing chicken enchiladas I think I've ever had! (Tyson says mine are better, but I think he may be wrong this time!)

The next morning we got up bright and early to go biking and hiking. We rented bikes and the rental company shuttled us to the top of the canyon so we could ride the 14 miles back into town on Glenwood's really nice bike trail. The trail is basically a really wide sidewalk that mostly runs along the river and occasionally crosses under, or over, the elevated freeway. It was a gorgeous day and we both really enjoyed the ride. We did stop to hike the trail to Hanging Lake. It is only 2.5 miles round trip, but the trail is very steep and rocky. It definitely took some work to make it up the hill and careful placement of feet on the way down to not blow out a knee. But the lake was absolutely amazing! It was definitely worth the hike. It's called Hanging Lake because it is basically hanging on to the edge of a cliff. Tyson, of course, spent quite awhile taking the most amazing pictures! After Hanging Lake we hiked a short distance further to see Spouting Rock. There is a hole right in the middle of the cliff face where the water comes shooting out. It was neat too. After the hike we ate our Subway sandwiches at one of the rest areas and then continued on the bike path into town. That night we swam in the hotel pool and relaxed in the hot tub for awhile. Our sore muscles were definitely happy for that! It was really a great day!

Thursday we just took our time getting packed up and went to Loa to retrieve our kids. I think they missed us a little, but they sure had fun with Grandma and Grandpa too. They had spent most of the time we were away exploring the mountains in a big Polaris ATV that Grandpa had rented. They all became rather accomplished drivers while we were away! What a fun week full of adventure!