Roosevelt Rocks

Today we drove up the Cache La Poudre Canyon into Roosevelt National Forest. We passed lots of white water rafters and fly fisherman along our drive into the mountains. It reminded us a lot of our trip to Ennis, Montana last year. We stopped to hike the Roaring Creek trail, which took us through sage brush into amazing pine forests along the river. It was sad to see all the pine trees that were destroyed by the pine beetles, but you can’t stop the circle of life (it moves us all). Bogey did great on the trail again. We were worried that Bogey would miss chasing lizards in Florida, but instead he’s been able to chase prairie dogs, rabbits, and chipmunks. After our hike we drove through Fort Collins, Longmont, and Boulder on the way back to our campsite. Tonight- sloppy joes. Tomorrow- Rocky Mountain National Park.

Drew’s fun fact: It is impossible to lick your elbow.

Mecca

Yesterday we went hiking for the first time in the Rockies. I already knew I was out of shape, but hiking at altitude was a strong reminder. Bogey got to try out his doggy pack for the first time. We wanted to make sure it worked okay before we take him on an overnight with it. It didn’t seem to bother him at all and he did great on the trail.

Today we left Colorado Springs and drove north to Denver. I had a second phone interview for a job in Durango, which went really well. Drew and I celebrated by going to Mecca- aka REI’s flagship store in Denver. Tonight we’re camping at a state park in Longmont. This week we’ll be making day trips to Rocky Mountain National Park, touring the New Belgium Brewery, and checking out some of the other towns along the front range. I have a job interview in Longmont on Thursday, after that Drew and I plan to do our first overnight hike. I’m already starting to feel at home here out west.

Drew’s fun fact: The can opener was invented 48 years after cans were introduced.

Big Bird

The sun came out this morning and we had amazing weather all day. Dry 70’s in the summer is such a luxury. We spent the first part of the day at Garden of The Gods which was really cool but reminded us a lot of Thunder mountain at Disney World. It’s a park with amazing rock formations that Drew says were formed by tectonic plates “dry-humping” each other.

This afternoon we moved our stuff into Sean’s place, which is an amazing Victorian house that was built in 1899. It’s huge and yellow so I nicknamed it “Big Bird.” When I said we were going to dump all of our crap in Sean’s basement apparently Bogey took that literally because the first thing he did when we got to Sean’s house was crap in his basement. Unfortunately I did not get a picture, but I’m sure you can imagine. Drew and I are so lucky to have a friend as generous, easy-going, and forgiving as Sean. After that Sean took us to Cheyenne Canyon where we drove up a sketchy winding road and got to see amazing views of Colorado Springs. It’s so cool to see red rocks, Aspen trees, and 14,000 ft mountains. God is good.

Drew’s fun fact: China uses 45 billion chopsticks per year; 25 million trees are chopped down to make the chopsticks.

It's Always Sunny In Colorado

We finally crossed into the state of Colorado where the grass is greener and the streets are paved with gold. We stopped at the border to take pictures and when we got back in the car AC/DC “For those about to rock” came on the radio. Coincidence? I think not. More like destiny. We drove across the eastern part of Colorado (which reminded us a lot of Kansuckass) and after about two hours we finally saw the Rockies come in to view. It was so exciting to finally see our new backdrop. We drove through Colorado Springs and got the last campsite at Garden of The Gods RV Park. It’s easy to see we’re not in the “Bible belt” anymore because instead of a church on every corner there’s a medical marijuana dispensary on every corner. We plan to stay here over the weekend to move our stuff into Sean’s basement, see Garden of the Gods and Pikes Peak, and play hackey sack with the hippies in Manitou Springs. So even though Drew and I have come down with colds and it’s been raining all afternoon (apparently it’s not always sunny in Colorado), we should be having lots of fun soon. More pictures to come.

Drew’s fun fact: Due to Earth’s gravity it is impossible for mountains to be higher than 49,000 feet.

Trailer Trash

It’s scary how quickly Drew, Bogey, and I have become accustomed to trailer life- it’s almost like it was meant to be. Of course having expert trailer parents helps. When my Dad offered to drive us and our stuff out west I thought there was no way we’d be able to fit all of our crap into the trailer. But after giving away half our belongings (ping pong table, surfboard, picnic table, bed, desk, book shelf, etc) we had no problem making everything fit. Our remaining furniture is packed in to my parents’ Excursion and our boxes of stuff are loaded in the trailer. Prior to packing we pulled the couch and dining room set out of the trailer to make room for our stuff. Our king size mattress is folded into a taco; every night when we stop we unfold it so that we can sleep on it. The mattress is covered in plastic to protect it during the moving process. When I shuffle around in my sleep at night it sounds like I am wearing a diaper. My mom was quick to point out that we can wet the bed without consequence- how trailer trash is that?!? We have yet to take her up on the offer. Usually Dad grills dinner outside while Drew chases Bogey through the woods, into the neighbor’s campsite, finally ending in some body of water. Tonight we formed a family band with Drew on the mandolin, Mom on the guitar, and me on the off-key vocals. Every night has so far ended in episodes of “It’s Always Sunny” (which I’m sure is making me stupider) while Bogey sleeps on the bathroom floor. So that’s trailer life as we know it for all those who were wondering. It’s pretty much awesome.

P.S. Since we’re staying in a trailer in Kansas, chances are there will be a tornado. If you see us on the news in our cut-off jean shorts and camo hats… you’ll know what happened.

Drew’s fun fact: More people are killed by donkeys annually than are killed in plane crashes

Kansas Blows

Today we left Arkansas, briefly passed through Missouri, and made our way to Kansas. We quickly found out that Kansas does suck as much as everyone says because about 50 miles into it Drew got a speeding ticket. He got pulled over for going 78 in a 65. Drew tried to explain to the officer that he was only going that fast because the two lanes were converging and he was trying to pass the little old lady on her cell phone. The cop didn’t buy it- he got a ticket anyway. When Drew was telling the story to my Dad he explained “I had to pass her, if I had slowed down and gotten behind her it would’ve been emasculating. Dad said, “So now you have to pay a hundred bucks for passing the little old lady to save your balls. But you had to pass her- you only have one ball left.

Tonight we’re staying at Fall River State Park in Kansas. Before setting up camp we stopped to play in a hay field where Bogey got to run free and impress us with his hay-bail jumping skills.

Tomorrow we’ll drive the rest of Kansas, which Drew and I now call Kansuckass. After that we’ll cross into the state that will become our new home, unless we don’t find jobs, run out of money, and have to come home with our tails between our legs…

Drew’s fun fact: A chicken with red earlobes will produce brown eggs, and a chicken with white earlobes will produce white eggs

Full Frontal Nudity

This is Drew and I will be your blogger this evening. I want to apologize ahead of time for the horrible spelling/grammar/general boringness of what you’re about to read (although I don’t think it will matter since we have about 2 people who actually read this). Anyways, let me get you up to speed since we last spoke. We left High Falls State Park in GA on Sunday morning and passed through Atlanta, which reminded me of the lovely traffic back in south Florida. Neither of us had ever been to Chattanooga TN, so we took a pit stop. It was a crisp 100 degrees outside and since we had Bogey our lunch options were limited. I had been having Mexican food withdraw so we went to Qudoba because it had the only patio that wasn’t facing the sun. Bogey chugged a bowl of water and then was quick to vomit up his entire breakfast. Asking Anne what I should do she said “I don’t know, take a picture”. So we have photographic evidence.

That night we stayed at Davey Crocket State Park in TN. We took a little hike down to the river, watched a little more “It’s Always Sunny” (which has grown on Jane) and called it a night. Ok, I’m getting a headache so I’m going to pass off to Anne…. Goodbye

This is Anne now, and I’m only adding on to Drew’s post because I feel obligated to explain the title. As you will see in the photos Bogey has a habit of sleeping on his back with his legs “spread eagle.” The title has nothing to do with our road trip activities, especially because we’re on this trip with my parents (weird).

After we left Davey Crocket King of The Wild Frontier we drove on towards Arkansas. Drew and I stopped to check out Memphis where we stumbled upon Beale Street. We went to a voodoo shop and the BB King Bar and had a thirty-something ounce Fat Tire.

After that we tried to drive by Graceland, which we quickly learned is not something worth driving by. Then we met up with my parents at Greers Ferrly Lake in Heber Springs Arkansas. We took the next day (today) off from driving, and spent it hiking around the park, swimming in the lake, watching a movie, having margaritas, and playing Bananagrams. Now we’re about to watch more “It’s Always Sunny”… Half way there!

Drew’s Fun Fact: The record for projectile vomiting is 27 feet.