Rocky Mountain High

My first real trip to Colorado made it somewhere I hope to return to every chance I can get.

BJR was born in the Summer of his 53rd year

Previously, I would say, “Yeah, I’ve been to Colorado,” a knowing look on my face that made you hear Johnny Cash’s voice sing, “I’ve been everywhere, man.” In June I saw a new Colorado I had never seen before. Granted, my previous trips were to Boulder for business (a meeting with the Forrester analyst for network management… oh pathos where is thy sting?), Denver for work, and a jaunt to Estes Park (which I now understand is the Bud Lite of Colorado regions).

The key reasons for visiting Colorado was so Kim could see her family, and show me around Colorado to understand the pre-Australian history of Kim.

Comin’ home to a place he’d never been before

Kim’s tour-de-Colorado was excellent. Our first stop was Boulder, home of Kim’s mom and the fittest (or at least skinniest) city in the US. Our pool workouts, runs, and hikes releaved that we were below average in the fitness hierachy of Boulder, as our sea-lander (Kim’s fantastic term for those of us who live not just at sea level, but by the actual sea) lungs struggled to keep up with those around us.

One of the many power walks we took with Kim’s mom in the sweltering heat in Boulder. High heat, high altitude, and high hat fashion!

We visited Golden Colorado, home of Kim’s brother (and family), the Colorado School of Mines, and most importantly the world headquarters for Coors.

Kim poses in front of the “fighting donkey”, the mascot for Mines. I now have a new nickname for Kim any time she starts to get annoyed with my antics. Notice the donkey is carring a stick of dynamite between it’s teeth….

The global headquarters of one of the world’s… uh… wateriest (refreshing?) beers is brewed.

He left yesterday behind him, you might say BJR was born again

You would never say “born again” and “BJR” in the same sentence but that’s the song lyric, okay?

We climbed higher into the mountains, spending two days in Steamboat Springs, a popular ski destination and where Kim’s brother has a home. While the altitude once again was wrecking havoc on our pulmonary systems, we loved it.

A hot springs where the freezing river flows right along side them. Alternating freezing to death and then poaching yourself turns out to be great for the muscles but leaves the genitals highly confused.

We met Kim’s brother’s in-laws, and I immediately began to ask about how to adopt a new set of parents, because I felt so happy and at home with them. Throughout life I have subconsciously (and now perhaps conspicouosly) been looking for a father figure who would accept who I am, given that I was raised in a absolutist world with no gray areas.

I was still a bit jetlagged, still adjusting to being surrounded by American accents, and trying to get enough decent vegetarian food to keep my energy levels up. And with all that, I was also just exceptionally happy.

Bryan bought the game “Wits and Wagers” for the family and was promptly shellacked in the contest by an eight year old. In my defense, he will turn nine very soon.

I don’t know if it is the trees (the Aspens look so much like the birch trees of my childhood), or the air, or just being in nature, but I wanted to stay and work on the yard and the house and have a second life there. I have missed the mountains, though I am happier by the ocean.

Kim wrestles with a houndstoungue plant (Cynoglossum officinale) to make sure we hit our quota of weeds captured in order to pay for our french toast.

Might say BJR found a key for every door

Going even higher into Crested Butte, the mountains held more snow, more magesty, and the small tourist town charmed us to no end.

On the Oh-Be-Joyful trail. On the return, BJR managed to walk straight into a low log across the trail and knock himself down (but not out! Don’t call it a comeback!)

The Deer Creek Trail was in full bloom. Someone should really teach this trail some manners. It’s so gosh to show off this way.

When he first came to the mountains BJR’s life was far away, on the road hanging by a song

While BJR was born in Alaska, there were no mountains in King Salmon, though nearby, Katmai National Park features plenty of volcanos. In Eagle River, the Chugach mountain range ran through the community and was a gorgeous backdrop, and of course throughout Alaska there are so many incredible mountains, but Colorado provides so much more access to so many greak peaks, it’s hard to beat.

And while cannibis isn’t a part of BJR’s rituals, there is something to like about a state where it’s legal and well-regulated.

Chorus

The Colorado Rocky Mountain High

I’ve seen it raining fire from the sky

Shadow from the starlight are softer than a lullaby

Rocky Mountain High, Colorado…