On the Road Again

Sunday, July 7, was our 6th day of travel.  We got up very early and departed Adam and Patti's house, with hopes to stop by in 1 week on our way home.  Addison was glad to hear that we would be back by!

The day's itinerary called for driving south past Denver, Colorado Springs and Pueblo, and then west through the Great Sand Dunes National Park, over the Continental Divide and past Durango to Mesa Verde National Park.

Colorado is a BIG state.  We seemed to drive forever today, and I think all we did was go from central Colorado to the SW corner of the state.  We saw a lot of landform diversity, from the Rocky Mountains to the San Luis Valley, from near-desert/chaparral to farmland, from mesas to sand dunes!

Around Pueblo, the land started looking like desert.

Sand dunes are in the center of this picture.

I remembered my lesson from the Yellowstone trip that it's important to not push the family too far.  There were times today when I wanted to "go, go, go!" but realized we needed to stop and re-group first.  Looking back, I'm glad we made the stops when we did.  We stopped for an early lunch at a KFC/Taco Bell and patronized both sides of the establishment, and also took the opportunity to fill up.  A good decision, as things quickly got desolate!  

In the afternoon, we broke up the long drive by enjoying a couple of pull-off hikes to see some waterfalls (Zapata Waterfalls at the Great Sand Dunes National Park and the Treasure River waterfall just past the Continental Divide on 160.)  The hikes were a little tough, and Katie fell and got scraped up her side and arm walking back from Zapata Falls.  Still, she was a trooper and kept going.  She was rewarded for her good behavior with picking the place for supper: Sonic. 

For Zapata Falls, we had to take off our shoes and wade in the ICE COLD water to enter a cave and see the waterfall.  It was awesome, but also very difficult to walk over wet rocks with freezing feet.  (I think the family will forgive me soon for that one!)  

Zapata Falls

A bit of a treacherous walk.

After our Zapata Waterfall adventure, we entered the Great Sand Dunes National Park, had our passport stamped, and let the kids out to climb among the sand dunes.  It was pretty incredible to see all this sand plopped down right in front of the Rockies.  If I were naming the area, I think I would have called it "God's Sandbox" or "Mountain Beach!"

We weren't allowed to get out and take pictures anywhere along the route over the Continental Divide because of the danger of wildfires and the fire-fighting effort that was going on, so being able to hike up to Treasure Falls after that ascent and descent was a nice treat.  (Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my camera, so you'll just have to trust me for that one!)

Because of all the stops, we got to Mesa Verde much later than anticipated.  It was getting dark, and for the first time Google Maps let me down by directing me to the campground instead of Far View Lodge where we had reservations.  Because we were running short on time, we went first to the Park Ranger program that night in the outdoor amphitheater where we gained some insights into the first residents of the area: the ancient Puebloans who dwelled in the cliff houses.

After a long, slow drive in the dark to the Lodge, we got checked in, made it to our room, and collapsed for the night.  With no air conditioning, we were thankful we had brought along a fan from Jon's mom.  It made the heat a little more bearable.

One of the things that I saw again today is how God is so amazing!  As we had our "van church" on the road today, we talked about "God sightings" we had had this week.  We gave Him credit for all the incredible things we had seen so far, as well as the safety He has granted us on the road.  Today seemed like a good day to pause and give thanks and continue to seek His blessing.  We look forward to what lies ahead!