Ending the same way we started!

We drove back to Breck that afternoon/evening and stopped at a restaurant (Glenwood Springs) that was 'a great bbq place' according to the grandparents.  It was called Rib City and funnily enough we had stopped at a Rib City in Fruita on the way out to Utah this trip.  They didn't realize until we had sat down and ordered the same 'dinosaur chicken bites' for the kids.  We all had a good laugh!  Matter of fact it's a pretty good bbq place.  The catfish and ribs were yummy!

The next morning we stopped at Daylight Donuts (we started there right before our trip the previous week) for a refill of buttermilk donuts and a shared egg burrito.  I normally like change but these stops were both worth redoing!

It was a good thing we filled up since we had a snowy drive home.  We had to get off the highway at Berthoud and take HWY 287 home due to the number of accidents that had closed I-25.

Mill Canyon Dinosaur Trail

 Our last stop before heading out was a stop at the Mill Canyon Dinosaur Trail.  The fossilized remains of the Sauropods can be found in the rock around this area. 

Enjoying the view with her best friend:

Crazy boy:

Bar M Biking Trail to Circle O

 After a year of talking about biking in Moab with his kids Daddy finally accomplished his dream.  Granted, it had to be squeezed in on our last day but it was done and most importantly they had fun doing it.  We went to the Bar M trail head and did a small ride off there and even continued up a paved path along the highway for a small bit.

 

Eating and Staying in Moab

 After being in the car all day we headed to Twisted Sista's on Main Street in Moab for some dinner and to meet up with the man who left us for a basketball game.

 

 We had a great meal (salmon, pork tenderloin, seafood tom yum-very good) and some yummy calamari for an appetizer.  Surprisingly, it wasn't fried and it was all the better for it.

 

 The main dishes were all on the small size (which is clearly stated on the menu) so if you are really hungry this might not be the place for you.  The atmosphere was pleasant and so was the company.

 

 

Only one of us had dessert (the cheesecake) and it was fantastic.  The rest of us headed to the Moab Diner for malts and ice cream.

 

 We stayed at the Kokepelli Inntowner while in Moab.  This was about 2 blocks off main street and okay accommodations.  We had plenty of room and a kitchen but nothing was that updated.  Being able to sit outside and enjoy the sun was definitely a plus.

Caverns, caves around Barren Springs Sign

 This part of the trip was talked about for many days afterwards.  We had been scouring the sides of the road for these caves.  There was no sign and we had about given up.  Finally, we just needed to stretch our legs and ended up getting lucky.  There were all sorts of tunnels for us to climb through.

 

 

 Grumpy Grandpa had to leave early to watch the Michigan basketball game against South Dakota State (against who?) so he didn't get to have as much fun as the rest of us!

Chicken corners, at long last!

 Daddy had spent a lot of time telling the kids about 'Chicken Corners' so they were very excited the day we set out to go there.   We ended up spending about 5 hours in the car that day but it was all right since it was such a pretty ride.  We started low and climbed up to Hurrah Pass.

 

 

 

 Views of the Potash Ponds.

 

 Coming down the other side of Hurrah Pass.

 

 Great views of the Colorado River:

 

 The chicken dance at chicken corners:

 

The real chicken corners:

 It was necessary to go very slow and carefully so  as to not fall off the cliff or scrape up your vehicle on the rock.

  

I promise that's not our paint on that rock!

 

 A nice spot for lunch until the wind started gusting!

 Notice that only one person goes around the rock cliff.  We decided this was the real chicken corners and that Daddy lost his man card that day!  :)

Arches, Camping, Biking, and Hiking for Spring Break

 

The family headed out to Arches National Park in Utah for Spring Break this year.   There had been constant chatter leading up to this vacation.  Maps had been scrutinized many times over.  The excitement was palpable.

After spending a night in Breck to pick up our other passengers we headed out into quite a snowstorm.  The first two pictures depict this.  We were really wondering about 'camping' at this point.  The last pic is on our way back home.  We did end up having great weather while we were in Utah.

This is a mandatory stop for the kids:

 Join us on the following pages for our latest great adventure!