Landscape Arch

 I'd already run out this way that morning (it was the golden hour w/ the sun) so I wasn't sure I would be able to get any good pictures of Landscape Arch in the late afternoon but was pleasantly surprised.  The kids barely made it there and needed to be prodded with some 'mintspirations.'  (Lifesavers).  The Fiery Furnace Tour, Skyline Arch, and no naps had made for some very tired little people.  They went to sleep quickly that night.  (The night before they had giggled madly in their sleeping bags for a good 2 hours!)

We did make the trek to see Pine Tree and Tunnel Arch as well.  I ran the primitive trail for a ways two days but it wasn't that obvious of a trail to follow and lost it so I never made the complete loop.  Another day I went towards Double O Arch and did see Navajo and Partition Arch but didn't want to go by myself to Double O.  It was high and no one knew I was going that far so I turned around.  I will say the light makes all the difference in the morning for a good photo of Landscape Arch.  Of the three mornings I ran only one would have been good for photographing.  Unfortunately, I didn't take my camera that day.

Relaxing afternoon crawling around Skyline Arch

 After our Fiery Furnace tour we came back to the campsite for lunch and then spent some time exploring around our campsite.  Skyline Arch was just a hop, skip, and a jump behind us and the kids had fun climbing the rocks.

 

 

Fiery Furnace Tour

 

We had signed up online for the Fiery Furnace Tour.  We were in a group of about 15 people.  The tour was about 3 hours long with lots of stops along the way describing what makes an arch, the native animals and flora. 

 

Our ranger was okay but we've experienced more engaging speakers in other parks. 

 

 

We were able to crawl through this arch and come out a different way.  The kids loved this part.

 We had many opportunities to climb on the rocks and bridge the gap.

One of the many arches we saw on this tour that met the 'arch' criteria:

1) naturally made (not man made)

2) can see through it to the other side

3) the span must be greater than 36"

 

We stayed at the Devils Garden Campground inside the park.  It was a beautiful location with many campsites nestled within the rocks

 

and many even had nice views.

 

We were lucky enough to be visited by these pink flamingos.  The kids spent the whole first day debating whether they were real or not.  When they disappeared and reappeared the next morning they were even more flummoxed.  It's safe to say that 'Flamango Mango & Shrimpy Pink' have since been captured and are thriving in their new home in Fort Collins.   They don't appear to be going anywhere!

 

A trip anywhere with the four of us would not be complete unless we had completely filled up the back cab of my truck.  Isn't the girl scout motto 'always be prepared?'

 

Luckily the husband and my father had cut lots of firewood prior to our trip.  Our days were in the 50's but it was 30's in the morning and evening.  A fire was a must.  We would have been in trouble had we relied on the campground to have wood for sale.  They were out all three days we were there. Apparently the boy scout motto is also 'always be prepared!'

We ate pretty well on this trip. 

Look at that butter coating the bagel!

We were glad when someone was able to nap but the hubby and I would have preferred it to be one of the kids...not grandpa!

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!

The garden that keeps on giving...

 

A friend of mine told me last year that parsnips get better with age.  Leaving them in the ground until the next spring strengthens their taste.  Today I decided it was time to dig a few of them up and try them out for dinner.  I think I will throw them in the oven with some olive oil and salt.  I guess I'm not much of a scientist since I should have tried one in the fall before a frost so I would have something to compare them to tonight but oh well...

 

Feeling a little like spring/summer today.  It's 68 and my crocus started blooming this week.  I'm even feeling a little like a margarita!  Too bad I don't have any Coyote Gold in the house.

Let's go fly a kite!

 

It was a beautiful 65 degrees here today with a little bit of wind.  It made it a perfect day for the kids to try out their new kites.  After a couple of attempts we finally got the butterfly off the ground.  We never did get real good at it.  I'm thinking that the shape provided some different dynamics with the wind so we will keep practicing with that one.

 

The penguin was much easier for everyone to handle.