We didn’t sleep too well and were up early. I got up around at 2:30 and maybe got 30 minutes between then and 5:30 when I heard a spoon in a coffee cup and just gave up! Amanda wasn’t too far behind me. I grabbed a cup of black joe, but when Amanda was up and stirring, she made some espresso for lattes. So, I fixed a dirty chai latte.
There are horses next to our property. They roamed close, so the kids had to go out for a meet-and-greet. As Amanda and I got ready, I smelled bacon cooking when I got out of the shower. No matter how long I’ve been plant-based, that’s still a delicious smell! I am far enough along to be able to pass it up now. We don’t eat breakfast and typically fast till noon. Breakfast is my favorite meal, though.
We may not have breakfast or 2nd breakfast like a hobbit, but we have 2nd coffee often! Today, the 2nd, was at a new coffee shop between two shops we like just on the edge of downtown. It was a drive-through-only coffee shop. What we got was good, and they had milk alternatives; we are oat milk fans for coffee because of its creaminess. Both of ours were a little sweet for our taste. We successfully broke that sugar craze years ago and use natural sugars to sweeten things now, like honey or maple syrup.
After that, it turned out to be a longer drive than anticipated. Apple Maps showed over an hour’s drive mostly on dirt, so I thought it wouldn’t be that long. I’m no city slicker who’s never driven on dirt; I grew up on dirt roads, I thought! Well, it was probably longer than Apple Maps said, with the final 8 miles being twisty and turny. John was in the back seat because the booster seat couldn’t strap down back there. He was awfully quiet; I thought he was mad, but it turns out he was car-sick from not being used to the back! It subsided quickly when we got out, at least.
It was long enough for me to worry that I picked a place too far away for our first hike. The Piedra River was next to the trailhead parking lot for the boys, and I ran over to it to check things out. I asked how cold they thought the water was and ensured they could feel it! I was surprised I didn’t get a retaliatory splash back!
John has hunted on public lands close to this area for years. So he was scanning the tree line and telling us how high up the mule deer would be this time of year. Also, pointing to far-off mountains and saying they go and will be like we’ll hike over there and hunt. They stay out and camp where they find a spot and then pack their deer out themselves. I like the outdoors but not that much, and I’m most definitely not that type of hunter either. I do admire him, though, for his athletic ability and sense of adventure. Don’t tell him I said that; I’d rather he think I just like to make fun of him for it! Oh, the stories I could tell of our youth and many hunts and adventures. That’s more of a book than a post, though!
The boys loved the hike, one with his new axe in tow! We followed the river up and down a few small humpbacks and twists and turns. Amanda did well, and the boys would run ahead and then fall back behind us, finding birds and other critters to watch and chirp at themselves. After a half of a mile, we were at the falls. It seemed over 100 feet tall and had a nice cool mist. The boys loved it and were getting as close as they could to it.
Amanda didn’t get too close, and when it got steep, she said I’m done, so I helped her find a good spot to take a load off. Her knee was great, but her chest was tight, she said. I ventured close to the falls for a bit to get a few shots. We had it to ourselves for a while, and some other hikers showed up. We began to trek back, stopping at various spots to let the boys do man things like look for fish, through rocks, and chop limbs!
We loaded up and got going on the windy road back. We remembered a picnic spot about halfway back off the roadside. So, I kept saying it was around this curve and every other curve till we found it. We set up our picnic and had lunch and falafel veggie pitas we’d fixed at the cabin that morning. The boys milled around after, and John found a suitable rock for a pillow and laid down for a quick shut-eye; you can tell he’s comfortable in the outdoors! The river was next to our picnic table, so the boys were getting wet jumping on and off big rocks. We took a mountain picture of the Yukon since this was its first off-roading adventure. We decided what to get with our travels in mind; it had to be a 4×4 since we knew it would see snow and off-road trails.
After lunch, we were back on the road and stopped by a giant cliff we’d seen on the way up. Amanda stayed in the car for this since he was still tired, and there was a hike back up. Once we reached the edge, it was much taller than expected. There was a large crack that ran to the edge. The boys were peering down at it and saw something. Upon inspection, it was a Marmott. Once dropping small rocks on him to get a reaction, he looked back at us like what the what! It reminded me of a meme!
I’m pretty sure I heard death and die at least 20 times out of Britt’s mouth while threatening the kids when they got close to the edge! It was a grand view off the edge but even a little high for me. We watched hikers along the opposing side traverse the out-and-back trail that was a couple of miles or so.
Once we made it back to town, we needed to grab groceries. The boys were napping, so we took advantage of that. Amanda and I left everyone and ran to grab what we needed. When I booked this weekend a month ago, I just picked the same time we went last year. I didn’t realize it was a holiday weekend. Let’s just say the crowds showed up on Friday. It was a madhouse in the grocery store and even worse on the road in town!
We took advantage of a Market on the east side of town. Amanda and I found some granola that was compliant for us without oil and sweetened with honey. I considered buying all of it, but at $12 a bag, I held off and just got a couple! After grabbing a few fresh veggies, we went back to the cabin to chill.
With fresh naps, the boys were wound up! The adults still tried to chill, with some retiring to our bedrooms. After Amanda had emerged from the bedroom, I stayed back. The boys began to look for me everywhere. I was in the bathroom taking care of business and could hear them rustling throughout our bedroom, whispering about where I could be. This went on for a while, then I yelled, “I’m pooping,” Then they were incessant about trying to come into the bathroom. I quickly pulled up pooping noise sounds on YouTube and played them. I was dying laughing at listening to them laugh and talk to each other! I’m not used to kids this age too much, but I’m learning to be the crazy uncle for this age real quick!
The hardest part of the evening was deciding where to eat. I had three options on the itinerary. Some were doubles for lunch the next day, but after narrowing it to two places, we decided on a downtown place for the following day since we’d be shopping there and could just park in one spot.
The restaurant we ended up at was a Pagosa staple, with the original one in South Fork not far away. Once we got there, there was a 45-minute wait, but we just hung out and waited. It was half that long before we could slide into another spot that had left. Dinner was good. Amanda and I got portabello tacos. I added grilled onions and a cup of green chili to mine.
Ice cream was on the menu afterward to cool our bellies down from the spicy food! We went to a malt shop within walking distance. All of us but the girls got blizzard-type blended ice cream. My Oreo treat was good, and the boys seemed to like theirs too. The girls were pouty that they didn’t have what they wanted. Amanda was looking at another place’s menu and rattled off a few things; one piqued their interest, so we drove that way for 2nd dessert.
The evening was just chill time with an early turn-in. Without kids, we aren’t used to getting in bed before 9, but we were tired enough to hit the sack. We were both out well before then and slept on top of the comforter with an extra blanket and sheet in hopes of a better night’s sleep since the bed was so hot the night before.