We left Breck around 5:30am and drove and drove and drove. We did stop for breakfast, drove through lunch, and then stopped at the Iowa 80 Truckstop for dinner.
1150 miles for the day and about 18 hours. We were home near midnight saturday night. Cam did great and only asked when are we going to be home a few times. There are not to many 4 year olds that will ride in a car seat for 18 hours straight.
A great trip. Hopefully next year, we will have our own Jeep! Hint, Hint for my birthday Carrie.
Monday, August 24, 2009
Friday, August 21, 2009
Colorado Day 8
Our last day in Colorado. The lesson for the day was if you drive to 13,185 ft above sea level and there is not a cloud AND you have the top of the Jeep, make sure you wear sunscreen.
Sunburn sucks.
In any case. We woke, ate and left for another Jeep ride. This time I had picked Misquito Pass between Alma and Leadville. It was to be a moderate trail. We started out finding more caches on the smooth part of the road. The first was easy. As we moved up the road, things continued to get harder driving and also the caches keep getting more difficult to find.
The second was found in a tree near a creek. Not exactly what I was looking for but we were able to sign the log and move on. This cache was near an old mining log home.
The next was actually in a tree also and was only a 35mm film canister. We again signed and continued on to find our fourth one. This one turned out to be a hike above a mine about 300 yards. Did I mention it was uphill and at about 11.500 ft? We found that one after a bit and continued on the trail. We turned a few switchbacks and headed up above the treeline. It looked like we were on the moon. Nothing much grows up there and it was a pretty rough road.
We did manage to play a little catch up near the top.
Once almost to the top, we found a really tough cache on the side of the rock slide hill. It was hard to walk but Cam did great and liked the rock climbing. We met a few motorcyles, Jeeps and a few other SUV's which I wondered how they got up there.
Near the top, we had a quick snowball fight. Snow is cold.
Once to the top at 13,185 ft (the highest road in Colorado according to some website I read), we found another small cache and started down. We met a runner about an hour prior to this that was running the entire pass which was 14 miles. CRAZY. Then we met a mountain biker on the way up. He was tired and asking how much further. We gave him some general info and were on our way. We found only one more small film canister cache prior to Leadville.
It was a fun day of Jeeping and geocaching. I never thought that Cam would like it as much as he does and we both don't mind it also. A good family activity.
From there to Breck and the pool, dinner, and then downtown to buy a few gifts for some people. Packed up and ready for the trek home tomorrow.
Sunburn sucks.
In any case. We woke, ate and left for another Jeep ride. This time I had picked Misquito Pass between Alma and Leadville. It was to be a moderate trail. We started out finding more caches on the smooth part of the road. The first was easy. As we moved up the road, things continued to get harder driving and also the caches keep getting more difficult to find.
The second was found in a tree near a creek. Not exactly what I was looking for but we were able to sign the log and move on. This cache was near an old mining log home.
The next was actually in a tree also and was only a 35mm film canister. We again signed and continued on to find our fourth one. This one turned out to be a hike above a mine about 300 yards. Did I mention it was uphill and at about 11.500 ft? We found that one after a bit and continued on the trail. We turned a few switchbacks and headed up above the treeline. It looked like we were on the moon. Nothing much grows up there and it was a pretty rough road.
We did manage to play a little catch up near the top.
Once almost to the top, we found a really tough cache on the side of the rock slide hill. It was hard to walk but Cam did great and liked the rock climbing. We met a few motorcyles, Jeeps and a few other SUV's which I wondered how they got up there.
Near the top, we had a quick snowball fight. Snow is cold.
Once to the top at 13,185 ft (the highest road in Colorado according to some website I read), we found another small cache and started down. We met a runner about an hour prior to this that was running the entire pass which was 14 miles. CRAZY. Then we met a mountain biker on the way up. He was tired and asking how much further. We gave him some general info and were on our way. We found only one more small film canister cache prior to Leadville.
It was a fun day of Jeeping and geocaching. I never thought that Cam would like it as much as he does and we both don't mind it also. A good family activity.
From there to Breck and the pool, dinner, and then downtown to buy a few gifts for some people. Packed up and ready for the trek home tomorrow.
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Colorado day 7
A bit of a disappointing day for our travels. We had picked a loop to go on that was a bit easier than the past few days. We took the Boreas Pass trail to hwy 285 in Como, Colorado. This was a good smooth dirt road. We started looking for our first cache but within 20 minutes of searching one spot, we gave up. It was a great spot for a cache, just don't know where it went to.
Onward up the mountain, we quickly came to our second cache. We found it without a hitch and Cam picked out a brand new still in the wrapper Chapstick. For those of you that know him, know that he has an entire lunch box full of chapsticks. It is sort of his odd collecting hobby.
Uphill all the way, we found the third one after about 20 muinutes of searching a very rocky hillside. Carrie picked it out at about eye level in a hollowed out tree stump. We were looking on the ground for most of the time so looking at eye level did not dawn on us. Cam picked out a geocaching tag that someone left that we will start our own cache with in Wisconsin. The last one we found he picked out some dinosaur flash cards (cuz that is what every kid needs???). Carrie and Cam worked on them for the drive the rest of the way.
For the rest of the trip, we got skunked. We looked for 2 and did not find 2. Don't know what went wrong today. Then we hit some nasty construction on the road we were on and the road was scheduled to close while we were driving on it so there was no time for looking. Made it to Goergetown around 1:30 or so and headed back to Breck from there.
We did swim for an hour, ate a really early dinner and then headed to Avon, Colorado for the rodeo. It was a bit longer drive than I had anticipated due to construction and shotty navigating by me once again. We did get there for the start. Cam really liked it and it was more than just the rodeo as the clown quite funny.
Rodeo done at 8 and back home by 9 or so. To bed. One more day of fun.
Onward up the mountain, we quickly came to our second cache. We found it without a hitch and Cam picked out a brand new still in the wrapper Chapstick. For those of you that know him, know that he has an entire lunch box full of chapsticks. It is sort of his odd collecting hobby.
Uphill all the way, we found the third one after about 20 muinutes of searching a very rocky hillside. Carrie picked it out at about eye level in a hollowed out tree stump. We were looking on the ground for most of the time so looking at eye level did not dawn on us. Cam picked out a geocaching tag that someone left that we will start our own cache with in Wisconsin. The last one we found he picked out some dinosaur flash cards (cuz that is what every kid needs???). Carrie and Cam worked on them for the drive the rest of the way.
For the rest of the trip, we got skunked. We looked for 2 and did not find 2. Don't know what went wrong today. Then we hit some nasty construction on the road we were on and the road was scheduled to close while we were driving on it so there was no time for looking. Made it to Goergetown around 1:30 or so and headed back to Breck from there.
We did swim for an hour, ate a really early dinner and then headed to Avon, Colorado for the rodeo. It was a bit longer drive than I had anticipated due to construction and shotty navigating by me once again. We did get there for the start. Cam really liked it and it was more than just the rodeo as the clown quite funny.
Rodeo done at 8 and back home by 9 or so. To bed. One more day of fun.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Colorado Day 6
Another full day in Breck for us. We started off early again to go "treasure hunting" up Peru Creek which is above Keystone. It was a nice easy road with lots to view.
Up a few miles, we picked up our first geocache. It was an easy one to find but we left Cam find it so he is more interested. He then picks out a toy from the box. Today we found only 3 caches on the forest roads. Cam came home with a new squishy ball, a rubber lizard to match his rubber snake from yesterday, and a mini frisbee. He loved being able to pick out anything he wanted to from the boxes.
The second one we had to hike for a bit up a hill. It was a nice find also. The third was even farther up a hill overlooking a great meadow.
On the way back we stopped a few times to throw rocks in the river and take a few pics. Once home, we headed straight for the pool again. Cam is doing really good with his swimming.
We quickly got ready and headed for the Breckenridge Fun Center. Here we took Cam's first chairlift ride and went down the alpine slide two times. He loved it and so did we. It was a blast. Soon after, Cam's eyes were on a large rubber band jumping things that you strap yourself to and jump. He really wanted to do it after watching a few other kids go. He did really well but did get a bit scared when he was up about 20' or so. They tuned it down a bit and he liked it better then.
From there to dinner at Eric's on Main Street in Breck. Pizza was good there and would return.
Overall, we did not have time to breathe today as we were going from one activity to another. Tomorrow we have more treasure hunting and then the Rodeo at Beaver Creek near dinner time.
Up a few miles, we picked up our first geocache. It was an easy one to find but we left Cam find it so he is more interested. He then picks out a toy from the box. Today we found only 3 caches on the forest roads. Cam came home with a new squishy ball, a rubber lizard to match his rubber snake from yesterday, and a mini frisbee. He loved being able to pick out anything he wanted to from the boxes.
The second one we had to hike for a bit up a hill. It was a nice find also. The third was even farther up a hill overlooking a great meadow.
On the way back we stopped a few times to throw rocks in the river and take a few pics. Once home, we headed straight for the pool again. Cam is doing really good with his swimming.
We quickly got ready and headed for the Breckenridge Fun Center. Here we took Cam's first chairlift ride and went down the alpine slide two times. He loved it and so did we. It was a blast. Soon after, Cam's eyes were on a large rubber band jumping things that you strap yourself to and jump. He really wanted to do it after watching a few other kids go. He did really well but did get a bit scared when he was up about 20' or so. They tuned it down a bit and he liked it better then.
From there to dinner at Eric's on Main Street in Breck. Pizza was good there and would return.
Overall, we did not have time to breathe today as we were going from one activity to another. Tomorrow we have more treasure hunting and then the Rodeo at Beaver Creek near dinner time.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Colorado Day 5
We had yet another great day of vacation here in Colorado. We packed up early and headed out to do some Jeeping and some Geocaching on the Jeep trail. I had downloaded some geo sites last night and then told Cam that we were going on a treasure hunt for the day. That worked out really well for all of us. The Jeeping kept our interest and the geocaching kept Cam's interest as he could pick out a toy if we left a toy.
We left Breck about 8:30am and headed for Jefferson, Colorado. It was about an hour ride on the highway to get there. The route that we choose was going to cross Georgia Pass back to Breck. It was about a 23 mile ride on the back country roads. Once we hit Jefferson, we turned onto our dirt road. About a mile up the road, this lady crosses in front of us.
What a great site it was to see a full grown Cow Moose.
From there we continued up the dirt road to our first geocache. It was about 80 yards off the main road and was great to find the first cache of the day. From there we headed for the second cache. This was was a bit more difficult to find as we had to hike about .25 miles or so off the road. It was fun for Cam as he was able to pick out a toy as we left a toy or trinket. We called it treasure hunting and Cam bought that better than geocaching.
We continued on up the trail and continued picking up geocaches. We ended at the top of Georgia Pass where it started snowing and thunderstorming.
We quickly exited down the mountain as lightning and high mountains do not mix well. The road turned a bit more difficult on the way down and a bit more rough. It was a good ride down and Cam was great the entire way. Once at the bottom, we stopped and had lunch near a mining operation from days past. After, we convinced Cam to find 2 more caches back the way we came as he wanted only to go swimming after lunch.
From there we headed back to Breck on the dirt roads. I made some lasagna and garlic bread for dinner as Carrie and Cam went to the pool for a bit.
Overall another great day. Cam loved the treasure hunting and we will be doing it again tomorrow.
We left Breck about 8:30am and headed for Jefferson, Colorado. It was about an hour ride on the highway to get there. The route that we choose was going to cross Georgia Pass back to Breck. It was about a 23 mile ride on the back country roads. Once we hit Jefferson, we turned onto our dirt road. About a mile up the road, this lady crosses in front of us.
What a great site it was to see a full grown Cow Moose.
From there we continued up the dirt road to our first geocache. It was about 80 yards off the main road and was great to find the first cache of the day. From there we headed for the second cache. This was was a bit more difficult to find as we had to hike about .25 miles or so off the road. It was fun for Cam as he was able to pick out a toy as we left a toy or trinket. We called it treasure hunting and Cam bought that better than geocaching.
We continued on up the trail and continued picking up geocaches. We ended at the top of Georgia Pass where it started snowing and thunderstorming.
We quickly exited down the mountain as lightning and high mountains do not mix well. The road turned a bit more difficult on the way down and a bit more rough. It was a good ride down and Cam was great the entire way. Once at the bottom, we stopped and had lunch near a mining operation from days past. After, we convinced Cam to find 2 more caches back the way we came as he wanted only to go swimming after lunch.
From there we headed back to Breck on the dirt roads. I made some lasagna and garlic bread for dinner as Carrie and Cam went to the pool for a bit.
Overall another great day. Cam loved the treasure hunting and we will be doing it again tomorrow.
Monday, August 17, 2009
Colorado Day 4
We're on a train.
We left early for Leadville, Colorado and the train line there. It was about an hour from Breck. We arrived early as usual and had to wait about 30 minutes to board. Cam was really looking forward to the ride all last night and on the drive over. We left the depot at 10:00 am. The conductor was a wealth of knowledge and told the story of the history the line and of Leadville.
On our way, we headed up the line for about an hour and a half. Once to the top, we headed back the way we came. Cam enjoyed the entire ride and was well behaved. Overall the ride was about 2.5 hours long. I was glad that we brought our own snacks and a sandwich for Cam as it rolled over the lunch hour.
Cam took a quick snooze on the way home in the Jeep. Once home, we changed and headed for the pool. There were quite a few more people today than yesterday in the pool. Could have been the weather was a bit nicer at around 70 and sunny. Cam was again on his best behavior so as a reward we headed out for dinner to the Breckenridge Brewery. The food was great.
Other than that, it was a pretty good day of vacation for us.
We left early for Leadville, Colorado and the train line there. It was about an hour from Breck. We arrived early as usual and had to wait about 30 minutes to board. Cam was really looking forward to the ride all last night and on the drive over. We left the depot at 10:00 am. The conductor was a wealth of knowledge and told the story of the history the line and of Leadville.
On our way, we headed up the line for about an hour and a half. Once to the top, we headed back the way we came. Cam enjoyed the entire ride and was well behaved. Overall the ride was about 2.5 hours long. I was glad that we brought our own snacks and a sandwich for Cam as it rolled over the lunch hour.
Cam took a quick snooze on the way home in the Jeep. Once home, we changed and headed for the pool. There were quite a few more people today than yesterday in the pool. Could have been the weather was a bit nicer at around 70 and sunny. Cam was again on his best behavior so as a reward we headed out for dinner to the Breckenridge Brewery. The food was great.
Other than that, it was a pretty good day of vacation for us.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Colorado Day 3
Wow - what a great day we had. We woke early and had breakfast quick. We had decided last night that we were going to take the Swan River trails today. I had read that they were "moderate" for difficulty.
By 8:00am we were on the road heading north from Breck. We quickly hit tiger road which turned to gravel. From there it progressively got worse. The initial road was not to bad but then it turned and went up hill for about 3000 vertical feet. It was slow going in 4 wheel low the entire way. Loose rocks and nearly vertical up hills were the main challenge.
Soon we were at the top above the treeline. What a great view from there. Up on top there was a cabin that was open to anyone to use. It was stocked with some bare essentials and primitive was not even the word.
It was sure windy at the top again and the temp hovered at 41 degrees for most of the trip. We trudged on and eventually got to a hill that looked nearly impassable. I said nearly. We started slow and got stuck about half way up. Front tire was wedged against a rock and the rear was nearly off the ground. A bad situation in that spot as you can not back down a hill like that without being out of control. Carrie wedged a rock under the tire and we were able to inch our way forward. Finally to the top.
From there we continued to the Middle fork of the Swan River. It was mainly downhill the entire way. This is where we met most of the traffic. We saw about 6 other vehicles (for some reason, none of them were stock???) and 15 or so motorcycles and a handfull of ATV's. All of them looked fun. Soon we were to the "smoother" part of the trail and were able to speed up to about 5mph. We were flying then. Made it back to Breck in one piece. We bottomed out only two times throughout the day which was great for the road we were traveling.
Once home, we ate lunch and then went straight to the pool. We stayed there for about an hour. Cam then road his scooter on the property while Carrie and I had an adult beverage at the local bar.
Dinner and to bed. Tomorrow - Train rides in Leadville.
By 8:00am we were on the road heading north from Breck. We quickly hit tiger road which turned to gravel. From there it progressively got worse. The initial road was not to bad but then it turned and went up hill for about 3000 vertical feet. It was slow going in 4 wheel low the entire way. Loose rocks and nearly vertical up hills were the main challenge.
Soon we were at the top above the treeline. What a great view from there. Up on top there was a cabin that was open to anyone to use. It was stocked with some bare essentials and primitive was not even the word.
It was sure windy at the top again and the temp hovered at 41 degrees for most of the trip. We trudged on and eventually got to a hill that looked nearly impassable. I said nearly. We started slow and got stuck about half way up. Front tire was wedged against a rock and the rear was nearly off the ground. A bad situation in that spot as you can not back down a hill like that without being out of control. Carrie wedged a rock under the tire and we were able to inch our way forward. Finally to the top.
From there we continued to the Middle fork of the Swan River. It was mainly downhill the entire way. This is where we met most of the traffic. We saw about 6 other vehicles (for some reason, none of them were stock???) and 15 or so motorcycles and a handfull of ATV's. All of them looked fun. Soon we were to the "smoother" part of the trail and were able to speed up to about 5mph. We were flying then. Made it back to Breck in one piece. We bottomed out only two times throughout the day which was great for the road we were traveling.
Once home, we ate lunch and then went straight to the pool. We stayed there for about an hour. Cam then road his scooter on the property while Carrie and I had an adult beverage at the local bar.
Dinner and to bed. Tomorrow - Train rides in Leadville.
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