Garden of the Gods and Golden!

Garden of the Gods was revisited by us as a "wasn't it wonderful" kind of park....this time we had more time  to hike some of the trails throughout and  Casey "Noodle" had a good time hiking with us.  He's been a good trooper!  We packed a lunch and had it at one of the sites along the way that accommodates horses and dogs, etc.  We haven't really mentioned it, but there have been a lot of deer or elk (mostly mule deer) that have been on  or near the highway (at least a dozen or more) -- it's a constant vigil for them!  We don't want to be the accused in a roadkill lawsuit! 

Garden of the Gods, if you  haven't been, is a beautiful geological phenomenon that is pink and red and orange and white and gorgeous all over!  It is actually a city park, given to the city in the early 1900's by the family that owned the property---the children of Charles Elliott Perkins followed the wishes of their father and donated the land to the city for its citizen's use,  but to be free of charge.....which it remains!

We drove through historic Colorado City (really authentic-looking and inviting) on our way back to the beast.   Here is a picture of one of the many historic/attractive buildings  that populate the main street:

Next day, Friday, was our "test" day for all our new-fangled stuff---the front-end alignment, the tire balance and the steering stabilizer....we left our RV Park  in Colorado Springs heading for Golden, CO about 9 am and for the first time in a long time, did not have any wind!   It was hard to tell how much change all the repairs/additions made, but over the ruts and bumps it seemed to be more stable and less "squirrley"--you know what we mean--lots of play in the steering wheel as you're trying to guide it on the right path! 

We arrived at our Park just outside of Golden, CO and set up camp and then headed by foot up a trail next to us and to the top of the butte and over a dried-grass grazing area to soccer fields!
 Casey "Noodle" got the to run around a million-ways-to-Sunday and sniff and pee and have a great time!  We got some good walking in under beautiful skies,  and then headed back to check out laundry facilities, dinner and the next day's activities.

I call my parents every-other day or so, and on the road is no different.  They, as most of you know, are 97 and nearly 93, so it's not a small worry to leave them and travel, but they love to hear about where we are and what we're doing so I keep them  up on the "haps" as we go along.  Of course, we always talk about  Mariners baseball, which WE catch via XM radio and they watch on cable, and about gardening and cooking and what we're seeing,  and we send postcards most weeks as well.  They are remarkably healthy and happy,  don't need any assistance walking,  and do cross-words and search-a-words, I'm sure better than I could!  We're so happy they are doing well.  I have a friend who is doing a great job in transitioning her parents (of a similar age) to an assisted living center, and I know she is doing a better job than I would...it's a difficult transition.  Sandwich generation--that's us!

We have settled in at our Golden, CO Park and are happy here for 5 nights.  We'll see how we do in our kayaks tomorrow, then biking later (there are some fantastic bike/hike trails here!!!) with Casey "Noodle" in the carrier behind  (no, it doesn't have airbags!).

Happy Friday the 13th!!