on the road

This week I left Denver for what is essentially a month-long trip.  This makes me very happy.  I hit the road Monday evening with my dog and my new truck to come back to Glenwood Springs for the rest of my Public Health clinical.  The drive was incredible - it was a clear day, the sky was that deep, rich blue that only seems to happen in the fall, the aspens were brilliant yellow, and there was a fresh dusting of snow on the peaks.  It was so beautiful I spent the whole drive smiling.  Not often you get a day like that. 

Thor, the bike, and the camping gear, ready to hit the road

Stage 1 of my trip is two weeks in Glenwood Springs.  I've been here almost a week now, and I really like it!  It's a lovely little town of about 10,000 that is squished into the Roaring Fork Valley.  It looks like someone poured a bunch of houses and businesses into a valley and they slid down the sides and settled at the bottom.  The sides of the valley are steep - like really steep.  I tried to hike straight up the valley wall behind our apartment the other day and was seriously challenged to even keep my footing.  But the view was worth it.  The town is full of interesting shops and restaurants (including a delicious ice cream shop...) and cute little houses.  I've started seeing people I know around town, which makes me so very happy.  I love small towns and the feeling of community that you get in them, which is so much harder to develop in big cities.

 view of Glenwood Springs from the super steep hillside

Couch surfing has turned out to be a great thing.  Allie has been a great hostess, introducing me to her friends, showing me around town, and making sure to include me in all the fun things she does.  Last night we went to an awesome film festival in Carbondale.  You should look up liquid mountaineering, it gave me a good laugh. 

I'll be in Glenwood through Thursday night, at which point I'm done with my clinical and ready to hit the road for stage 2 of my trip.  The current plan is to head to Moab Thursday night, ride Porcupine Rim (yay!) on Friday morning, and then breeze through Zion on my way to LA.  We'll follow the coast up through San Fransisco, then on to Oregon and across to Montana, where I'll spend the better part of a week visiting with all my old friends in Missoula.  As with almost every trip I've ever taken, I'm already feeling like I don't have nearly as much time as I'd like to have.  So many things to be seen, so little time!