Aspen, CO

Wow. I sure can't complain about having a business trip to Steamboat Springs, CO!!  We flew into Aspen and drove up to Steamboat Springs.  I drove through Glenwood Canyon and up highway 131 at about midnight.  I will never do that again.  We saw about 10 deer, 2 raccoons, and 1 skunk (incidentally the skunk was the only one just sauntering down the middle of the road like he owned the place).  I did manage to stay on the road and to not hit anything, but it was definitely one of the more scary nights of my life.  I was very thankful when we finally reached out hotel in Steamboat.

After completing our visit with the family on Saturday, we drove over to Dillon, CO, so that my colleague could visit her friend.  We drove from Steamboat to Dillon via US highway 40.  It was a gorgeous drive full of rugged landscape.  We crossed the continental divide at least twice!  I had rented an SUV so that we would have 4 wheel drive (since I knew we'd be traipsing all over northern Colorado), and we ended up with a soft-top '09 Jeep Wrangler.  On our drive to Dillon, we took off the back window panels and drove with our windows down!  That was pretty awesome.  I was glad, though, that we hadn't taken the top down because it ended up raining on us a couple times during our 2-hour drive.

Once I dropped my colleague off in Dillon, I headed toward my hotel for the night in Glenwood Springs, CO.  I drove on I-70, but you wouldn't have known you were on a federal highway if you looked at the scenery.  It felt like a scenic state highway.  I drove through Vail, CO, which was stunning even without snow.  Toward the end of the drive, I gave myself a scare because I passed what ended up being the last available gas station for 20+ miles immediately after my gas light came on.  Needless to say, my daylight drive through Glenwood Canyon was a little bit stressful.  Thankfully, I did make it and I did manage to enjoy the canyon walls towering over me as I drove.  In Glenwood Springs, I checked in, ordered pizza for supper, cross-stitched & watched soccer for a bit, and then collapsed into bed. 

This morning, I was able to sleep in and eat a leisurely breakfast.  After packing up my belongings, I headed to the Jeep for one last drive down to the airport in Aspen, CO.  The airport, like most things in Colorado, is styled after a lodge or ranch house.  It's very small, and all the planes that come in are very small as well.  I flew in on a turboprop and I'll be leaving on one as well.  There are no jetbridges, and you board the plane and deplane by walking across the tarmac.  I know for some folks that's just how airports work, but for me it's a new experience!  It seems fitting to do that here in the middle of mountains that stretch thousands of feet high above us. 

Once I'm home, I plan to add some of the pictures I've taken.

I'll be very glad to get home this evening since I've only got about 36 hours until I head out to Fresno, California.  We'll only be seeing one family, but getting to and from California makes that trip exceptionally long regardless.