There’s No Air Up Here

Sept 21

Matthew’s astrological sign is Cancer, the crab. He was born at sea level in in Newport News Hospital in Virginia. All this galavanting above 8500 ft is not befitting his design. He has been especially slow to acclimate this time through the high country, often realizing as he has a dizzy spell that he hasn’t inhaled in a while. Maybe his lungs just don’t feel it is worth the trouble of inhaling since there just isn’t any bloody air up here.

It’s time to move on from Ouray towards Paonia, CO. It is less than a two hour drive north, through ranches and small towns, to our campground…in an orchard! We’ve booked three nights on “Peach Lane” at Big B’s Delicious Orchards, 5 miles outside of Paonia. We find our spot (in spite of vague maps and lack of check-in procedures) and get moved in. The only problem is that not long after we arrive a big storm front is moving in, so we decide the easiest way forward is to head to the Chrysalis Brewing Company in town to seek shelter and maybe a beverage.

We are the only two folks there (granted, it is only 3:00 pm). As we grab premium seats at the bar, the rain really sets in. Our bartender predicts that soon the place will fill up with folks from our campground, and sure enough soon the bar is packed with parents, babies, and dogs. Later on some folks play guitar, and just when we decided we might look for a place to eat, someone sets up a grill under a tent outside and we have hamburgers and another round. We played Chick-a-pig, chatted with locals, and had an all-around great time.

Sept 22-23

Storms have passed, and we had a lovely sleep. Big B’s is quite a place! Lots of families are passing through on these beautiful fall days for the U-pick feature of Big B’s, the fun playground they have set up, and a nice lunch at their cafe.

Sunday is our day to explore the area, so we head out to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It takes a few dirt roads to get us to the North Rim, and WOW what a crazy place! You’re driving along what appears to be flat open land, when all of a sudden you come upon a 2,000 ft vertical drop! This canyon is remarkable, and gives both of us the heebie-jeebies for that amount of sheer drop-off. We drive the North Rim road, take a few short walks to see the views, and then enjoy a scenic drive back to Big B’s, through more unexpected (although much wider) canyons.

It’s an easy-going couple of days, mostly enjoying the quirks of Big B’s and catching up on work and puttering projects.

Sept 24

It’s time to head to Palisade, CO to visit friend and former Sitkan Carolyn Servid. It is a short drive, so we linger at the orchard. Kayla clocks some hours, and Matthew works on the vent fan to fix a squeak. The Maxxair ventilation fan is an ubiquitous ventilation solution in the camper world. In general, if it ain’t an air conditioner bolted onto the roof of a camper, then it’s a Maxxair. They are remarkably efficient and quiet – until they get a bit of dust in them. Once that happens, it sounds like a gerbil is running on a wheel while beat-squeaking a disco song. Why, Maxxair, why do you make it so hard to service these motors? Matthew would gladly spend $50 more on the fan for you all to put a few extra parts in there to make disassembly and assembly less filled with cursing.

We had Bahn Mi sandwiches for lunch, using leftover ground pork from a delicious soup we made the other night, plus made with cucumbers and jalapenos picked at Big B’s. Fantastic!

After arriving in Palisade, we had a sweet evening with Carolyn – nice walk along the river, yummy dinner, and lots of great catch-up conversation. So grateful we were able to align our schedules and get a brief time with her!

Sept 25-26

We head out to Mountain Island Ranch to catch up with our friend Kenyon (another former Sitkan) and his incredible conservation efforts on 110,000 acres of ranch land. To get to Kenyon, you first have to drive through Colorado National Monument to the unincorporated “town” of Glade Park (which is essentially a few houses, a stark trailer that serves as the Post Office, and a minimally-stocked sometimes-open “store”), then 11 miles past Glade Park, and then 4 miles of dirt road. The Monument is stunning and full of more windy cliffside roads, and then things open up a bit again … but as you drive those last four miles, you’re starting to enter more canyonlands. We were able to make a quick visit out here last year and have been itching to get back ever since — it’s such a gorgeous area, and we’re so intrigued by the work that Kenyon and his wife Mary have been doing to instill conservation and restoration practices into this traditional ranch land. During our two days here, we have the chance to ask lots of questions as we drive and hike around the ranch. If you’re curious about what they’ve been doing and have 45 minutes to learn more, Kenyon just finished a film about the work they’ve been doing over the past several years.

We get to stay in their guest yurt, share dinners on the patio, and take advantage of his high-speed Starlink connection for a couple meetings. Plus, Kenyon has a really great music studio – we unpack all the Jet Set Betties gear and have an awesome night of rock ‘n roll.

Sept 27

After a slightly hungover good-bye to Kenyon (hey, this is the Rock ‘n Roll Lifestyle) we take the winding road through CO Nat’l Monument back to Palisade to pick up the camper, then over to Highline State Park (north of Fruita) to meet our Alaskan friends Becky and John!

They are on a trek to Durango (where we just were) and onwards, but we figured out how to cross paths for two nights of catching up. We’d been to this park last year, and had fond memories of the shady, grassy sites and the wonderful lake. That lake was going to come in handy because it was HOT! But of course, the Colorado State Park Service is in the process of draining the lake to combat zebra mussels. Rats.

Sept 28

We take a bike ride around the campground, and then in the full heat of the afternoon head to nearby Fruita for their Autumn Festival. At night we try to hold conversation amidst all the campers running their generators to keep their air conditioners running. Ahh – the great outdoors. No kidding – our neighbor actually ran a vacuum outside her camper for a while to get rid of the excess dirt.

Sept 29 – 30

Boulder Bound! We knuckle down and take the interstate across Colorado. Things got a little touchy around Glenwood Springs when we got boxed in at a gas station and then couldn’t find a fast food solution for breakfast. Backed up traffic in the mountains did not add to our joy, but we made it at last. We have a nice lunch with niece Kristina (she is at UC Boulder getting a grad degree in opera) then over to nearby Longmont to stay with friends for a few days. Sonja and Kayla met at Holden Village way back in the 1900’s and it was Way Past Due to spend more time with her and get to know her delightful family. We spent our first day with Sonja in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Oct 1-2

Back to Boulder to take a tour of the campus and take in a dinner on Pearl St. Next day Matthew gets the BettieMobile’s tires replaced and later we are treated to Sonja’s daughter’s high school band concert, plus a little family jam session afterwards.