Solo Hiking at Mt Falcon Park - May 24, 2018

My schedule has changed quite a bit since graduating my master's program, and as I work to adjust while also trying to stay diligent about staying task oriented and not lose momentum, my newly discovered "free-time" can relatively quickly get gobbled up by one thing or another.  So on May 24th when I realized that I hadn't formally made any plans other than taking the dog to the vet to get his teeth cleaned and that I otherwise had the day to myself, I decided to head for the hills.  House cleaning and job hunting could wait.

I put together a light pack with water, some snacks, made sure I had first aid things since I was going it alone, and my camera and set off toward Mt Falcon Park - a destination not far outside of Denver that brings up lots of fondness and nostalgia from my childhood years.  As I drove, music on, sun shining... I recalled the almost weekly trips during summer months with my family to this very same destination all throughout my growing up.  My mother would bring orange juice and light snacks, often the night before making muffins to take with us.  She'd put on the cassette of Vivaldi's Four Seasons.  We'd park and walk what seemed at the time a long way up to the Eagle Eye Shelter to enjoy our snacks.  If we were up to it, we'd go back down around the Castle Trail to see the ruins.  We'd head home with smiles on our faces, our small legs worn out from hiking, falling asleep to the lull of Vivaldi and the motion of the car.  The rush of nostalgia made me smile.

What I also realized is that this was my first time going to this fantastic little spot solo.  I've done very few solo hiking trips in my life, aware that while plenty of people hike alone, there can also be risks of hiking without a buddy.  But, for such a low-key hike on a random Thursday, I felt empowered and figured I'd be fine.  I parked at the West Parking Lot (discovering on my way that there is a Mt Falcon Park East Parking Lot that's basically right next to Red Rocks, which wasn't the one I was looking for for this trip...).  The West Parking Lot is right at the start of the same trails I'd hiked on many times as a child.  With camera in hand, boots on my feet, pack on my back, off I went. 

I made my way down Tower Trail, and headed off to the right to go up to the Eagle Eye Shelter. 

Looking out over the view, the greens and blues vibrant and picturesque, I felt a sense of calm.  After taking some time alone, taking in the view, I started hiking again.  I continued on my way down Tower Trail to get to the Fire Tower.  Up on the tower was a view of Denver, looking so small and distant.  I continued along Tower Trail until connecting with the Old Ute Trail and made my way around that loop, enjoying the solitude I found on this trail.  For how busy and chaotic Colorado has seemed to get over recent years, it was nice to know that on a random Thursday morning the trails aren't completely packed, and for several stretches I found myself alone, surrounded by nothing but trees, the sounds of birds and bugs, fresh air.  I continued walking, discovering I still had the sense of excitement about trying to make my way to the ruins, one of the historic points of interest along the trail.  I went along the Meadow Trail and connected to Castle Trail, a smile on my face when the ruins came into view.

Reminded again of many days of adventuring with my family, I snapped more photos and enjoyed looking around.  After spending what time I needed around one of my favorite childhood places, I finished hiking along the Castle Trail to get back to the car.  The loop I went on was just a couple miles, but it was filled with solitude, lovely nostalgia, taking pictures, basking in the beautiful sun and views... And I made it back to Denver in time to pick up the dog from the dentist.  The total distance of trails they have in Mt Falcon Park is over 12 miles, so I hope to take more time jaunting around there in the hopefully near future on another random weekday. to enjoy more miles, more pictures, and more smiles.

Hanging Lake in Glenwood Springs

Back when I had made reservations for the Grand Canyon, I had also found a Groupon for a cost-effective overnight in Glenwood Springs.  Still eager to get downtime away from my demanding schedule and the busy city, we went for it.  I made arrangements just for one night, a quick jaunt to get away without having to take time off work.  As we neared the weekend, we decided that we didn't want to put too much pressure on ourselves for the weekend, but instead could take the opportunity to let the weekend unfold organically.  So we left late morning on Saturday the 24th, dropped the dog with family (thank you Jamie!!), and began the drive from Denver. 

Due to some infuriating traffic, we ended up having a bit of a delay from when we were able to get in.  No matter, we kept our cool with good music and conversation, and felt relieved when we arrived to our destination.  The Sunlight Lodge Bed & Breakfast is about 20-30 minutes south of the town-center of Glenwood Springs, tucked in near the Sunlight Mountain Ski Resort.  We were greeted warmly by Jason who manages the Lodge and were given a quick tour of the facility and then settled in.  Given the time we arrived and being tired, we decided just to lay low instead of trying to hike or do anything in particular.  In the basement of the B&B is the Lodge where they have a restaurant and pub, so we headed down.  We learned quickly that this is a locals hangout!  So with some beers and food, we enjoyed good company and some basketball.  It was a great little spot!  We had so much fun.  I would absolutely stay again!  The room wasn't glamorous but it sufficed, the Groupon was a great deal, the people were great, the food was good, the bed was comfortable enough, wifi was spotty at times but you know... that's not why we were there, ya know?  They had dogs in the bar, Chris got to watch the game, we got to chat with nice people... Sometimes just to belly up at the bar is really fun.  Overall, a beautiful stay, I look forward to finding myself up there again sometime.

The next morning we had a complimentary buffet breakfast and packed up.  We debated between going to the hot springs or hitting a trail.  After seeing a very full parking lot at the hot springs, we decided to head to Hanging Lake which is about 7 miles east of Glenwood Springs.  The website we looked at indicated that Hanging Lake was a hard hike during the summer months, but that the winter made it a difficult one.  With how warm the weather has been in Colorado recently, and with the Hanging Lake being a National Natural Landmark (one of only 14 in Colorado), we figured it would be worth it, and a toss-up as to the exact conditions of the trail...

We arrived around 10am, and we got one of the last few parking spots in the lot.  It's a fairly small lot, I think they do that on purpose to limit the amount of foot traffic to preserve the area (so my advice is to get there early if you want to do this one).  Knowing that the lake sits only a little over a mile up the trail, we packed relatively light to have water, trekking poles and a little food just in case.  About halfway up I was grateful for the trekking poles.  There was just enough snow on the ground, but it had been packed down by other hikers, warmed just enough by the sun to become slush, and cold enough to freeze over again.  There were portions of the trail that were completely dry particularly at the beginning, then it was a mix of mud, then slush, then ice, then mud, then ice... 

Cautious stepping was required for a good portion of the hike.  And it was steep with lots of switchbacks.  There are rocks and periodically you'll come across a bench if you need a rest.  There were portions of the hike when I felt like it was not so bad, and then others when I cursed my weight for being hard to lug up certain sections, getting passed by others and feeling like I couldn't keep up.  There was a specific point when Chris and I got to talking about how this kind of hiking is likely what we need as we prepare for the wedding in September.  The more we do this kind of hike, the easier they will get (right?), and the more our bodies will adapt (one can hope?).  I love the idea of thinking about how my body can slim down, getting svelte and finding more comfort in my body again.  As I put one foot in front of the other, my lungs burning at times, reminding me that while I've never had good lung capacity the 13 years of smoking didn't help (despite that I quite 5 years ago - go me!), I can't help but sift through my brain about what I can possibly do to get onto a better track with my health.  If only ice cream and chocolate can be part of my weight loss... I feel like I eat relatively healthy in general, but even so much as looking at a candy bar seems to add a little more jiggle to my sides.  Chris and I had talked about how we bounce between the healthy sides of ourselves and the "party" sides, moving between salads and portion control to chili fries, alcohol and sweets.  I want to get to a point where I have better balance, my waistline trimming, my muscles toning... Yet I feel I've been on this road to slim down for so long without much success.  To lose 30 pounds between now and the wedding seems a bit more than difficult...

Suddenly I looked up, and we were at the final push.  The path got steeper with hand-railing offering some support for the last leg.  It required channeling a bit of "billy-goat" in order to get up some of steep and jagged rocks, but once up them the lake appeared.

The water was a lovely, rich turquoise, the falls splattering melodically, the air crisp and fresh.

The entire setting seemed so picturesque! 

We then elected to go the extra bit up Spouting Rock just above the lake to see the waterfall that flows into Hanging Lake.  The short jaunt well worth it, and not difficult at all (especially compared to what we had just climbed up).  And while we were up there, we were the only people there.  We had this lovely waterfall to ourselves for a time. 

It was stunning.  I was even more grateful that we had hiked instead of going to the hot springs for a soak.  While I'm sure the hot springs could have been relaxing, there was something delightfully rewarding about getting to this lake and seeing the waterfall.

The hike down was easier, several times being able to use some of the ice to rather "skate" down, trekking poles providing balance.  We passed many more people starting to make their way up as we were coming down, and we kindly provided insight when asked of what they should expect and distances still to go, while also offering encouragement as to what was in store for them if they make it to the lake.  It was nice to be able to give such assurance to others.

We got back to the car, many cars circling the lot in hopes of getting into a parking spot.  Part of me felt badly, I hate being rushed but also know they are hopeful to get in to see this wonderful thing... I had to remind myself that I don't owe them anything, someone will get our parking spot and will hopefully enjoy the hike.  Regardless, it was nice to be back to the car around noon to begin the drive back to Denver, arriving back with still enough time to get ready for the next week.  Not a bad way to spend 24-hours to get away for a bit.

Grand Canyon February 2018

I was sad to realize that, while I had good intentions in 2017 of hiking more and spending time outdoors, aside from one camping trip for the 4th of July which didn't include much in the way of hikes, 2017 was spent busy with various other things.  As I work hard to complete my master's degree, I am stuck oscillating between demanding obligations, my life getting turned upside down to accommodate what is required for the final phase of this program, and daydreaming over what I want to experience.  My hiking boots came out minimally in 2017, my blog collecting dust at my lack of outdoor engagement all year.  I hope this changes in 2018.

Sitting in my living room one night earlier this year, I realized that I was feeling irritated all the time, unsettled and uneasy. I hadn't been sleeping much, felt a lot of stress regularly, and without tolerance or capacity for much outside of my small bubble.  I was feeling disconnected.  I looked at my fiance, a wave of sadness coming over me that I am feeling disconnected even from the person I share my life with!  I knew something was needed, and he started talking about how we needed to get out of town.  So began the Groupon and Google searching for getaway deals that could get us out of town and in nature for a bit.  As I searched, the Grand Canyon came to mind.  The drive can be done in a day, my fiance has never been and the only time I have gone was a short stop to take a couple pictures and leave.  Because February is still the off season, I was able to find some cheap deals including the Maswik Lodge for only $70 a night that sits in close proximity to the South Rim of the Canyon (the North Rim still being closed this time of year).  I booked it for three nights, not really giving Chris the opportunity to voice his opinion on it, I basically just told him we're going! 

I knew we had only really one opportunity on the calendar where we had room enough in our schedules to make it work, the last weekend in February was it.  My academia getting more intense with my capstone paper and presentation prep and gearing up for licensing exams.  It will be May before I can really have space in my schedule again to accommodate much for getaways.  We started the drive on Friday February 23rd, leaving Denver early morning in effort to arrive to the lodge in time for dinner.  During the drive we enjoyed music and conversation, the connection time being good for us.  I made big efforts to avoid talking too much about grad school, final assignments, the studying I still have to get to.  We kept wedding discussions limited.  This was time for just us.

I drove the first leg, driving through the very snowy Wolf Creek Pass since I-70 westbound was closed for getting out of Denver that weekend.  Initially in our drive I had done well to shave some time, but this pass caused us to add time because of the need to take it slower.  I was surprised how well my little Toyota Corolla did.  We knew we would be passing through winter weather at some point during the trek, but boy I was glad to get to the other side of it.  We swapped places when we needed to gas up.  We had loaded up a cooler with snacks and lunch options before leaving, the idea being to limit how much we ate out during the four day trip, which resulted in me making deli sandwiches for us while he drove which was a humorous feat - as the car bounced and pickle juice, crumbs and mayo got all over me, it was hard not to laugh, but we were determined to make as few stops as we could.  As we grew closer to the lodge, some winter weather greeting us again, we followed the GPS instructions, unaware of road closures ahead as we were heading toward the North Rim area of the Canyon.  We got flagged down by a caravan of other drivers heading in the other direction who told us that the road ahead was closed, a sense of defeat coming over us as we sat 45 minutes from where a bed awaited us, tired from 10 hours of driving.  We called the lodge and they confirmed that getting into the Canyon from the north was impossible and that we would have to drive to Flagstaff, 60 miles away from where we were, and then connect with a different route that would cause us to overshoot the Canyon and come up from the south to get there.  This excursion would add 3 more hours to our drive.  With no other choice, we made our way to Flagstaff, making note that any future road trips will also come with us checking road closures more deliberately before leaving.  We stopped for dinner in Flagstaff at Lumberyard Brewing Co, the taste of beer and fried mac-n-cheese bites being a welcomed treat to fortify us for the final leg.  It was 11pm before we were checking into the lodge.  (A quick warning to anyone looking to stay at one of these lodges down near the Canyon, signage is pretty poor throughout this little "Village Loop" so it was a bit difficult to find where we needed to go especially when it was so dark out.)

The next morning we took the morning slow, going to the cafeteria at the Maswik for breakfast.  Chris had read reviews that the food at the lodge was awful, but honestly it was about what I'd expect from cafeteria food.  It certainly wasn't fine dining, but it was edible and that was about what we needed.  We determined the plan for the day to walk along the South Rim Trail and see if we were up for hiking down into the Canyon since the Bright Angel trailhead was close by.  It was a lovely surprise to discover that our lodge was literally just a couple minutes walk up from the canyon.

We walked along the South Rim Trail starting at the Bright Angel trailhead and walked a total of 14 miles that day, looking out over the Canyon in wonderment, enjoying conversation as we walked.  We saw blue birds and ravens, the further away from the bus stops we ended up passing some deer and more wildlife that was willing to come out in the lesser populated areas.  It was amusing when we would come up on one of the stops along the bus route where tourists were grouped together getting their selfies and groupies and jumping photos to throw up on social medias.  Not dissimilar to my first time at the Canyon almost ten years ago, they weren't necessarily there to hike or experience the Canyon but to get the photos saying they were there and then go hang out in the lodge and collect souvenirs from the little gift shops.  I've always loved people watching, unique attire including bejeweled heels and pajama pants with wooden clogs made their appearance at the Canyon.  Despite it being the off-season and still winter there were a surprising amount of people there, though we were among the few actually determined to hike.  After our long day of walking this lovely, accessible, mostly paved trail, we ended with dinner at one of the restaurants in one of the lodges in the "Village Loop" that was at the Bright Angel Lodge, grateful to be sitting with the promise of food on the way.  Chris looked at me with a smile, noting that since we had 30,000 steps behind us, we could truly eat whatever we wanted and not have to feel guilty about it.  He ordered a beer and I got a glass of wine and we ordered soup to help us warm up, two pasta dishes to share, and bread pudding for dessert.  The quality of the food at this lodge restaurant far excelled in comparison to the cafeteria at our lodge, and the server was a sweet woman with a southern drawl who was very supportive in our food and beverage selections.  It was delightful.

We went back to the room and I think I got the best nights sleep I've had in a long time, my legs and abs sore, my camera full of shots from the Canyon, my future husband next to me.  We set the alarm for early enough to catch the sunrise over the Canyon that, while a very brisk morning, was stunning.

We got a little breakfast at the cafeteria again and brought books with us for a little reading and relaxation, no pressure to really get moving that morning since we had accomplished a lot of site seeing on Saturday.  We did agree that it would be great to try hiking down into the Canyon some, Chris having been eyeballing the trail while we were walking the South Rim, trying to discern about how long it would take and if there would be a way to get far enough to see the river.  With the Bright Angel Trailhead being so close we decided it was worth it to hike even if just a couple miles down.

 It was a great hike, not too intense when compared to some of the trails we've been on in Colorado.  There were switchbacks but they didn't seem too steep.  There was some snow and mud so I was glad to have trekking poles with us, though we quickly recognized the need for upgrading our trekking poles in the future, one of them actually breaking in half during the hike.  It was clear that folks had thought through when toilets might be needed along this trail since there really isn't a good private place to stop off when one might need to, because sure enough there are rest houses going down, and they managed to appear right around when they were needed.  So we stopped at the First House which is about 1.5 miles down, took care of business, snapped a couple photos, then continued the hike down stopping at the 3 Mile House for a lunch of deli sandwiches and trailmix, then hiked back up.  The switchbacks heading back up seemed a little more aggressive than when we had gone down, but were still not too bad overall.  Chris' pedometer logged that we went an equivalent of almost 80 flights of stairs according to the steepness of our hike, totaling a little over 6 miles roundtrip.  We stopped again at the lodge restaurant we had gone to the day before, this time hitting them near the end of their lunch hours.  The turkey burger (definitely a frozen patty reheated and thrown on a bun) wasn't nearly as fulfilling as the pasta dish from the night before, but we were still grateful for the meal.  I couldn't help but again feeling a bit amused looking around the room at those who were dining, many of which didn't look like they had even been outside that day.  I couldn't help but being proud of myself for the hiking we had done over two days. 

The next day we drove back, I-70 being opened again so we went up through Moab, discussing future roadtrips, ideas of camping down in the Grand Canyon the next trip down, how a jaunt back to Moab has been well overdue and how great it would be to explore more that is relatively close to us.  Getting the break away was a breath of fresh air, opened new and deeper conversations than we had been sharing recently, allowing stresses to take a breather.  I'm so grateful for the time away.

A start to October - Maroon Bells

I'm a bit delayed on getting in a post about our most recent hike, but life sometimes just simply gets busy.  What I can say is that Maroon Bells is gorgeous, despite that every time we go it gets busier and busier.  This last time, though, took the cake when it came to the large amount of people we saw there... it bordered on alarming.

My fiancé (it's still so exciting to say that!) and I have decided that, while we have some time before our projected wedding date, we would take some time to tour a couple of potential spots for our wedding.  I am very attracted to the idea of the mountains for our wedding day, but also want to be mindful of expenses.  Maroon Bells is not only beautiful, but has been a meaningful spot for us during the course of our relationship.  There is a little amphitheater up there which could be a great place to tie the knot and is an inexpensive ceremony space to boot.  So we decided to take a look to see if this might be the location for our wedding in 2018.

A couple of our friends agreed to join us in the trek up to Aspen in the early morning on a Saturday in early October, the leaves changing, the air starting to get crisper as the seasons transition.  We dropped off our dog with my future sister-in-law, picked up our friends, and set off for our three hour jaunt to get to Aspen.  It was smooth sailing until we get closer to Maroon Bells.  Suddenly there was a massive amount of traffic, we literally sat for an hour to drive half a mile near the entrance to the mountains.  When we got up a ways a park ranger informed us that all parking lots at the bells were completely full and that we had to go back into town to fetch the local bus to take us to the guided tour bus to get to the mountain.  I can say that it was a bit frustrating.  So another hour went by for us to get back to town, fetch one bus, get tickets for the guided tour bus, hop on that bus and then ride to the mountain base at Maroon Lake.  We were informed by the guided tour driver that at any given moment there were at least 1,500 people on the mountain that day.  It was actually heartbreaking to see so many people there.  Granted it was a Saturday, and one of the last good weekends to see the fall leaves, however sometimes you want to tell people, "get off my dang mountain!"

Maroon Bells is one of the most photographed places in the world (the most photographed peaks in North America).  The bells actually look like a painting across the sky they are so magnificent.  It catches your breath.

Photographs literally don't do it justice...

But to see all these people, and knowing that they are simply there for a photo-op and not to actually unite with nature and experience the mountain, my heart sunk and my level of irritation rose.  There was absolutely no space that you could go to simply be separate and take peace with the mountain.  I tried to shrug it off, I tried to stay in the moment and enjoy as much as I could simply because we were there.

We took a look at the amphitheater, nothing terribly "wowing" about the small space other than the magnificent view behind it.  We decided to trek down a path toward Crater Lake, about a mile and a half one way.  It took longer to walk than expected, having to regularly stop behind someone who was snapping a picture or having to move to the side to pass or let someone else through on the trail.  Ultimately since we didn't start our short hike until about 2:30 pm, and the last shuttle to take us down from the mountain was leaving at 4:30 pm, we turned back around at 3:30 pm without getting all the way to Crater Lake, but near enough that we could see a little bit of it in the distance.

Crater Lake in the distance...

Our day turned out to be so much longer than we initially intended, the length being added due to the throngs of people on the mountain and the hordes of cars.  Don't they know that this is my mountain?  That this is our spot?

What was good to see for wedding purposes is that while it is a beautiful location, it would be a logistical nightmare, more stress than we will want on our wedding day.  And we still got to see the mountains, and walk in the fresh air a bit.  I love opportunities to be in nature, to recenter myself, to ground myself.  We made the most of our jaunt, and we were in good company which made it all the more enjoyable.  We learned a good lesson, and we got to view the bells which is always a wonderful thing.

We grabbed a "quick" bite in the town of Aspen (what was also discovered is that there really isn't a "quick" option in Aspen... no fast food eateries, and even when you request quick service it's still a couple hours for a sit-down meal), and then we made our way back to Denver, arriving home much later than we had anticipated for the day.  Maybe visiting on a Saturday wasn't the best idea, but I'm still glad that we went.

Regardless of any amount of griping I could do about crowds and how much longer our day was than we had hoped, it is still a beautiful space, and we had a great short hike in a special and meaningful place.

Travels in Ireland - covering ground, making new waves in life!

I cannot say that suddenly I'm fit as a fiddle, or that any weight was dropped during my adventure in Ireland (the food and drink are far too good), but being able to study abroad and tour a beautiful country, it becomes easy to rack up steps!  Not the same as making way up one of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado, the terrain very different, but I would average about 15,000 steps a day in Ireland, which is a huge increase from my typical days previously where I would be lucky to break 5,000 steps as my days were primarily spent at a stressful desk job.  Before leaving on this three week adventure, I was forced to resign - the agency (actually my supervisor to be specific) was unable to make accommodations for me to be gone for the length of time that I would be away.  Ultimately leaving this agency was a blessing in disguise.  I was stressed all the time, and the return on my personal and professional investments were relatively void and only added to frustrations.  Concerns about financial stability  made stepping into the unknown a bit scary, yet also I felt a significant sense of relief wash over me knowing that I wouldn't have to return to a job where I didn't see any growth.  I would instead be going on an incredible adventure and then trusting the next steps in my process (thank you Universe and whatever powers may be)!

I left on August 2nd, arriving in Dublin on August 3rd.  My first time traveling internationally on my own so that I could attend an intensive course, A Counselor's View, looking at mental health across cultures and specifically the use of play therapy abroad.  There was a wonderful sense of home that I experienced in Ireland.  A sense of peace, comfort, feeling welcomed and safe.  We had the opportunity to see wonderful relics throughout Dublin, such as St. Patrick's Cathedral and going to the Wicklow mountains to see the Powerscourt House and Gardens and Glendalough.  We had a literary pub crawl around town, visiting numerous pubs and being entertained by delightful Irish actors.  A night of theatre to see the Riverdance at the Gaiety Theatre.  Seeing the ancient Book of Kells and the Longs Room where 200,000 books live on old shelves, a fragrance to the air of old books and a bit sweet almost.  A day in Belfast (I can hardly find the words to describe the impact of this experience alone!) and a day in Galway to explore other areas of Ireland.  We were given the opportunity to explore on our own, adventuring around the city center of Dublin such as Temple Bar and a ghost tour.  And the food... Oh I could talk for hours about the food!  We experienced wonderful eats, good drink, hooleys and fun, and then of course plenty of lecture at Trinity College.  It was meaningful to me to actually stay and learn at Trinity College, a familial connection to the campus.  Participating in this course and the Institute in general was very meaningful, and worth every bit of sacrifice in order to partake in it.  It meant that I was away from my partner, Chris, for the longest span of time since we started dating almost five years ago, a distance that technology today helps to bridge with Skype and email.  It meant losing my job, with the realization that it was not a positive work environment and that likely I won't be without income for long as other jobs will be found.  It meant investing a lot of money, but you can't take it with you anyway, right?  In general I still find it hard to actually describe the immense impact that this opportunity had on my life.  I am so grateful to have been able to study in Ireland.

 It was two weeks into my journey that the course ended and Chris came to Ireland to join me, from there we would then embark on an International Road Trip.  I collected him from the airport, and we picked up our rental car that our dear family friend, Sean, assisted us with reserving.  The goal then was to keep Chris awake as long as possible in order to ensure that he could adjust to the time change.  We had lunch and pints at the Ginger Man (one of my new favorite restaurants), we walked to the Dublin Castle and St. Patrick's Cathedral to walk about the outsides before going to the Guinness Storehouse for a tour followed by a pint at the top where there was a beautiful view all the way around to see Dublin in all its historic glory.  After some adventuring, we made our way back to Ashbourne for the night, too exhausted to stay awake any longer.  It was then where I finally realized how exhausted I was from Institute, having an agenda which kept us constantly moving from first thing until late night each day.  I welcomed a full night of sleep, finally next to my love again.

The next day we ventured to the Powerscourt Waterfall to start our touring around the Wicklow Mountains.  We were expecting to have a bit of a hike from the parking lot to get to the waterfall, as this is how most natural treasures are in Colorado, however it was a quick couple minutes from the car.  It was nice that we were there relatively early that there weren't too many tourists flooding the area yet.  (I will say, Ireland has had a record increase of tourism recently between affordable travel rates and the fame of certain parts of Ireland being used to film scenes in popular movies and television shows, and somehow word got out that Ireland is one of the most beautiful countries in the world, needless to say there was lots of tourism traffic throughout our time in Ireland.)  We went up to the large waterfall and took some pictures, enjoying the sites and wandering around the rocks.  Chris redirected us down around to the base of the waterfall, there was a wonderful rock to sit on that was perfect for capturing the bottom of the waterfall. 

Chris settled next to me, but suddenly gave me a quick kiss and said "hey honey, I have a question for you."  I looked at him and obliviously said, "yeah, what's up?"  He then said something along the lines of, "I wanted to find the most beautiful spot as this is an important questions..." and then I can honestly say I don't remember what else came from his mouth as I caught onto what was happening and the whirlwind of "what is going on??" and "ohmygodohmygodohmygod..!!!" and "took him long enough!" and "I can't believe this is happening!" and "are you serious?!?!" and on and on went through my head.  Then he asked the very important question, "Will you marry me?"  He brought the ring from his pocket, and it was as if the wind had been knocked out of me.  My hands clasped around my mouth, I looked at him and back at the ring, tears overflowing my eyes, I failed to remember how to speak.  Eventually I caught breath and was able to say, "Yes!  Yes of course!  Oh my god Yes!"  I kissed him and put the ring on, wiping mascara from my face.  I thanked him and kissed him again, still in a state of disbelief.

We then took a walk about, finding a pathway to jaunt around, hand in hand, talking of the future in terms of "when" instead of the "if" which had taunted me for years.  I felt our love swell between us as he told me about how long he had wanted to ask me, discussing light plans on when we will and how we want to get married, how he had asked my mother a year and a half ago, the thought he put into the ring and the meaning behind the stone. After our time at the Powerscourt Waterfall we went to Glendalough, walking around the relics of the 7 churches and tombstones from the ancient monk settlement.  Eventually we made our way up to the path that overlooked the Upper Lake which was beautiful.  So far we were off to an excellent start!  We then spent the week together touring Ireland and celebrating our engagement between just us two, and would share more broadly once back home.  We broke away from the immediacy of social media and having to share to word promptly, and instead got to relish in this new step in our lives together, just us two.

The next day we ventured from the Dublin area down to see the Kilkenny Castle and then to the Rock of Cashel.  We stayed the night in Cork City staying at the Creedon's Bed & Breakfast, the next morning taking a spin through the Old English Market before venturing to Cobh to see the sites.  We walked the stretch of the old harbor city where the Titanic had launched from, ending at a Titanic Memorial.  We were able to go down to the ocean side and touched the water.  We then went to Midleton to see the Jameson Distillery that is still working, we had a tour and some drinks and met some wonderful people.  It still fascinated me after almost 3 weeks being in Ireland as to how kind people are, everyone a friend.  We then drove to Killarney where we stayed at the Killarney Avenue Hotel, greeted by a bottle of champagne and a box of chocolates courtesy of my Mom and Sean as a congratulations on our engagement (two of the few we had shared the news with at this point).  The next day we made our way to the Torc Waterfall and went on a terrific hike.  We went to the top of the Torc Waterfall, down to the lake, and then followed a sign that indicated that there were rose gardens down the way which ultimately led us to the Muckross House and Gardens that was lovely to visit.  We then continued to follow the trail which led us to the lower part of the Torc Waterfall, then up a zillion natural stairs to Aghadoe which overlooks the Killarney Lake, and then back to the car.  Being in the County Kerry area we decided to cruise around some of the Ring of Kerry, going about halfway around.  It was a fine jaunt, but ultimately it's going from little town, then seeing the ocean, then through a little town, then seeing the ocean - all of which was beautiful however after a while you get the point, so instead of going around the entire ring we turned back when we were about halfway and headed up to Dingle where we stayed for the night.  I must strongly recommend that if you ever find yourself in Dingle, you simply must stay at Ard-na-Mara Country House bed and breakfast.  They are simply marvelous!  It is a quaint little place just off of Slea Head Drive, about a mile away from the town center, and the couple who owns and operates it are just delightful!  We had a great meal in town and wandered around the harbor, drove part of the Slea Head Drive and then took some rest.  We had a wonderful homemade breakfast in the morning before taking off for Tralee to see the rose gardens, then made our way up the west coast, caught a ferry and headed to Kilkee.  It was recommended by Sean that we bypass the Cliffs of Moher which are constantly overrun by tourists and instead see the Cliffs of Kilkee which are stunning.  Chris said that had he not been anxious to propose early during our trip that this would have been his second choice of location.  I don't blame him!  The cliffs are breathtaking!

After we finished walking the area we drove over to Bunratty, and I will again recommend that if you are ever staying in this area a wonderful place to stay is the Courtyard at Bunratty, another bed and breakfast run by a wonderful and very genuine couple.  We had a large room down a quiet hall where we were able to settle in for two nights.  We had supper at the Creamery which was wonderful.  Tuckered by all the driving and touring, we headed back to our room a bit early.  The next day we went up to Galway, and I shared with Chris little tid-bits from what I had learned about Galway during Institute, seeing little relics around the city center.  We ended up at a tattoo shop, taking the opportunity to get some designs that we both have wanted for a while, documenting our big life experience.  Our tattoo artist was a unique guy named Joey who did incredible fine line work and chatted about politics (quite a Nationalist that guy).  It was a memorable experience, and documenting with a tattoo seemed fitting for Chris and I.  I'm grateful to share so much with this man.  We returned to Bunratty, had supper at Durty Nelly's and enjoyed our last night in Ireland together.
It was perfect.  We were exhausted, and we are happy.

Best... Trip... EVER!