Hi Gram,
I am just having such an amazing time visiting friends, building new memories, seeing the beauty of nature, and documenting it all for you. To be honest, though, I have somewhat selfish ulterior motives to writing this all down – I get to live it all again for the first time when I go back and re-read it. It used to make me angry to see descriptions of what I had done, having no memory of it. I would get depressed and beat myself up for not being able to remember my adventures, even after reading my own words that should have been a reminder. Over the years, I’ve come to peace with it, though. Since I started putting my letters to you on my website, it makes it easier to go back and re-read them and I view it now as an adventure I can take in my mind when I’m feeling down. “Ooh! It looks like I had a great time there!” or “Oh, I always wondered about that place. I’m glad I went and saw it!” Anyways, enough of the tangent. Let’s get to the mountains!

Monday morning, I woke up and got ready for the next leg of my adventure. I did a load of laundry while I socialized with friends before they headed to the airport, looked at the swamp cooler with John, packed up my stuff, loaded my bike and tools in the car, and tried to make sure I left no trace behind for Amberly and John to have to clean up. I said my goodbyes and headed south, stopping to see Jesse and the kids before I left town. I was headed to Crested Butte to visit Mark and his daughter Katie, and really looking forward to the trip. Mark is one of the first friends I met in the CampFI community a few years ago and we always have thought-provoking conversations when I see him. Well, not always deep and thought-provoking… sometimes we just talk about random stuff that doesn’t require much thought or introspection, but they’re always very enjoyable. My route took me almost immediately into the mountains and I spent the next couple of hours winding through scenery more vivid than I’ve seen on any postcard or nature documentary. It was like driving through another world with tree-carpeted mountains rising up beside me, waterfalls and creeks hushing everyone with the sound of the rushing water, wild flowers speckled along the terrain alongside the highway, and of course the skies that are somehow more blue than seems natural and the sun illuminating it all.

Amberly and John sent me off with some leftover chicken, rice, and beans from Chipotle, so about half or three quarters of the way through my drive, as I pulled into Buena Vista, I pulled over at a park to stretch my legs again and draw in some of the mountain air. I walked into a park and sat on a bench facing the water. I’d barely sat down when Jack Johnson (may not be his real name, but that’s what I remember) walked over with his two little dogs and sat on the bench next to me. For my whole meal, he regaled me with stories of growing up here, going to school at the brick building that is now a museum and used to be a jail, how his first wife left him, his second wife passed away, and now his Nancy and he have been together for 20 years. I heard about how he built his businesses, how Nancy was the top Avon rep for the area and was a motivational speaker, how her dad made his millions and she made her millions, how his dogs were his little fur babies… I could barely get a word in edgewise as his stream of thought drove me through the life and times of a random man. I kept trying to steer the conversation back to get more details, but he was off and running with another story. As if he was timing the whole encounter, he abruptly got up, said he had to take the dogs home, and left just as I was finishing my dinner. I could not have made up an odder experience.

Shaking my head, I got up off the park bench, walked around the park a little, then finished my drive, alive with beautiful scenery. Mark and Katie welcomed me into their home, showed me to my room, then we all sat and chatted for a while about airlines, hotels, points, hikes, bands, and Katie’s CPA exam. The time flew past, a theme that I’m sure will continue all week, and next thing I knew it was late and time for bed.