We Love You, Colorado

Denver Metro Area: September 4th through 15th, 2023

We are from Denver, so it's always good to get back to the area. Unfortunately, this trip also meant many trips to doctors and dentists, and the coach went to Transwest three times (nothing serious, but they can't get all of the tire pressure monitoring sensors to work). We managed to get together with friends while we were there.

One random, fun day was spent at a little park in Westminster. It was down the street from where Monica used to live, but she didn't even know about it. Lacey chased a ball in the grass, and it was a good time. After many months in humidity, it was nice to feel dry air again.

We had some friends over for a summer party, too, which was awesome. Mike, Heather, and Joe even stayed at St. Vrain State Park with us. We grilled, everyone ate, and we ended up playing Swoop -- of course! Always a good time.

We still have a lot in storage at our friend Lisa's house and at Allie's house. Monica went over to Lisa's to take photos of things to sell, find more to donate, and make a big pile of things to go to Robin at our next location in Grand Junction. So much stuff, still -- getting rid of two houses and consolidating into one RV (even a big one) is tough.

Grand Junction: September 16th through 29th, 2023

Our time in Denver was the fastest two weeks ever, and soon we were headed over the Rocky Mountains to the other side. We had beautiful, perfect weather for our trip, and we both loved it.

We've spent a lot of time in the mountains, and we'll never get enough. We both miss them when we're away (though we don't miss the snow).

Our site at the Grand Junction KOA was phenomenal and we will be back! We had a bit of real, healthy grass as well as a paving stone area where we had real patio furniture and a full-sized grill. The space couldn't have been better.

Allie drove up to Grand Junction the same day we did and stayed our first week with us. It was so nice to have her there. Sue and Toni even came with their RV, so Lacey and her half-sister Mollie could play. Robin lives in Grand Junction just down the road, so we were lucky to see her often. We could have stayed there forever (except for that pesky snow). We played a ton of cards and had a great time hanging out together.

And then we bought a new car! Since buying our big car hauler, we knew the Lexus RX 450h wasn't really up to the task of towing it anywhere if necessary. We were going to get a 7-pin connector installed so we could use auxiliary brakes, but it wasn't ideal. So, we went to look at Jeeps and end up with a new Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe Overland. It can tow the trailer without any issues. It's also an EV as well as a gas-engine vehicle, so we can run on electric around town. It's saving us a ton of money on gas. The Lexus was a hybrid vehicle but you couldn't charge it separately or use only electric.

The Overland can also change its suspension by lifting the body up when we need to get over things or we're on a rocky road, and it will lower itself to get in and out. It's a really slick feature, and it will allow us to get more places without any concerns.

When Margot sold her previous car to buy the Lexus, she sold the car to Sue and Toni. This time, they bought the Lexus. How cool is that?!

Our big road trip was to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and Curecanti National Recreation Area. It was fun to take the new Jeep, Allie, and Robin along with us and have plenty of room. Both parks are favorites of ours, and we had the best day. The weather and the company were perfect.

We took both rims of the canyon on the way to Curecanti and back to Grand Junction. On the way home before it got dark, we stopped at Pioneer Point and hiked out to the edge in a couple spots. The lighting was perfect and the scenery was absolutely gorgeous.

We went out to dinner a few times, and one of those times saw the night end with actual dancing. When was the last time we went dancing? We didn't know. But it was fun.

Robin found fun things for us to do and see, and she made sure we went to the Fruita Fall Festival. It was a great time, and the food orders were monstrous. Who can eat seven potatoes worth of potato chips? Yikes!

We were also able to meet Robin's parents, kids, and grandkids we hadn't met before. It was such a sweet event (thanks, Robin!).

As always, our stay in Colorado was amazing. We really do miss it -- unless it's wintertime! It was time to keep heading west to stay away from the snow.