The most beautiful place I've ever been.

You guys, this place is paradise.  But - not without struggle.  

I was taken to this place by a guy I dated when I was 21.

(Long story short... I met a great guy in Denver (from Durango) when I was 21.  That is how I learned about Durango / first visited it.  That guy's brother is now my son's baseball coach, his niece is my Photography Assistant here, and his nephew is in my son Miles' class, they play football together, and are good friends.)  And a friend I met that summer when I was 21 and stayed in touch with is my daughter's elementary Principal.  Small world much? :)  We call that "The Durango Tango" around here.  Everyone is super connected here in one way or by one person or another.)

Me... at 21... A fresh faced, small town Iowa girl - who was in Colorado for the summer... New to mountains, new to travel... Can you even imagine what I felt when I first saw these views 20+ years ago?!  This was the start of "I WILL live in Colorado at some point" goal that eventually (much, much later) became a reality. 

I have had a photo of this place hanging in every apartment since I was 21... every house... dreaming of going back one day.

My friend and I (both of us living in Austin at that time) flew to Durango, CO in Oct. 2018 for her 40th birthday to try and do this hike... but it was too late in the season (they had already gotten too much snow up there).  So - attempt 1 denied.

My husband and I (now living only 70 minutes from this hike) tried to do this hike in 2020... but he had issues with altitude because were were so much higher than normal.  So - attempt 2 - denied.

We planned on trying it a month or so later, but someone accidentally started a crazy wildfire at the start of the trail, so the whole trail had to close for the season.  

This summer, my husband and I quietly took a Friday off of work, and didn't talk about it much because we didn't want to "jinx" it.  But we made our way out of the house by 6:30am, hit the trailhead by 8am, and hiked 10 of THE MOST GORGEOUS miles we have ever seen.  Every turn was more beautiful than the last.  It was literally breathtaking... physically (from the altitude and elevation gain) and spiritually (it was even more beautiful than the photos show).

The colors of the water are absolutely incredible.  The wildflowers were icing on the cake.  It is a hike I will never forget, and one that I plan on doing again in the fall when the colors are popping from the Aspen trees.  

I haven't had time to get through my "big camera" photos yet... but here are some iphone pics.