Florida, Massachussets, New Mexico and Colorado, USA - Family visits and hiking

Near the end of April, my Aunt Ellen got married. Lots of family, including Uncle Jim, were there and the dessert was excellent. In early May, I was in Boston and had a good visit with Dad, Elizabeth, and Emily.

In May, I flew to Albuquerque, New Mexico to watch Karla and Daniel get married. Karla's family adopted me; which means they let me sleep on the floor, fed me and let me do the dishes. I rented my first car that weekend and had lots of fun driving.

Then I went up to visit John and Cathy near Dolores, Colorado. I met their son Reilly. John is a pilot and we took an enjoyable flight up to Grand Junction for the day. We also did some hiking and a bike ride.

John and Cathy have a great life. They live on a few acres in rural Colorado. They have chickens, goats, a horse, and some ducks. Reilly has his own petting zoo. Now, if I had to choose a place to live, I would say southwest Colorado. They are near the mountains and near the desert and canyons. They are no where near a big city.

After a good visit on the Gillis Farm, I went up to visit my cousins in Telluride. I did a bunch of day hikes and then set off on a week long backpacking trip.

My cousin Liana dropped me off at Woods Lake. Five minutes later I took the wrong path and walked 13 miles west, instead of south. I spent the next two days on dirt roads, hiking trails, game trails, and bush whacking. Near the end of the third day I was stuck in a valley with no place to camp and lots of private property. I got a ride down to John's place and met his new baby, Malaika.

I had a good weekend visit and then went up to Lizard Head Pass. I hiked up into the mountains and over a snow covered pass. I spent that night near Navajo Lake at 11,200 feet above sea level. The next day I lost the trail and eventually ended up where I meant to and finished my backpacking trip.

After another few days in Telluride, I came over to Colorado Springs. I visited Karla and Daniel and we went hiking and biking.

During the final weekend in June, we went camping at my favorite place in North America - The Great Sand Dunes National Monument in Colorado. We camped near the entrance to the park on Friday night and on Saturday we started hiking. The trail was pretty sandy and slow going. Around mid-afternoon we found a nice spot in the middle of the sand and put the tent up. Two seconds later it started to rain heavily.

After the rain, and a brief nap, I headed out onto the sand for a long barefoot walk. When I returned from my walk, I joined Karla and Daniel on a walk in the sand. Then they went back for dinner and I continued out into the sand. It was a bit cloudy and the sand was damp from the rain, so I was able to walk barefoot in the sand for about four or five hours. I had a great time rolling down the dunes. That night I slept out under the stars.

On the 26th of June, Karla and I drove to Santa Fe and I bought a new pair of boots. I am looking forward to breaking them in over the next few months.

On the 27th I flew back to Florida and spent the next weekend visiting with cousins and other family members. Tomorrow I will fly to New Jersey and start work for the summer. My nine month vacation is over and I am eager to start work again.