Dave&Callie: 06_25 to 07_02_2013 Mom, Hannah and Zoe do Colorado, Park III

Day four starts with a trip to the Boulder Rock Club (BRC) so the girls could climb. It was their first times.

Thinking they enjoyed it - they tried everything I put them on.

No one got afraid and each made it to the to of every climb I put them on.

By the end, each was tying their own figure 8 knots.

If there wasn't a bell, they made bell sounds to indicate victory.

More instruction. :)

More climbing.

Overhanging stuff presented greater challenges.

And lowering revealed some vulnerabilities. :)

Climbing...

Cranking. They decided they'd had enough so we headed back to the house. We had lots to do: need to pack up and head to Alamosa, CO to prep for a day at the Great Sand Dunes!

One concern is that there has been a huge wildfire near the area (West Fork Complex). I worried about the air quality (lots of smoke). And with so many people evacuated, I worried there would be no hotel rooms. Happily, though the fire is just awful, it didn't look like it's affect our plans.

So off we went. Our first pass was Kenosha (10k). Here the girls were able to use a new skill learned on this trip. :)

Not sure who taught them this vital skill. :/

An experienced pro at work.

Hannah demonstrating her mad skillz.

And Zoe showing off her unique approach to the problem.

The trip to the Sand Dunes takes us through South Park - yes, the real South Park. We stopped to get a few photos while there.

Fun place!

For whatever reason, we passed many WIDE LOAD trucks. This one was the biggest we'd ever seen. It was more than wide. Happily, we stayed on the road.

Nearing Alamosa, we stopped at a convenience store. We didn't need to go the bathroom. We didn't need a snack. We didn't need a drink. Rather, we needed photos with the giant chicken!

And Pelican!

More Pelican!

Chicken gansters

Storks!

More storks!

Think the chicken was the best though

Every iteration of the giant animals and us were taken

Stork and fish

Callie and Chicken. Cool.

Brown Pelican. How can someone not look cool with a brown Pelican statue?

We arrived in Alamosa after 17 bathroom stops and checked quickly into the hotel. Then we raced over to the Alamosa Wildlife Refuge for a quick run abour the auto tour. Saw several good birds. The White-Faced Ibis and Yellow-Headed Black-Birds may have been the favorites.

Here we are looking at a Western Kingbird. Another favorite and excellent sighting was two Great Horned Owls perched in a tree. Beautiful birds.

So it appears the wind put an end to the Lamplighter Motel Sign. Classy. :)

The only sign missing on the front window of the motel is one stating you can buy lotto tickets there. Or maybe one that notes it'll wire money to some other country. :) It is a great little motel though.