Colorado and beyond

From New Mexico we traveled onward into Colorado...what beautiful country, we could see the mountains from quite a distance and I call these types of mountains man mountains...they are all jagged and rugged! After we got settled in the RV park we took Bender and drove up a nearby mountain....while we were drivingup... it started to snow, so we stopped and I got to see the snow falling

down...enchanting...beautiful...and I was so excited! 

On the way back to Esprit we stopped at a Marijuana shop! Yes...you heard me...a Marijuana shop!

 We saw Marijuana in so many forms..mind blowing, they had some that was six hundred dollars for an ounce 😲 we had so much fun with the young man, he was excited to hear about our trip due to the fact he had relocated and from Florida. He told us about a hidden gem called Zapata Falls. This is a waterfall located in the San Luis Valley near the base of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, you have to drive the backcountry Medano Pass Primitive Road and this winds through a canyon toward the Sangre de Cristo mountains.The falls has a drop of about thirty feet and to gain access to this waterfall you have to take a hike that entails traipsing thru a stream and climbing rocks. It was beautiful but it was still frozen with water flowing under the ice. 

We noticed a small path off the beaten path to the left on the way out...so off we went, we didn’t know it but we had started on a 4 mile climb up the Sangre de Cristo Mountain! It was a wonderful climb, with snow (I built a small snowman) and gorgeous views...at the end was a beautiful mountain lake! From the top of the mountain you can see the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve. It’s known for huge dunes, like the towering Star Dune, and for the seasonal Medano Creek and beach created at the base of the dunes. The tallest dunes in North America are the centerpiece for this diverse landscape of grasslands, wetlands, conifer and aspen forests, alpine lakes, and tundra. We climbed to top of these majestic dunes...quite a feat because I had some nasty blisters on my feet!