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On the road again….Colorado Day 5

Up early, off to church, then back on the road.

And we weren’t the only ones.

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The Ride the Rockies bike event was going on in Gunnison. We saw several hundred riders of all shapes, sizes, and ages sharing the road with the cars and trucks. What impressed me was the high number of retired aged people on bikes. Many people have told me that when running is too difficult on aging joints, the bike is the next obvious choice. It’s lower impact and still has the same perks as running. This seemed to be true for this group. It gives me hope that one day I’ll learn to enjoy the bike if/when running isn’t safe anymore.

After stopping at the store for some food/essentials, we finished the drive to Telluride. And I finally got my views of the San Juan Mountains.

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After we checked in and settled in, we drove out to see if the elk or deer were coming down to eat. We found a LOT of cow elk! We drove down to Trout lake and found this older couple walking. Stephen asked them about the condition of the roads around there in case we wanted to do some more trail exploring. As they got to talking, they told him they live in Texas during the winter and come to their house in CO during summers. He asked them what people around there do for jobs since the economy seems to be affecting everyone. The older gent laughed and said “They don’t do anything. Just wait around and strip all the tourists of their money!”.  After talking to them, we felt a lot better with a truck full of groceries and lodging away from town. There won’t be much yanking on our pockets. We travel frugally.

We are here for the next 5 days. Hiking, fishing, relaxing by the lakes, and many sunrises and sunsets. When we got to the Rico hotel, it was cold 42*. I made some hot chocolate and bundled up in a down comforter. I could get used to that.