Summer 2020 Travels

In late July 2020, David and I found a way to escape the heat and humidity of Central Texas as well as some of the realities of the on-going pandemic to spend a few days in the "cool" mountains of Colorado and northern New Mexico. Once again, traveling fed the spirit and provided inspiration. We made our way to Amarillo for the first night's layover. Having gotten an early start, we arrived in time to take our first drive through Palo Duro Canyon. Had to secure a day pass online in advance and I was glad I could and did! It really is Texas' own little "grand canyon" and worth a visit! Unfortunately, the lighting was not great for getting photos but I have my memories. Got an early start again the next morning so we could make it Estes Park by nightfall. There, we stayed in a cabin just a mile from the entrance into Rocky Mountain National Park. Day passes into the park were limited and difficult to get but we soon found out that if we entered before 6 a.m. when the kiosks opened, we could drive in and spend the day, which we did -- twice. It was a first-time visit for both of us. What a spectacular place...as you can see from the photos I'm posting! A few days later, we packed up and sadly said goodbye to Estes and began to make our way southward. After a couple more nights in Colorado, including a memorable and artsy stopover in Alamosa (check out the public sculpture project in the photos I'm posting), we took a scenic trip to Chama, New Mexico, and then headed east through Carson National Forest, making it to our next stop: Taos. The next morning, we checked out, took a drive up to Taos Ski Valley, soaking up the mountains, pines and aspens along with the cooler temperatures one last time. Spent most of the day in area, doing much of the Enchanted Circle before leaving the mountains to head toward Texas again. Once back in Texas, I put myself under a self-imposed 14-day quarantine before starting back to teaching. But I did spend some of that time in the studio, inspired from my travels to paint.