Manitou or Xanadu?

Xanadu (zan-a-doo) is defined as
"an idealized place of great idyllic magnificence and beauty"  
Lots to do....who knew....the wind blew....the spirits flew.....the springs renew....it was all in Xanadu.

Our first experience of Manitou Springs (outside of Colorado Springs) was going to be a rival trip of the epic poem of Kubla Khan....Manitou is the long lost Xanadu.


Mystically situated in a canyon next to the Garden of the Gods, Manitou has long been known for its natural mineral healing water.....not to mention it's undefinable energy.
Colorful fixed up gingerbread homes perched on steep red cliffs defy the monsoonal downpours that attempt to wash it away....so much history (& potential metal detecting) below the looming face of Pikes Peak at 14,114 ft.  What took us so long to get here??

Leslie & Robyn

We caught up with some disc golf friends, Robyn and Steve Moll & Eddie Allrunner from Picuris Pueblo, NM.

Eddie & Steve & Tim

They benevolently shared their Xanadu hospitality (and hot tub) in their beautiful lil' historic perched house.

We drank, ate, laughed and played two fun rounds of disc golf (sorry Steve, there just wasn't enough time to paint the side of your house!)  We hiked up red rock hill with Billy West (another disc golf buddy aka the "Grow Guru")

 where we experienced a spiral of seagulls (yes, seagulls in the Rockies) cruising a vortex-thermal into the suns rays.....Xanadu is real....and we found it.
It was hard to pull ourselves away after 3 nights.....but onwards around the next corner (with gallons of that wonderful fresh spring water which is slightly carbonated like we never had before ;)

Rolling along....

Rolling along we hunkered down in Lake City, CO for a few nights.We can't decide if there's more ATV's than Texans, but it's beautiful (great walking paths)....and then on to Black Canyon National Park....2000ft of deep, dark & mysterious canyon walls.....Tim found a used squirrel suit in a trash can and it took me 30 minutes to talk him out of it  *wink

Further on down the road and a few days later, we pull into Crested Butte (it's only been 17 years) and though things have changed = developed, the mountains and green pastures prevail & dominate mankinds over-the-top attempts of populating cabins on steroids....the area is still incredibly close to Nirvana.

Here, unlike Lake City, the bikes truly outnumber the citizens.....a young energetic town of health alongside the wealth.

So, we're lookin' for two long lost friends that chose CB as home many years ago.  Clark Nelson, an old friend that traveled with Tim in Ethiopia and Kenya back in 1974 in a baby blue VW bug affectionately dubbed the "Blue Jackel" by locals.  We found him..... "grateful to be alive" and actually doing very well.

But where was Mitch Kain....the long lost friend of old Santa Fe ski days in the 1980's?  No one knew.....until we dropped into a slopeside bar for happy hour.....and there he was waiting tables......don'cha just love serendipity?

Creede love.....

After a fun family style BBQ evening on the upper Rio Grande river in South Fork, Colorado with our longtime friends from our wild days at the Santa Fe Ski Basin (Mike and Joann Evans), we ventured up through Wagon Wheel Gap (one site of  Disneys Lone Ranger film) stopping in the extremely quaint Creede, CO.....the tiny magical town of unlimited possibilities.

 Immediately we felt like we'd dropped into  a sister town of Taos.....laid back.... mystically & historically blessed with unforeseen riches.  The small town folk are beyond friendly, artistically inclined and full of diverse character.....perfect first long stop for a couple of wandering Taosenos.

We were also searching for a local legend, Jenny Inge, a one time unforgettable BnB guest of ours, who creates unforgettable artistic jewelry and amazing tree/root inspired sculptures. Lo and behold,
she was celebrating 40 yrs of life in Creede, yep, she arrived on her motorcycle back in 1974 from Dallas....and the whole weekend was a party :) .....marg's and art at her famous Rare Things gallery....a wild ride down the rabbit hole into her home and workshop....all ending with a 

boot scootin' Saturday night dance to one of our local personal fav bands The Rifters. 

luv ya Creede!

We departed Taos on a Tuesday

We departed Taos on a Tuesday afternoon in the midst of a torrential lightening and thunderstorm complete with hail and a rainbow in our rear view mirror....a warriors farewell from the spirits of the mountain......."Vaya con Dios ~~" they whispered in the tail wind behind us.....as we left it all behind.    By the time we hit Tres Piedras, west of Taos, the sun was brilliant as we cruised along singing with Dylan's Blowing in the Wind followed by Springsteen's Born to Run (thank you Alan for the great CD of road songs).....feeling like we're 25 again and crossing over the Colorado border felt like

Butch and the Kid.....freedom!  

Just about the time ACDC's Highway to Hell started we were leaving Alamosa heading west, and we noticed a Colorado State Trooper behind us.....ok, no problem, we slow down a bit to play it cool.....but what is the speed limit anyway?   Ah, there it is, 65mph....no problem....until, he hits his lights.....wtf?  Yep, we were going too slow....impeding traffic.  The funniest thing is we were doing 55-60mph because he was behind us,  yep too slow.  His name was appropriately 

Officer Barnes...dubbed Barney Fife hereafter.....

Gotta nip it in the bud!

The best part of all this was that Tim only got a written warning....broke his life long 

record of never getting off .

We later wondered if Colorado State Troopers are targeting more slow drivers due to 

their new legal status.....wow man, what would Barney do?

Letting go.....

Twenty five years of accumulation...I wouldn't exactly call us hoarders , but rather efficient "maybe-I-can-use-this-someday" collectors.....it's all just stuff...right?  So over the last 4 months since we left the BnB (in good hands), we sold, donated and gifted all of that stuff...it was hard, but the purging felt better.  What blindsided me was the "Letting Go" of things that truly mattered....ie, the cats Layla and Zia.  Bob and Cady graciously accepted the mellow tabbi known as Layla and then they also graciously adopted the black and white cat, Zia.....but only after she escaped her new home (twice) and travelled 10 days back to the BnB....she is very content there and that made "Letting Go" easier for us.  

Trudging along, we consolidated and crammed  our remaining world of treasures into a storage unit (yep, just one believe it or not),  

sold the hybrid car and parked the 28 year old Toyota truck with caring friends....room...to ....breathe...again.

But leaving our friends was actually the most difficult of all.  Stuff may (or may not) define who you are...but friends are always good at helping you to lighten up when you forget to see the light for all the shit :)  We shall dearly miss all our unique and diverse friends who gave us SO much laughter...adios for awhile and long may you run!  And finally, good bye to Taos for now....we don't know when we'll return, but as one friend stated...
" the best part about leaving Taos, is when you return".    Hasta luego!

And so it begins...

And so it begins.....the next chapter of our lives into a long road of freedom and searching for 

"what's next?", as many of you have asked.

Twenty six years ago in Santa Fe, we celebrated a new beginning as a married couple with big plans to travel south throughout Central America.....los vagabundos ala backpack.  But instead those plans were diverted with starting a family and a very successful business in Taos.  And as you all know, the well known legend of Taos mountain accepting and allowing us to be but a small speck of Taos history for 25 years was a blessing....and we are so grateful.   In March we sold the BnB (to a wonderful couple, Bob and Cady) and happily picked back up our adventurous spirit in a Roadtrek 190 camper-van 

For the next 2 months, we will wander up thru the Rockies of Colorado and Wyoming with our lovable furry friend, Rusty.  In September, Rusty will stay with our older daughter, Malia in the Rockies, while we venture off across the Midwest visiting friends along the way and eventually up to Vermont to see our other daughter, Krista, now a senior at the University of Vermont in Burlington.  Then perhaps this blog will find us drifting down the east coast looking for a potential adventure on or near the ocean and warm salt waters.

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We are very excited to be on the road again....wandering.....and wondering "what's next?"
                                                          Life is good.......no....make that great!