Telluride Camping Trip

September 12-15

We closed out the camping season with a four-day weekend in Telluride. Last time we camped in Telluride, the weather was a bit of a struggle as it rained quite a bit. This time, we planned to go a little later in hopes of seeing the fall colors. Whelp, we were too early for the colors and maybe saw 13 yellow leave during our trip! Whoops! I thought for sure that the high elevation leaves would have turned by mid-September, but I was wrong. Now I know! :/ 

We planned to camp at Matterhorn Campground again but it was full when we got there. We pulled the camper down the road just a bit more and found a spot where we could dispersed camp, sort of at the top of the mountain pass. It was a fine spot and we got all set up in time to make dinner that evening. We pulled the kids out of school at 10:30 that morning so we could get there before dark. It's quite a drive down to the southwest corner of the state!

 One of the best things about Telluride is parking up at the ski resort and riding the gondola down into town. This is by far one of the kids' highlights. 

 Eating a bagel lunch down by the river... that view isn't too shabby!

 One of our days there we hiked to Bear Creek Falls. It's a four-mile round trip hike to a waterfall. Last time we were in Telluride, Matt, Charlie, and Alanna made it to the falls while the little girls and I made it about halfway before turning around. This time, we all made it! We took our time and enjoyed the scenery while we were hiking. It was a typical mountain hike (all uphill on the way out and downhill on the way back with little flat in-between). It was a beautiful day for a hike and the kids did really great. Hattie rode on shoulders or backs a little bit, and I think Molly did too for a bit. We found lots of wild raspberries along the trail closer to the waterfall, so that was a nice little treat! We sang songs and played word games while we hiked. A favorite of ours is the alphabet one where we go through the letters and name themed objects (but not recalling each letter when a new letter is added). The kids also like for me to ask them math problems while we hike. So we do that, too. 

 The next day, we spent some time at this little fishing pond by a park in Telluride. Charlie managed to pull two trout out of the pond, though one bystander got a little too handsy with Charlie's fish and threw it back into the water with his lure still in it's mouth. :/  I think there was some kind of Blues and Brews festival going on; a lot of the city park was gated off. The city swimming pool was closed for the season (bummer!), but we were still able to play at the playground (and hear some residual music). We found ice cream at a little sweet shop and walked through some stores. It was a really sweet trip. Maybe the next time we're in Telluride, the colors will be in full display!