Bloomsday training in Colorado

With Bloomsday a week and a half away I had to get some miles in and we did!  A very unique hike!  

Lots of huge boulders everywhere. 

This river crossing had a bridge!

Serious rock climbing.  Don't hurt those cracked ribs Keri!

I saw snow! 

This tree was growing out of a rock.  The rock was not on the ground. The rock was above the river.  Could have been a bridge to walk across if you could get to it without falling in the river. 

I had never seen this before.  These rocks were cemented in the larger boulder.  When I say that, I don't mean someone cemented them in.  Nature did it.  You could not pull them out. 

Pike's Peak in the distance.  

Yes, there was a bridge to cross the river but you could also use this short cut.  Off Keri goes. 

She made it.  She was encouraging me to give it a try.  When Keri got to the big gap her long legs got her across and she was still cheering me on.  I mentioned my legs weren't as long as hers.  Keri said she could grab my hand and help me get on the rock she was standing on.  Picture that!!!  We would have both ended up in the water.  

 Ok, let me give it a try.  Not so bad yet. 

I did get to the next rock I think but no way was I going to continue.  

Back I go and that wasn't easy either.  

I tried to load the video of me trying to get up this rock by sitting on it and pushing myself up but it wouldn't load.  So unfortunate.  I did make it back and took the bridge across.  

This was a dam that was built in the 1800s.  It broke in the early 1900s.  I was wondering if all the huge rocks we saw below the dam were from the dam breaking.  HMMMM. 

This is the other side of the dam.  Not much left at all. 

A great hike and it did the trick for training that is for sure.  Hills and all. 

5 miles in the books!!!! Thanks for a great adventure Keri! 

There's Joy in the House of the Lord, Phil Wickham and Josh Baldwin

Wow! What a night of worship.  It wasn't a concert focused on these two men.  It was a night of worship.  

Phil Wickham and Josh Baldwin! I went to this concert by myself but met some great people.  A precious couple that has 4 children and is adopting one that has been their foster child.  I met two ladies that saw the Beatles in concert like I did.  Small world.  I wasn't alone that is for sure.  I didn't feel that way one minute. The Holy Spirit was there in a might way. 

When we fight we fight on our knees!!!!!! The Battle Belongs! Click on the video to listen!

He loves God and gives Him all the glory!

My fear doesn't stand a chance when I stand in Your love! Click to listen!

There's joy in the house of the Lord.  Yes, there is.  The joy of the Lord is our strength! Click to listen. 

 Hymn of Heaven, with angels and the saints we raise a mighty ROAR!  Can you hear it?  I can!  I want to be right in the middle of the ROAR! Click to listen. 

I want everyone to join the Kingdom of God. You become new creations and life will never be the same if you surrender to our God.  He is waiting for you to say yes!  You know how to find me if you want to know more.  

A Different Cross Country Ski Adventure

Mariane and I decided to try cross country skiing on a golf course in Twin Lakes, Idaho.  It was about a 35 minute drive.  The weather was just right.  Not too cold. 

A frozen pond.  We couldn't find how each hole on the golf course connected to the next so we stayed on the same hole and went around in circles a few times.  Then we decided to do some exploring.  

Where we went exploring there were no cross country tracks set so we had to trudge through the deep snow.  It was a workout for sure.  We never did find how the cross country tracks connected to each hole on the golf course.  It was a perfect day and a perfect way to get going on our cross country skiing again.  

When we finished I decided to keep my skis on and go through the snow instead of walking on the crunchy, icy plowed snow next to the icy road to get back to the car. That worked for awhile but the tips of my skis kept going way under the snow so I took them off.  Then I had the challenge of walking through the deep snow that was up to my knees.  I made it and we had a great time. 

Bear Lake Adventure!

A perfect day for a walk around Bear Lake.  Talena, Angie, Laurie and I met at the lake around 10 AM.  The sun was shining and there was a chill in the air.  It was a beautiful fall day, although it felt more like winter.  Off we go!   

Lots of joy here.  I am thankful that I get to hang out with these ladies.  

Taking gloves off to take pictures wasn't the best idea in the beginning but I did it anyway.  I couldn't resist. The scenery was just too special.  God's creation at its finest.  

I just pointed the camera on my phone toward the sun and took the picture.  I really didn't know how it would turn out.  Love the colors on the clouds.

A sun blob!!!  Reflection pictures are the best.  The sun is reflected on the frozen lake. Glorious!

How do I get my phone camera off of live?  I tried to help but it didn't work.  I know how to do it on my phone.  It was a good effort. 

A pause in the action for a photo.  

This is us trying to figure out how to get all 4 of us in a selfie.  

Better! Laurie had a brilliant idea.  Put the camera in position and then get our faces in the camera.  

Good idea!  

Along the way we threw rocks on the lake to get an idea of how frozen the lake was.  Could we crack the ice? We couldn't crack it with the small rocks we were using.  And up went Laurie, on a mission to get a bigger rock. 

Up, up and away! 

You know that feeling when your children do something dangerous and your heart jumps up out of your chest.  Well, I experienced that feeling at this moment. I turned around after taking a picture of Laurie and there is Talena testing out the depth of the ice.  Will it crack if I set on it?

Of course I recovered enough to snap a couple of pictures. I am really glad I didn't get a picture of her cracking the ice.  

Laurie rolled the rock down the hill. 

The rock!

I really thought I was brilliant! I captured Angie throwing the rock into the lake and the rock cracking a hole in the lake and it sinking below the ice.  Not so!  This is all I got.  I have no idea what I did.  Click to see a one second video of a rock flying.

I did get a picture of the hole and the air under the ice.  Talena was hoping to see a penguin come up out of the hole.  That didn't happen! I like the colors of the frozen lake.  You don't really see those colors just looking at the lake.  They show up in the picture. 

There was some talk about this being a man-made lake as we walked around the lake.  Nope, it was made by bears! That's why it is called Bear Lake.  Perfectly logical.   I will end right there except to say the fellowship is a blessing from God and we had that today.