💚 Colorado 💚

COLORADO

We took off for Colorado from the ranch to spend the rest of May and the month of June there. Everyone has always assumed or expected us to move to Colorado with our love for the outdoors, and we sure do understand why! But we are still too excited about our location/access in Las Vegas believe it or not and simply put Colorado is just dang expensive (for obvious reasons). However, we loved our time there and can totally envision a life there in another world. 

First we had to stop by and see the family one more time on our way out! We brought leftovers from the wedding and had dinner with Erin, Luke and their kiddos and Paul, Rachel and Grayson but didn't get a full picture. Only got some pictures of playing with the kiddos. 

Our first stop was Shelf Road, a sport climbing area outside of Canon City which is southern CO. Looking back this was possibly my favorite part of CO surprisingly! It was just SO peaceful, had quick access to climbs, beautiful landscapes, near perfect weather and very fun climbing (for sport climbing). 

It was the perfect re-introduction to living in the van after being at the ranch for 5 weeks.  

Not a bad spot for the first few days. 

This was from the climbing area, just 15 minutes from the van and you were up at a crag with a beautiful view and a wall stacked with great climbs. 

Post climb stretching...

Or napping..?

Some more views from the crags. 

We switched spots after the first few nights and got a spot in the front of the BLM campground which had a huge open field in front of it with the climbing walls in the background, one of the best spots we have had in the van. 

View out the back. 

Each crag had a slightly different view and character of climbing, I think this one was my favorite walls - called Menses  (yes) . We had it all to ourselves, the weather was perfect and I was very proud of a 10c and 10d I on sighted and you learn you like places that you feel good about yourself and you don't like places where you don't, pretty simple.

Our new favorite shot.

Cutie Felix happy from climbing and even more happy I told him I wanted to watch the final match of a Counter-Strike game with him that night. If you know, you know. 

Outdoor shower! When you get a set-up like this on a warm day it is one of the most enjoyable experiences. We had some smoke roll in the last couple days so a shower was a game changer.

The last crag we went too was called Cactus Cliff and it just made Felix and I want to stay longer or plan a trip back but we (I) was too excited to keep going to see more of Colorado!

Felix finally said goodbye to his first love. 

Cafe Belay. I mean how has no one thought of this genius name before? We checked out this climbing coffee shop in town before going to the local pickle ball spot. 

No pictures were taken at pickle ball, and little pictures were taken playing pickleball during our time in CO but don't let that fool you. Felix is a one track mind kind of guy, when he really likes somethings he loves it and he goes all in. Pickle ball is his new love. 

After pickle ball we explored the area around Canon City. 

Our spoiled eyes were a little underwhelmed by the Royal Gorge..😬

Skyline drive however was very impressive, they built a very narrow road on a ridge that was really fun to explore. 

The drive. 

We moved on to Colorado Springs and started the day with pickleball of course. Then Felix did a station visit after he connected with a firefighter at pickleball in Cannon City who used to work there to get an idea of the CO ways. Colorado Springs is a definite back up for us if Las Vegas doesn't work out.  

While he did that I got some precious alone time wandering in bookstores.

And sitting at cafe's reading. 

We then stopped by Garden of the Gods for some quick sight seeing.

It is a pretty incredible place. You can technically climb there but there are regulations, reservations and some red tape we decided we didn't want to deal with. 

Calf comparison...

Balanced Rock..that had noticeable cement at the base haha. 

Onto Denver! Somehow we did not take any pictures while in Denver but we had a really nice time staying with our friend Katya and exploring the city of Denver. 

We then spent 2 days west of Denver to do some bouldering, biking and a last minute decision to see LCD Soundsystem at Red Rocks! 

The brightness of the green was pretty unreal, Felix was a little bummed that it might spoil the green in Sweden for me haha. 

A little pre-Sweden prep. This was a very common snack there that Felix was excited to share with me.

Delicious ;)

The bouldering spot. You can even see the Red Rocks amphitheater in the background that we were going to that night.  

What a place. 2nd best venue we have been to! The Gorge Amphitheater still takes the cake but this was still incredible. 

After that we drove up to Golden to check out Clear Creek Canyon climbing. 

We didn't take many pictures and this is when the rain started really hitting CO. But we were very surprised at how much we enjoyed the climbing as it was right off a highway. We found one that was just far enough to be quiet and the one that wasn't but made up for it in quick access and super fun climbs. 

However, the next few days were full of rain. We were lucky and Katya's family has a house in Golden where her sister Sonya lives so we bummed with her and had a really nice relaxing time.

We still decided to head to Boulder even though the weather looked bleak. My Dad's cousin Phil lives there with his wife Hilary and son Cooper. We parked in their street and enjoyed some of the best cocktails by Phil and getting to know them better while we played/explored all day. 

Fashun.

And the weather looked up! We were able to typically get some climbing in in the mornings with threats of rain in the afternoon that didn't typically happen. 

The only problem was pickleball was in the morning..so we had some hard discussions and decisions had to be made. 

Eldorado Canyon! If you have climbed for a while or watched a handful of climbing documentaries, you have likely heard of Eldorado Canyon. It is right outside of Boulder, has very quick (mostly) approaches, interesting lines and is known for being tricky for gear placement. Felix and I started out easy and understood the appeal pretty quickly! However, we have also been spoiled with places like Yosemite, Squamish, Indian Creek, Potrero Chico that somehow far surpass their reputations and we felt like Eldorado didn't quite meet or surpass it but we had an incredible time nonetheless! 

We started on a 5.9 called Werk Supp to a 10c called March of Dimes that Felix led. 

We took a lunch break then went back to the same wall and I led the classic Bastille Crack at 5.7 and Felix finished on Outer Space 10b/c that was pretty incredible. 

The money shot.

Two guys were in front of us that led to an hour of waiting unfortunately but the trade-off was having someone to take this picture at the top!

More from the top. 

The next day we opted for a different adventure at the Flatirons! These are the famous leaning rocks as the backdrop to Boulder. We chose an easy climb at 5.6, 10 pitches to simul-climb which means we move quickly without set anchors but protection in-between. We left around 6 and were at the top by 9 or so, just in time to make it to pickleball before 11:30! A decision of contention between us, but led to a pretty eventful and fun day.   

Top of the first Flatiron overlooking boulder!

We went back to Eldorado Canyon the next day! Packing in the climbing while the rain was holding off. 

Felix led a 5 pitch 10a called Handcracker Direct that was pretty dang fun. The approach was steep and longer than expected, but worth it. 

Top of the climb! Back to selfie mode. 

On the way back from the climb I took a nice dip in the river before a lunch break. 

We ate, rested then got on another climb! I led Blind faith, a 2 pitch 10a to finish the day (no pictures). 

We had one last good weather day before more rain! So we took full advantage and drove up to Estes Park to do a longer day, a 2 mile approach to a 5 pitch climb, Fat Crack City to Outlander. 

The approach.

The wall! It's called The Book at Lumpy Ridge, it had some really unique crack features that made it look like pages, hence the clever name. 

Me after any roof that Felix makes look easy... "I cant get my butt over this!" Every time...every time. 

Not bad top out views!

Hiking out.

Our host family! Hilary, Phil and Cooper. One of the very best things about this trip has been spending time with some really quality people that we may not normally get to spend much time with. 

We took off for Grand Junction/Fruita area for some highly recommended mountain biking. 

Glenn Canyon on the drive, we also passed through Vail and other gorgeous places on the way. 

Started making this chicken curry salad with leftover chicken from the wedding and we became obsessed! I think we had it for lunch for 3 weeks straight.  (Yes we froze the leftover meat and still have some to this current day and its still amazing)

A picture of pickleball! Grand Junction had the best drop-in set-up, people and really nice courts. Felix was like a little kid not wanting to get off the playground. We both played from about 8:30 to 11:30, I stopped for lunch...he played til 5. 

Looking cool and doing cool things at the same time is hard for me. 

Pictures did not do this place justice. It was the vast, open mountains in the distance view that was hard to capture but the biking was super fun - we shuttled all day meaning one of us would drive the van to the top and the other would bike down hence no uphill biking and it was magical. We got 4 rides in each!

Neat shot, not neat reason. (dust storms came out of nowhere) 

Decided to hop on the sporty sunglasses train! I've learned my lesson this year with ripped skin on my nose from normal sunglasses and dirt in my eyes from no sunglasses.

We then headed towards the Black Gunnison National Park for some climbs, we had no idea the BLM land outside the park would be hands down the prettiest spot we have made our temporary home.

Learning that the most breathtaking views are the hardest to capture.

But we tried! 

Had it all to ourselves for 2 nights. 

The next day we headed into the Canyon! We had picked out a pretty intimidating climb up a big wall (1600 ft) but decided to do a shorter, easier one first to get a feel for the Canyon. 

The Black Gunnison is unique in the fact that you get to the climb by descending into the canyon first via rappels and a gully then have to climb out. Best thing is that once you are done climbing and at the top you are done! Normally after a climb you still have a long decent. Bad thing is that up is the only way out..

I started us on Maiden Voyage! A 5 pitch 5.9 (mostly 5.7) that felt pretty simple for the grade, felt nice to just move quickly on the easier terrain. 

We took a little snack break on a ledge then Felix finished on a 3 pitch 10a called King Me to get us to the top!

The best/worst part of this climb was that we could see the wall we were planning to climb the next day. 

The wall couldn't fit in one picture..

Back to our spot for the night!

We started the next morning into the canyon at 5:30 since we knew we had a long day. We were doing The Scenic Cruise, a 13 pitch climb with mostly 5.9 with a 10d crux pitch. 

The morning glow in the canyon.

On top of a huge flake!

View from the wall, it was pretty incredible to gradually change perspective of the canyon as we made our way up the wall.

Photo day at school?

A few rushed photos as we were itching to get to the top with clouds rolling in. 

Some amazing photos Felix took of me at the top. 

Tired, happy and crazy? 

That was one of the biggest days we had done together, with some of the most exposure I've ever had and I would be lying to say I wasn't anxious about it. We made a really good team that day though and encouraged each other when we both needed it. Felix was very spent after finishing the tricky and pumpy crux moves so at a ledge I switched and led the 5.8 wide finish which was technically still part of the crux pitch, so now my favorite thing to mention is that I took the crux pitch on this mega climb ;).   

No joke Felix convinced me to get up early the next morning (after being on a wall for 11 hours) so we could see the rest of the canyon with enough time to make it into town to play pickleball...

The morning light in the canyon was worth it though!

And this happy face because we were going to play pickleball.

No pictures of pickle ball OR of the Ouray Hot Springs which was amazing. Ouray was an incredible town but unfortunately it was very wet with a lot of rain in the forecast for the next few days and we weren't willing to wait around so we headed on down to Durango!

The drive was one of the prettiest we have done.

And yes, we drove through snow.

To sunshine on the other side!

Durango was another really cool town we enjoyed but did not take pictures of!

Just a van view.

Got a little bouldering in right outside of town. 

Then we had a baby!

JK. My good friend Travis who I traveled with to Peru as acquaintances and became like a brother after that was heading to Ouray with his sweet girlfriend Natalie and daughter Auna so we met up for an afternoon/night. 

Hiked down to a waterfall.

And of course played some no net pickleball. 

Travis pretending he wasn't just asking for his picture to be taken.

I mean come on, what a little crew. It was really inspiring to watch Travis in his new role as a father and partner while maintaining his love for an adventurous, outdoor, non-conformative life-style.  

We then got a full day with my cousin Alex! He took us on some really fun mountain biking trails then to his favorite brewery in town, it's always just so fun to see familiar people in new place.

Then onto CA!

We spent a week with Sarah, Josey and Charlotte before heading to Sweden.

Celebrated their last day of school and the start of summer!

Very typical Josey.

Pre Wild Rivers Water park.

Post Wild Rivers water park.

Adults day off for some ocean view mountain biking.

Can't get over these looks and Sarah's guns. 

A sad ending to a fun day. Had to chug a beer while Felix sprayed alcohol on it and use more profanity towards him than I have in our whole relationship. 

Front porch hangs.

We snuck in a night out for a 90s cover band before leaving and it did not disappoint. 

Don't let his cool long hair fool you, he wore earplugs the whole time. 

We then drove up the coast to celebrate Felix's cousin Jennifer getting married.

They had a beautiful wedding and man oh man is it nice to enjoy a wedding as a guest after just having your own!

We then got a night with Judy in Paso Robles (perfect and lovely as always) before spending the 4th of July with Felix's extended family.

Only picture from the 4th!

Then it was back to Huntington Beach to pack for Sweden!