The Off-Season

So it has been quite a while since I have sat down to tackle the task of updating our blog. I grappled with the idea that it wasn't necessary anymore, but I love having it to look back on myself. Since it has been months since my last post, I will do my very best to sum things up nicely.

As you all know by now, we loved our first season working at Cascada. Don't get me wrong, it was quite possibly the hardest either of us has ever worked, and definitely the longest stretch, but it didn't really feel like work. We fell in love with the town, met some great friends, and we really enjoyed getting to know our student employees.

And so after it was all over we, a bit sadly, closed down for the season and started what we affectionately refer to as our off-season.  It's a tough job (literally), but somebody's got to do it!

Onur, Domo, Marc, and I- the end of season crew on our last night.

We started out the off-season with a trip south to see friends and family in Arizona, Globe to be precise. I'll tell you, Arizona in September is much hotter than Colorado in July! We had become acclimated to 75 degree days.

I don't know who was more excited to get back in the RV, Marc or the dogs!

We visited the Santa Fe Botanical Gardens while we were in New Mexico for the annual food show. 

 This was our first time driving a distance through Arizona. It's amazing how the landscape changes as you head south. The road through Salt River Canyon to Globe was quite a trek!

After vising family friends Karen and Jerry, we kidnapped Mama and Papa Stokes and took them to the Tonto National Forest to go camping.

 I had failed to equip the RV kitchen properly,
but my ever-prepared husband handled the situation, no problem.

 

 Our first campground was rather crowded and busy, so the next day we scooted down to Schoolhouse Campground which we had all to ourselves.

       

 I encouraged Marc to find some hobbies during our off time. Bird watching maybe?

I, myself, found great pleasure creating pistachio art.

 The view from the top of the RV was the best.

 

   After we bid farewell to the folks, we headed north towards Colorado. Here, along Highway 40, we discovered the best thing about traveling in an RV. If you have to wait for someone to come change your difficult to reach tire on the side of the road, at least you can sit down inside your rig and have lunch!

If you are going to shred a tire, do it all the way!

 We could get used to life on the road.

Back in Colorado we got ready for visitors from the north and took a day to ATV out to Wheeler Geologic Area with our fearless guide, Keith. 

Wheeler Geologic Area is a geological phenomenon tucked back in the Rio Grande National Forest. The only way to access this astonishing site is by a rutted 14 mile 4-wheel drive road (which we took) or a 7 mile hiking trail (which we tackled later that week as well). 

Once there, the reward is great. The landscape was created 30 million years ago during the volcanic eruption of the La Garita Caldera. The remaining, eroded surface is made up of some of the most remarkable formations we've ever seen. 

The other cool thing about this area is that it is open to explore (carefully) to your heart's content.

                                    This is definitely a must see for anyone visiting the area!

Not until sitting down to write out our adventures did I realize how much we have done since we left Colorado. I will have to split it up into multiple posts! What has not slipped our minds, however is how thankful we are for having found the best bosses in the world who allow us to live the life we have always dreamed about. 

More to come...