A word about a great piece of gear

I just wanted to put out a little review on a piece of gear that has served me very well. This sleeping bag is made by Sierra Designs and it's called a Sandman. I have had this bag for going on 4 years now, it's been with me from one side of the country to the other, in warm climates and cold and it's one of the best investments that I've made, ever. The zipper still works great and I am always comfy in it. There is very little wear and tear, and the temperature rating is perfect for many instances. The times I have gone camping and the temp was lower than the rating of the bag I just simply wore some clothes and the thing was fine. One time I had to add some blankets on top when I was stuck in Wyoming in a blizzard and it was 0 degrees with the wind blowing like no tomorrow. This put it well below the rating and it still did fine.

I love the flexability of the bag, because I tend to sleep on my side and I always struggled with mummy bags in the past. It's a little on the heavy side at 3lbs 12 oz, but that is because it is stuffed with polargaurd 3D. This is far better if you think that the bag will ever get wet, because it doesn't lose it's insulating properties when wet. For a traveler like myself that is not super concerned with weight and size this is the way to go. Highly recommended for the price, next time you are looking for a good sleeping bag check these out.

Rocky Mountain National Park

I took the family on a trip up to the Rocky Mountain National Park for a visit this past weekend. Every one did really well with the elevation and had a great time. Since most of this park is over 2 miles high in elevation I figured it would be an interesting place to go see. It sure was. We entered from the south entrance to the park and followed the Colorado River up an amazing canyon that has amazing meadows that are very inviting.

We stopped for a while to enjoy the scenery, but we also got a tour of a cabin that was built by a homesteader in the beginning of the 1900's. What an amazing show of how it must have been, hard is the only way to describe it. The area is beautiful, but you can also tell that it would be very difficult to outlast the winters there. Building a house from scratch to weather a winter at 9000 feet elevation is no small task. It's also a great reminder of the fact that people did do it, and of just how spoiled we really are now.

At the top of the road is some of the most amazing views one might ever see. It is truly the top of the world, and it feels great to look down and see things from a whole different perspective. It's also amazing to see how the trees grow up out of rocks, and they only have branches on one side. This is a pretty good sign that things get a little gnarly up there. I always love to see that, and I try and picture in my mind what it must be like. Truly a test, I'm sure.

Over all, I would rate this as one of the best parks that I have gone to. Very clean and well laid out. Plus fun for everyone in the family and very interesting. I'm glad we made the trip.

We went out to the Garden of the Gods the other day

What an amazing place. It's tucked back in the canyon to the west of Colorado Springs and I would highly recommend it to anyone that is in the area. We spent the day walking some trails and exploring all of the cool rock outcroppings in the area. The park isn't huge by any means, but for being so easy to get to you can't complain a whole lot.

We won the fishing tournament today!

Today we went to a fishing tournament here in town and we did pretty good. We got the biggest fish in the 5-8 year old class and the two younguns got 2nd and 3rd in the 0-4 year old class. Pretty good for them, I'd say. They caught 12", 11.5" and 11.25" trout. Pretty cool!

The lake was a little thing right in the middle of town at Memorial Park. At first I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but all the kids had fun. It was put on by a local fishing tackle store and it was a great little event. Food and prizes for the kids and a good time.

Now that they got a taste for it, they are ready to get some good fishing in this summer. I can't wait!

It's been a while

Here I am. It's been a half of a year since my last entry here and I have been very busy. I've got a new wife, a baby on the way in August, and I now live in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It's good to change things up every now and then, but I went full bore this time. It was time.

Since the last time I was here I've gotten a few good trips in as well. This being my first anniversary of my new found love for travel and even better expeditions I'd like to just take a moment to relive some great memories.

Yellowstone:


Snow Shoeing in the Sierras:


Crater Lake with my daughter:


The Grand Canyon:



Moab and Arches NP:



Great Sand Dunes NP:


Now that the baby is coming and I am married to an amazing woman, will I slow down? NO WAY!! In the end life is what you make of it. You can either spend your life working, or you can spend your life seeing the world and always be broke. I prefer the second. Luckily my family will go with me. I'll try a little harder to write in here more in the future.