July 2012 – Picture This

Florida II – Disney’s Magic Kingdom

Jay and Kay and the Happiest Place on Earth

In Orlando, we understood that we had to visit Disney theme parks. So we did! Day Two was The Magic Kingdom. This is before we got drawn into the magic when we were still thinking of managing people and expectations,. This is getting started, what we saw in little corners and finally, how empty the entrance was in the afternoon.

Then there were a few attractions: I liked the Paddle Wheeler and the view as we were cruising the circular lagoon. May-be I just liked sitting down.

There were a couple rides that I enjoyed like “Small, Small World” and “Pirates of the Caribbean”

And then, the parade …

Florida

We went to Ft. Lauderdale. We drove up north and found ourselves in Orlando.

What could we do in Orlando? Well, in Orlando they are glad to offer a few suggestions. We ended up, like lots of other people, trapped – yes, trapped – in universal fantasies that movies are made of.

You might call this “Day One” or “Orlando by Universal.” Looking at the web site, Universal seems to have reorganized since we were there.

We first went to the Harry Potter area.

Then we stood in line for the slowest roller coaster in the world. Don’t think it wasn’t fun, we went through a restaurant on the roller coaster and decided to go back there for lunch. Note the Dr, Suess characters.

Dee and Kay took the log ride, Ripsaw Falls, and Steve took pictures. By then the day had gotten hot and long and the line looked too forbidding. Steve was afraid his camera would get soaked. And anyway, he didn’t want to go. From the pictures, it’s clear that the riders get wet and they don’t mind. It also looks like good fun.

A Blessing

Our friends at Mercy Trails Ranch (nearest town is Raymer, Colorado) were moving to Oregon and needed folks to watch their horses and cows while they were out west looking for their new home. Steve was able to spend a couple nights and had the chance to soak up the solitude of an east Colorado high plains ranch. By the end of that time Steve was glad to have the dogs to talk to. In fact, he was starting to believe that the dogs were talking back!

It was good to think about how the place had played a big part in the lives of friends and family.

Great Sand Dunes National Park

photo of the Great Sand Dunes — Great Sand Dune

The first person to wonder why huge piles of sand were in the mountains of Colorado didn’t get credit for the question. It’s easier to wonder about these great sand dunes now, with roads and all, but I’m not sure the answer is any more clear. I think it looks cooler when you’re standing there, because the sand all looks the same in my pictures. It was fun to dig into the river bed and find that the river was still there under the sand. It’s hard to resist walking up the dunes, and why would you?

The river under the sand

Go and see

When we had our fill of sand, we went to Zapata Falls, a couple miles south of the dunes. It’s an oasis in the desert. After walking forever in the heat (probably 15 minutes, because it’s only a half mile trail from the parking lot) you find yourself in this crack in the rock with a tiny water fall and it’s is positively chilly even on hot days. It was a treat.

Crack in the rock

Zapata Falls

The Crew

Hiking the Back of the Great Sand Dunes

It’s less than 15 miles from Crestone, CO to the Great Sand Dunes National Park – on the map. It takes a little over an hour to drive there because its more miles by car. It seemed reasonable to see how close we could get to the north side of the dunes by car and then walk around that area a little bit. It’s rugged. It’s not hospitable. And, even after driving to get close, its a long walk, we did not walk to the Sand Dunes.