I’ve always enjoyed a good adventure. Several years ago, my hubby surprised me with a zip-lining experience in Georgia as part of a waterfall / hiking trip. We had a blast! So when he was scheming on what to do during our Durango trip for our 30th anniversary, I wasn’t too surprised when he found another zip-line excursion–on the longest course in the country!
The day started with a train ride to Soaring. This course is not accessible by road. You have to hike in, ride the Durango-Silverton train, or take a helicopter. The college students who work there over the summer live at the ranch full-time with no cell service, no Internet, just lots of God’s gorgeous creation and a steady stream of strangers invading their space. One or two people live there year-round, only leaving to stock up on supplies.
I love mountains and rivers and forests, so the scenery offered on this course contained all my favorites! We crossed the Animas River about 7 times, I think. Beautiful!
The pictures below show where we stopped for our morning snack. A scrumptious cranberry bar that had some kind of caramel goodness inside. In fact, the local inhabitants (chipmunks) know to expect crumbs at this time every day, so they show up and scurry around the rocks just waiting for the cookie to crumble. One of our sky rangers (Jesse) took some photos for us. Then she cracked me up by photo-bombing a selfie just for kicks. There were 22 of us on the course that day, and probably about a dozen or more sky rangers. They made a point to learn our names, played photographer regularly, cracked jokes, and offered constant encouragement as they caught us and kept us from slamming into tree trunks. 🙂 They were fabulous!
My favorite zipline of the morning was when we got to slide through an aspen grove. I adore aspen trees. Their white bark is so pretty, and so different from anything we have in Texas. I managed to get a video of my husband zipping through the aspens.
Some of the sky rangers were also ecologists and shared interesting tidbits about the land and forest around us as we moved through the course. One of the unexpected highlights of the day, though, was the food. We were treated to a gourmet lunch on the river. So yummy! I had Asian chicken lettuce wraps with fruit and sweet potato chips along with a delicious ice cream sandwich for dessert. Wes opted for the classic ham on a pretzel bun with potato salad. All made to order and fabulous. We ate every bite, which made hiking (or waddling) up the mountain quite a challenge afterward!
We had such a great time.
What’s the most adventurous thing you’ve done on a vacation or excursion?
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You are braver (and younger!) than I am, Karen, but that DOES look like a blast! I might be persuaded to dare it by the food alone! Looks like an awesome adventure!
It was so much fun. There were people of all ages in our group. I think we had a pair of ladies in their sixties and a little fellow as young as 3. We stayed at an airbnb place, and the owner talked about how he took his mother for her 75th birthday. 🙂
Wow, Karen! That looks like a fabulous trip. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks, Lynn. We had a great time. 🙂
Your fun personality shines through your writing. I always enjoy your books!
How sweet you are, Lynk. Thank you so much!
What a great adventure! I’ve been zip-lining twice and thoroughly enjoyed it both times. 🙂
We can be zip buddies, Becky!
What fun! Our family is currently in Durango for vacation. We did a zip-line course closer to town. It is so spectacularly gorgeous here! Zip-lining is a fun way to see the beauty. We also went whitewater rafting.
Last year we rode the Silverton train and had no idea your adventure was up there! We will have to try it. Thanks for sharing!!
How fun to share another Durango experience! The rafting definitely looked fun. If we go back, I will want to look into that. Sounds like you are having a great trip, too, Beth. So fun!
It is fun, Karen to share similar adventures! The rafting is a must experience if you go back!
I loved the final Horseman story! Thank you for sharing your gift with us. Each story is a blessing of encouragement! 😃
Sounds and looks exciting. I am NOT an adventurous person, preferring to read, stitch,or garden.
However, when stationed in Cyprus, I rode a donkey down a mountain trail to a castle – very scary. In 2015, while celebrating our 50th anniversary in Cabo San Lucas, I swam with the dolphins – lots of fun.
Karen, I recently finished In Honor’s Defense. Any chance of a Horsemen reunion book?
We rode donkeys once in Bryce Canyon, and those critters get so close to the edge! Definitely keeps the heart rate up. Like you, I’d do it in a heartbeat to see a castle, though, Betty. 🙂
So glad you enjoyed the Horsemen. I’ve had several people mention they would love another story. I don’t have immediately plans for one, but I won’t rule it out. 🙂 I’m rather attached to those characters as well. It would be fun to bring them back for a final ride.
Here’s hoping you will have the opportunity to bring the Horsemen back! Thanks for a great series.
We took big family vacations out West in 2015 & 2018, the years our kiddos graduated from HS. In Colorado in ’18, we went to Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, America’s only mountain-top theme park. They had some awesome rides, but our favorite was the Alpine Coaster. It races you down the mountainside on 3,400 feet of track through the woods. Great fun!! I love a thrill ride, but I prefer being on the ground or on a track (like a roller coaster) instead of flying through the air while hanging from a cable! 😀 I guess I’m not quite as brave as you are! haha