Hiking at Heil

Days are terrific right now, so despite a head cold reeking havoc on the noses of the girls in our household we decided to press through to hike. We hit up the close and easy Lichen Loop at Heil Valley Ranch. We went here so Lauren could get some walking time and the easy 1.5 mile loop with smooth grades would help her stay upright.

Cooper waiting on a branch, like you do...

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

Jill and Lauren make their way across the bridge

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

Lauren is all smiles

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

Cooper was on his way up the path with his map in hand, ready to explore

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

Lauren quickly figured out that she could stray off trail and then play in the grass, which she did quite often

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

Cooper found the turtle rock that his guide paper showed him. Big arms for a celebration

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

The on the way back, Cooper found some sort of little worm that he picked up and showed to us all

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

As lunch time started to creep in, Lauren got a free ride back to the car. Walking or riding, she was happy to be out.

From Heil Valley Ranch Hike 2

Pumpkin Patching

Ah yes Fall....The temps are cooler, the leaves are changing and the parents of active children all across Colorado are flocking to the pumpkin patches throughout the state in an attempt to burn off some energy from their kids to make it through the upcoming months. We've always gone to a pretty small, relatively unexciting pumpkin patch but this year we went to the Disneyworld of pumpkin patches.

This place had it all....Hay rides, pedal powered go-karts, pumpkin canon, petting zoo, huge corn maze and the obligatory pumpkins. The Turner clan was headed up from way south to visit, so we met up with them. Luckily for us, our destination (Anderson Farms) was all of about 8 minutes from our house. We got their early to avoid the crowds and maximize our time, which paid off well.

The first thing we hit up were the pedal karts. They had kid versions and the big kid versions, and we all sampled their capabilities.

Cooper LOVED these things.

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

And of course, Lauren and I had to check them out as well

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Here we are bridging up to Scott and Jackson

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

We caught and dropped Scott and Jackson

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

and it wasn't long before I was swapping paint with Lauren (Scott's sister-in-law). Notice Lauren giving Scott the "look back".

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Passing on the outside

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

While Lauren and I were dominating the big kart track, Cooper was ripping up the kid's track. At one point after passing all the kids, he sat up so they could catch up and he could "race them again". He must get that from his Lovejoy blood.

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Jill had to take a turn at the wheel too

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

My girls

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

All the while Cooper was burning out lap after lap

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Then it was on to a little train ride. I barely fit in the barrel cars, but Lauren seemed to enjoy it

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

On to the hay ride, where we tried to get all three kids to smile. 2 out of 3 isn't bad...

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

And then we got the other one, while the other two gazed on.

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Cooper, Jackson and Scott having fun

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

My self portrait in the mirror

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Then it was off to the tire pyramid, where Cooper wasted no time in summiting then descending rapidly

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Then the spider web. I'm amazed that Lauren was able to walk on this some.

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Then we got to see the pumpkin cannon. It shot a pumpkin circa 250 yards, and it was airborne for about 7 seconds, which was pretty crazy.

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Next, we got to slingshot our own pumpkins at some targets

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Lauren found a neat wooden train she liked to explore

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Cooper proudly holding his pumpkin apple juice

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

My girls enjoying the day and a ride to the pumpkin patch

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Trying to find just the right one

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Still searching

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Lauren stakes her claim

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

Cooper and Lauren trading pumpkin patch stories as they watch over their picks

From Anderson Farms Pumpkin Patch w/ Turner Family

The one untold story thus far was the 1 on 1 battle that Jill and I had in the pedal karts on an empty track. Jill took the inside which made it difficult to pass, but with some raw power and a little bit of aggression I was able to overtake her. I've got some Blair Witch quality GoPro footage of it, but as of this time I've not downloaded it. My only regret is that I didn't Strava my run...

Football can wait

Its always a dangerous time of year for me. Football is on the television all day Saturday and Sunday and its like a siren's call telling me to just sit on the couch. Its all really a trap though, as in a month or two football will still be on, the games will mean more and the weather cannot be this perfect by then. I've learned from years past and this year I vowed to get out and just get caught up on the scores later in the day.

After some discussions Saturday night, I decided to go check out the Caribou Ranch Open Space up in Nederland. Last weekend I rode near this area on the annual Sufferfest ride and the Fall colors were ablaze. This area will be covered in snow in the not so distant future, so the time is now.

Ready to go again

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Lauren and I blaze a trail and Cooper kicks it into high gear to catch up

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Cooper loves getting out

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Cooper, Lauren and I check out the bench dedication

From Caribou Ranch Hike

A Sunday stroll through a high alpine meadow

From Caribou Ranch Hike

All three looking at the camera, its a miracle!

From Caribou Ranch Hike

There may be a slight resemblance

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Cooper once again found some rocks to scramble on

From Caribou Ranch Hike

And then launch off of

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Lauren got to get out and walk some

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Our destination for the day, the old homestead

From Caribou Ranch Hike

The settlers sure could have done worse

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Cooper walked the plank

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Then he even cooperated and posed from me. Weird.

From Caribou Ranch Hike

From Caribou Ranch Hike

And a from the hip shot as he raced to catch up with us

From Caribou Ranch Hike

One guess which little boy made sure he walked right through the "mucky muck"

From Caribou Ranch Hike

Fall colors are still a little away from peak, but still brilliant

From Caribou Ranch Hike