Telluride

the next day we started our drive home. 

 we stopped for dinner in Telluride and walked around a little. we had been there to go skiing about 9 years ago but we had never seen it in the summer. it is a very small town set in a canyon and it is surrounded by large mountains. it is very charming and beautiful. 

 it was about 5 pm by the time we left Telluride and started heading home. we had planned on stopping at Four Corners but when I put it on my map on my phone for directions, there was an alert that said it closed at 5. we had no idea that it would close and were a little disappointed we wouldn't be able to stop there.  it got really stormy and started raining really hard which slowed us down quite a bit. 

 we were going to attempt to drive all the way home but the rain put us behind schedule and we were getting really tired. my parents had just bought a cabin in Strawberry, AZ a couple weeks prior and they were there that night. it was conveniently on the way home and we decided to stay there for the night.

we drove through Winslow and I had to get a picture "standing on the corner" as referenced in the Eagles' song "Take it Easy". there was actually a statue with a plaque on the street corner and a flatbed Ford in front. they must get a lot of tourists coming through just to stop for a quick pic. the city was pretty dilapidated besides that and it reminded me of Cars and how all the cities that were once bustling on Route 66 became rundown after the freeway moved. 

 we got to my parents cabin after midnight and once we got in we went right to sleep. in the morning my parents showed off their beautiful new cabin and we told them about our trip. it seems we brought the rain with us because it started pouring. 

Jason is not one for selfies but I caught him taking one wearing my dad's racoon hat :) 

 my parents took us for a short ride on their Ranger so we could see the area. 

 we stayed there a few hours and then drove home. I am glad we decided to stop at their cabin and it was a great way to end our trip! 

we were glad to finally be home after being on the road for so long. in 3 weeks we traveled to 8 states (9 including Arizona) and drove about 6,800 miles. we saw a variety of landscapes including beaches, mountains, forests, rainforests, plains, and cities. after both of our road trips (6 weeks driving around the country) I feel I have a much greater understanding of our country then I did before. we live in a beautiful place with so many incredible things to see! I hope I can continue to have adventures like this throughout my lifetime. 

Jackson - Cheyenne - Denver

we drove out of Yellowstone and got into Jackson around 9 pm. we were hungry and many restaurants were closed but we found this little pizza place/bar called Pinky G's Pizzeria. it was a cool little place with yummy pizza. 

 we walked around a little after. I wish we could have seen the city during the day cause it looks like a pretty great place.

 they had these cool antler arches on each corner in the park.

 we got to our hotel that night around 1 am. there were a couple of drunk cowboys in the lobby that started chatting with us while we were checking it. they saw Jason's Yellowstone shirt so we asking what we did there and giving us advice for next time. they heard what room we were in and one guy was like - hey that's right next to us! do you want to open the door in between and party? - we were like .. uhh, no thanks. we were so tired and were wishing they would leave us alone but it was also pretty funny. 

the next day we continued driving through Wyoming. 

 we stopped in Cheyenne for a short break and walked around historic downtown. I am glad we stopped there cause it was a charming little city.

 

they had these cool giant boots all over the city. 

 

we continued driving into Colorado and made our way to Denver. 

we parked downtown and went to the 16th St. Mall which is a big outdoor mall. we found somewhere to eat and then explored a little. 

 they had these colorfully painted pianos all over for people to play which I thought was pretty cool.

 there was a beautiful sunset and a full moon which was perfect for our last night. we walked by the capital building.

 I'm not sure why Jason is so happy here :)

we got a hotel in Denver that night and that was the extent of our time there. I had planned on doing more there but honestly we were just tired. we were so completely exhausted at that point in the trip from being on the road so long, and from having each day packed full of stuff to see. we had already been to all our major destinations and only had a couple of smaller stops left. we were sad that our trip was nearing the end but also ready to get home and rest.