Wanderlust

For all of you who are waiting for us to get back to the purpose of our blog – farming – you have only to wait a couple more days. Our next organic farming journey will take us to Crazy View Farm in Montana.

After four days in Steamboat Springs, at the beautiful Dry Lake Campground, we left for Utah. Our days at Dry Lake consisted of watching moose, trying to avoid the rain, and trying even harder to start fires. The rain never made it through the shell of our tent, but it did soak us to the bone a of couple times. Next time we get back to Colorado we will arrive with an all-wheel drive vehicle – a Subaru if I am lucky.  There were countless trails into the mountains that we wanted to explore, but they required the proper vehicle and my poor little Honda Civic just couldn’t quite make it. So, after preparing a few impressive meals at the campsite and attempting to take a sponge bath in the woods we were off to civilization once more to visit one of my oldest friends, Nichole, in Utah.

 Upon our crossing into Utah we were shocked, it felt like we were in a desert wasteland. It turns out, we were in the Dinosaur Diamond, where you can stop and explore archeological sites and hunt for your very own fossils. The beauty of Utah began when we went passed the Strawberry Reservoir, a massive lake that spanned as far as I could see. As we cruised down Provo Canyon we were again struck with the feeling of insignificance when compared to the millions of years old geological formations around us.

We arrived at Nichole and Jason’s lovely home and they treated us to a delicious, filling meal. For the past week I had felt like I was living the “starving artist” lifestyle. We had been living on one main meal a day, which might work for Mr. Chase Vreeland, but was making me a very hungry gal. Thus said, we curled into our cozy bed and fell fast asleep, with a full stomach. There is no better feeling than falling asleep in a warm bed after shivering in a sleeping bag for the past seven nights.

Today we ventured out into Provo Canyon. We hit our first hurdle the moment we stepped outdoors, the temperature. It was hot. We had become accustomed to the mild temperature in the Colorado mountains and now had to adjust to the sunny, dry heat of the valley. Alas, we were instantly cooled as we began climbing the rocks of Bridal Veil Falls. The mist of the falls was icy cold and showered us with refreshing, natural air conditioners. I have seen waterfalls in Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, and of course Niagara Falls, but nothing has compared to the moment I spent under the Bridal Vail falls. It wasn’t because of the sheer size of the waterfall, it wasn’t the largest fall that I had seen, but it was the closest I had ever been to such a force of nature. I stood under the fall and looked up for what felt like forever. All of my thoughts seemed to disappear and all I felt was the cool water landing on my skin.

The next place of interest on our agenda was Vivian Park. Jason and Nichole had given us very detailed directions to reach the “Hippie Rock.” The Hippie Rock lies in the middle of the Provo River and is surrounded by currents that swirl down and around. We parked our car and headed East on the railroad tracks until we saw The Rock. Lucky for us, there was a gentleman there who gave us the full lowdown on the rock. His name was Ryan, he likes to drink lots of beer, smoke even more cigarettes, listen to Eminem and hang out at the rock on his days off from working as one of the Head Chefs at Panda Express. There is only one way to swim to the rock without being injured by the current and Ryan showed us the way. There is also only one place you want to jump off the rock, without slamming into other rocks, and Ryan showed us the way. He also informed us that the best way to jump is to begin spinning in the water once you land, so that the force of the current will whip you around even faster. Ryan also has a dog, whose name is Snoop-a-loop. I am not quite sure if I had more fun jumping off the rock or getting to know this slightly loony man, Ryan. As I write this, I am starting to understand what made Ryan so off. As he informed us, he spends every moment of his free time at the rock. Now, believe me when I tell you that the water around the rock is cold. I am from Minnesota and I know what lake water cold feels like, this was much colder. This was melted snow water cold. It wasn’t the type of water that you get used to, it’s the type of water that numbs your limbs. It may even numb your brain – at least that’s my Ryan theory.

The next time you hear from us, we will be back on the farm. We are excited about our next farm, because they are very active in the farmer’s market scene. I can just imagine having the time of my life passing vegetables to eager customers and coming up with recipes for the newly harvested produce.