The Taste of Colorado

On September 6, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Colorado9 Comments

We went to Denver over the weekend to enjoy the Taste of Colorado, which is an annual event with a variety of vendors. It wasn’t exactly what we were expecting, but it was still a lot of fun. We expected it to be mostly restaurants as well as local breweries and wineries, but it was actually a lot of vendors selling crafts as well as a small carnival. There were restaurants and food trucks, just not as many as we had expected and some of them were chain restaurants. We were able to get beer and wine, but the only brewery was Coors, so there wasn’t a selection of craft beers, which was more of what we were expecting.

The event itself is free, but you need to buy tickets in order to get food and drinks. It isn’t exactly cheap, but it is typical of these types of events. There was also plenty of free music with different bands playing throughout the four days and each evening there were some fairly big names playing. It was pretty warm over the weekend, so it was nice to sit in the shade and listen to some music at times. We enjoyed hearing the Confluence Music Group, The Afters, Hypnotic Vibes, and Boys II Men.

Obviously we weren’t there with kids, but we did enjoy seeing all of the children riding on the various carnival rides. There was a wide variety of rides for the children to enjoy, including some things for the older kids such as a zip-line and a mechanical bull. The floating hamster wheels looked like they would be a lot of fun. We’re not sure if we can handle all of the spinning and whirling, but the children were definitely enjoying it.

We didn’t buy anything while we were there, but there were definitely a lot of interesting crafts available. There was everything from African masks to various types of artwork. If you were looking for interesting trinkets to put in your home, there were plenty of choices. It was great to see all of the different and unique items for sale, but it wasn’t what we were expecting as we thought that the event was going to be all about the food from Colorado.

We really had a great time, but it was definitely a busy place to be and it was very crowded. In addition to everyone being there for the Taste of Colorado, there was also an anime convention going on, so there were people dressed as their favorite character on every street corner. Living in Colorado Springs, we had never heard of the event before this year, but we will definitely keep it in mind for the future as it was a lot of fun and now we know more of what to expect.

The Wildflowers of Colorado

On August 26, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Colorado9 Comments

One of our favorite things about hiking during the summer in Colorado are all of the beautiful wildflowers. It doesn’t matter if we’re hiking in the mountains or just taking one of the various trails that run through the neighborhoods, there are wildflowers everywhere. There are so many different varieties and each are beautiful in their own ways. We especially like seeing them in the ruggedness of the mountains as it brings a splash of color to contrast all of the deep greens and browns.

Unfortunately, the growing season here is very short, so you can only find the wildflowers blooming from June through August. When they are blooming, though, they can be quite spectacular. They also bring with them some beautiful butterflies as well as bees. It is that time of year now when the nights start to get a little colder and there is a hint of autumn in the air already. Soon the wildflowers in the mountains will be covered with snow and go dormant until they return next summer.

We are hoping to get in a few more hikes before the wildflowers are gone and the scenery is replaced with changing of the leaves, which is also truly spectacular.

Daily Post Photo Challenge – Rare

On August 25, 2016 By Isobar ExpeditionsIn Photo Challenge, Yellowstone13 Comments

There are many precious things in the world that are rare such as jewels and certain endangered species of animals. Finding your perfect soul mate can also be rare in this crazy world that we live in today. For us, though, finding that perfect moment when time stands still and the worries of the world melt away seem to be fleeting and far between. Sure, we go hiking and get into nature, but it seems that all too often it seems like the stresses of life and work somehow manage to join us on our journey. We thought that for this week’s challenge, we would share a moment in Yellowstone when everything stopped as we watched this lone moose walk silently across the freshly fallen snow.