We celebrated and camped at the Everson Ranch, which in part of the Orient Land Trust. Located in the San Luis Valley of Colorado, it was simply breathtaking! The very old ranch has become a sustainable farm with permaculture, goats(yes, babies too), chickens, even a sow and piglets roaming free. (Picture a black piglet running as fast as he could across an open field. I was so glad to see that with a friend so we could laugh together!) Almost all of the food and flowers came from the land, or were from local businesses in the valley.
The wedding was dreamy, the company for the weekend delightful, and I appreciated being a part of their tribe for the weekend of their celebration!
The camping part was really big thought. It was intended to be a test run for our upcoming eclipse camping trip. After years having not camped, because staying comfortable is so complicate when you are not entirely well, I was trying it again. Unfortunately Dan was unable to come, so I had a bit more stress on my own managing gear.
Thankfully a flock of tent angels descended upon me when I arrived after dark, and I did little more than hand out the parts and watch the tent be erected. I was so thankful, because I had a stomach bug the day before. I had not thought I was going to make the trip at all until late that afternoon when I was rehydrated enough to feel determined. I started the day less than strong, and really appreciated not being on my own entirely.
However as I started putting things into my tent I realized that I had forgotten the AIR MATTRESS! I tried not to panic. Sleeping and fibromyalgia are complex bedpartners so to speak, and I have to do everything I can to sleep well. I had an egg crate foam topper and wool blanket intended to top the air mattress, a sleeping bag, a quilt, 3 full size pillows and one small pillow. (Ok, I GLAMP, not camp.) I piled them up, rearranged a few times to fit my contours, and somehow created a bed that worked for the night without tragic repercussions! That felt like a complete miracle. Thankfully we had to run into town the following day when the bride and groom were getting their hair done and I picked up a cheap twin mattress for the following night.
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| Caitlyn and Tony on their beautiful wedding day. |
Wedding and celebration were all afternoon and evening, split up into different segments, and were fantastic! I really wanted to continue the celebration and move to a campsite up the hill at the Pleasant Valley Hot Springs like much of the wedding party were, but there were no spots I could stay. I was offered a day pass, and I had to seriously talk that decision through with Dan.
I know that soaking in the hot springs, in particular after being sick, and 2 days of camping, is nothing but wonderful for my fibromyalgia. (I respond really well to water therapy and hot soaks after it). However I also knew that even an hour soaking would really wipe me out, and I was very aware that I had a 3-4 hour drive ahead of me still that day. I was sad to recognize that the best way to take care of my health was to skip that blissful day in the hot springs and hope I could get back soon to experience it all.
Not ready to call my adventure quite over, I decided to head down the road a bit and check out the totally kitschy UFO Watchtower. The San Louis Valley has a long history of unexplained events, lights in the sky, and even stories of skinwalkers and shape shifting beings. I just couldn't pass up a chance to pop by!
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| Jason, abductee. |
I ran into Jason, a man from Maine who believes has has been abducted multiple times, including once while camping in the back of his Subaru Outback. I got a picture of him, but not a picture of his car. It was fun to listen to his story, and I left him with a few pages of hand scribbled podcasts and webpages if he wanted to read more or share his story.
The watchtower itself has old information about the UFO phenomenon, but it would be fun to help her update it with stuff that would make people curious to investigate more instead of giggle. Camping at the watchtower is cheap. ($10). It would be simple, and quite a lot of sun during the day, but the view from the platform atop the tower, there in the middle of the valley, would be the best place to starwatch!
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| UFO Watchtower |
I made it home quite happy to not have caused my fibromyalgia to flare, to have helped Caitlyn feel a little bit more special on her wedding day, to have camped for 2 nights without disaster despite near disaster, and really excited for the next adventure in a few weeks...the 2017 total solar eclipse!
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