Archive for the ‘Life’ Category

Mueller State Park Camping Trip 2013

Sunday, July 14th, 2013

What We’re Doing

This Labor Day Weekend (Friday August 30- Monday September 2), a few of us are heading to to the Mueller State Park west of Colorado Springs.  Mueller State Park’s 55 miles of trails provide a 5,000-acre playground for the hiker, mountain biker and wildlife watcher. Summer in Teller County means the wildlife is active and plants are in full bloom and the cooler weather is enticing.

The rough itinerary is as follows:

  • Friday, August 30  (PM) – Arrive at our campsite. See the Where We Are Staying for more details.
  • Saturday, August 31  – Probably (I still need to research) do some hiking in the area.
  • Sunday, September 1 – Visit Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument about 20 minutes away.
  • Monday, September 2 – Lazy AM/Schlep back to Front Range.

Where We Are Staying

We’re staying at the Turkey Meadows Loop at the campground in Mueller State Park .  We have  three sites: 104, 105, 107.  They are Walk-Up, Tent Only sites.

There are (I believe) six tent pads.  Grabbing them is a first come, first served basis.

Amenities include the following (more info here):

Within Facility
  • Biking
  • Bird Watching
  • Camper Services Bldg
  • Comfort Station
  • Cross Country Skiing
  • Dump Station
  • Firewood Available
  • Fishing
  • Group Campground
  • Hiking
  • Horseback Riding
  • Hunting
  • Interpretitive Programs
  • Laundry Facilities
  • Natural Shade
  • Nature Study Exhibits
  • Parking
  • Photography
  • Picnic Tables
  • Picnicking
  • Playground
  • Proximity To Camp Serv.
  • Ranger Station
  • Showers
  • Snow Shoeing
  • Snow Sledding
  • Visitor Center
  • Wildlife Watching Opportunity

How to Check In

  1. Print out my receipt.
  2. Go to site.
  3. If asked, show the receipt and mention my name.

How to Get there?

Here is a map with the campground.
Click on the link, then click Directions to get exact driving directions from your home.

How much will it cost?

Each site costs $64 for the whole weekend.

What to Bring

It’s Car Camping, so the usual (tents/sleeping bags/chairs/etc.) is required. See my handy checklist if you’d like to spark some ideas on what you should bring.

There is potable water at the campground, so bring jugs to store it.

Bring sports equipment, frisbees, etc.

Meals: Breakfasts and Dinners

We’ll do our meal potluck style. Because some folks are leaving early, the math isn’t working. Just plan for 3 meals for your family. We can coordinate in real time if we want to share some of the responsibilities.We’ll do Breakfasts around 7 AM and Dinners around 6 PM.

Lunches/snacks should be done on your own.

Pickle Gulch Camping Trip 2013

Sunday, June 9th, 2013

What We’re Doing

This Father’s Day Weekend (Friday June 14- Sunday June 16), a bunch of us are heading to to the Pickle Gulch campground just west of Boulder.

The rough itinerary is as follows:

  • Friday, June 14 (PM) – Arrive at our campsite. See the Where We Are Staying for more details.
  • Saturday, June 15 – Probably (I still need to research) do some hiking in the area.
  • Sunday, June 16 – Lazy AM/Schlep back to Front Range.

Where We Are Staying

We’re staying at GR1 (Group Site #1) at the Pickle Gulch campground just west of Boulder.

There are (I believe) six tent pads.  Grabbing them is a first come, first served basis.

Amenities include the following:

Within Facility
  • Amphitheater
  • Campfire Circles
  • Drinking Water
  • Firewood
  • Group Camping
  • Horseshoe Pit
  • Host
  • Parking Area
  • Picnic Area
  • Playground
  • Scenic Drive
  • Tables
  • Tent sites
  • Vault Toilets
  • Volleyball Courts
Within 10 Miles
  • Biking
  • Fishing
  • Hiking
  • Off-Road Vehicle Trails

HOW TO CHECK-IN

  1. Print out my receipt.
  2. Go to site.
  3. If asked, show the receipt and mention my name.

HOW TO GET THERE?

Here is a map with the campground.
Click on the link, then click Directions to get exact driving directions from your home.

Who is Coming? How much will it cost?

I created a complete list of who is coming here.

In there I split up the full cost ($130) by each family. Whether you come for 1 night or two nights, your cost is the same.

As of the writing of this note, the cost is $16/family for two nights.  The ranger couldn’t tell me how many tent pads there are at our site.  If for some reason there are 6 and a family doesn’t get a tent pad, that family will only pay $10 ($17/family for the rest).

What to Bring

It’s Car Camping, so the usual (tents/sleeping bags/chairs/etc.) is required. See my handy checklist if you’d like to spark some ideas on what you should bring.

UPDATE (6/13/13): DO NOT BRING WOOD.  We are unsure if there will be a fire ban.  As of the writing of this post, there isn’t.  But it can change.  If we can burn wood, we can buy it up there.

There is potable water at the campground, so bring jugs to store it.

Bring sports equipment, frisbees, etc.

Meals: Breakfasts and Dinners

We’ll do our meal potluck style. Because some folks are leaving early, the math isn’t working. Just plan for 3 meals for your family. We can coordinate in real time if we want to share some of the responsibilities.We’ll do Breakfasts around 7 AM and Dinners around 6 PM.

Lunches/snacks should be done on your own.

Elijah and Lukas’ Birthday CD 2013

Saturday, June 8th, 2013

Thank you for coming to Elijah and Lukas’ Birthday party this year.

For those interested in the details behind the tracks, here they are.  I’ve also included links to the tracks on iTunes so you can purchase the music.

Track Song Album Artist
1 Family Time (feat. Judah Marley) Family Time Ziggy Marley
2 Say Hey (I Love You) All Rebel Rockers Michael Franti & Spearhead
3 Party Rock Anthem Chipwrecked The Chipmunks & The Chipettes
4 Firework Teenage Dream Katy Perry
5 Walking On A Dream Walking On A Dream Empire Of The Sun
6 Groovy Train Spartacus Farm, The
7 Mr. Jones August and Everything After Counting Crows
8 Livin’ on a Prayer Slippery When Wet Bon Jovi
9 Scoopa-Doop-Poop Jeff & Paige Get Outdoors Jeff Kagan And Paige Doughty
10 Other Side Of The Road Jeff & Paige Get Outdoors Jeff Kagan And Paige Doughty
11 Pat A Cake Let’s Go Everywhere Medeski Scofield Martin and Wood
12 Horse Up In The Clouds Jeff & Paige Get Outdoors Jeff Kagan And Paige Doughty
13 This Train (feat. Willie Nelson) Family Time Ziggy Marley
14 Bennie and the Jets Greatest Hits: Elton John, Vol. 1  Elton John
15 The Canadian Snacktime Trilogy (Vegetable Time) Snacktime Barenaked Ladies
16 Abiyoyo ’56 Abiyoyo Pete Seeger 

Enjoy!

Memorial Day 2013 – Green River Utah

Tuesday, May 21st, 2013

What We’re Doing

This Memorial Day (Thursday May 23- Monday May 27), a bunch of us are heading west to Green River State Park . While the Green River itself is nice, we’re using it as a launching point to explore the Colorado Plateau: amazing region of Southeast Utah that has canyons, valleys and other cool high-desert features.

The rough itinerary is as follows:

  • Thursday, May 23 (PM) – Arrive at our campsite. See the Where We Are staying for more details.
  • Friday, May 24 – Goblin Valley State Park This is an awesome kid-friendly park where the vast landscape of sandstone goblins have people wondering if they’re on Mars or in Utah. We’ll hike among these rock formations. It is about an hour drive so we will try to spend most of the day here (think 10 AM – 2 PM) including Lunch.
  • Saturday, May 25 – Green River/San Rafael Swell – We’ll take a ‘lazy’ day and hang out around camp and, if it’s hot enough, swim in the river. If we’re feeling adventurous (and if I can find a good hike), we may hit the San Rafael Swell, a cool part of the Plateau just west of Green River
  • Sunday, May 26 – Little Wild Horse & Bell Canyon These two canyons are great, kid-friendly that will give our kids a taste of the slot canyon experience. They can be made into a loop but we’ll likely do each separately. These canyons are also about an hour away so, like Goblin Valley, we’ll spend the whole day here.
  • Monday, May 27 – Lazy AM/Schlep back to Front Range.

I compiled a bunch of maps and trail descriptions for you to download and print out. (Both are ZIP files.) There are many more than we will actually do. Still, it’ll give us some options.

Where We Are Staying

We’re staying at GR2 (Group Site #2) at the Green River State Park campground in Utah .

Amenities include the following:

  • Ada Restrooms
  • Birdwatching
  • Boat Launch
  • Canoeing/Kayaking
  • Comfort Station
  • Drinking Water
  • Dump Station
  • Golf Course
  • Hiking Trail
  • Hot Showers
  • Modern Restrooms
  • Parking
  • Pets Allowed
  • Picnicking
  • Ranger Station
  • Scenic Views
  • Sewage Disposal Station
  • Showers
  • Sports Activities
  • Wildlife

HOW TO CHECK-IN

  1. Print out my receipt.
  2. Go to site.
  3. If asked, show the receipt and mention my name.

HOW TO GET THERE?

Here is a map with the campground.

View ps-trips-memorial-day-2013-greenriver in a larger map

Click on the pushpin, then click Directions to get exact driving directions from your home.
If you want to see an area map click here.

Who is Coming? How much will it cost?

I created a complete list of who is coming here.

In there I split up the full cost ($191) by each family. Whether you come for 1 night or all three nights, your cost is the same.

As of the writing of this note, the cost is $48/family for all four nights.

As of the writing of this post, I still have room for two more families.

What to Bring

Icon-blankIt’s Car Camping, so the usual (tents/sleeping bags/chairs/etc.) is required. See my handy checklist if you’d like to spark some ideas on what you should bring.

Important for Canyon hiking: good sneakers/closed-toed shoes that can get wet. The canyons are made out of sandstone and has numerous rocks, sand features, and water holes. Good, sturdy shoes that can get wet is recommended.

Please bring one batch of wood per car. We will definitely do camp fires at night (and roast marshmallows, apples, or whatever else you want.)

There is potable water at the campground, so bring jugs to store it.

Bring sports equipment, kites (there may be a good wind in the area), frisbees, etc.

Meals: Breakfasts and Dinners

UPDATE: We’ll do our meal potluck style. Because some folks are leaving early, the math isn’t working. Just plan for 3 meals for your family. We can coordinate in real time if we want to share some of the responsibilities.

We’ll do Breakfasts around 7 AM and Dinners around 6 PM.

Lunches/snacks should be done on your own.

Avery’s Birthday CD (2012)

Saturday, August 11th, 2012

Thank you for coming to Avery’s Birthday party this year.

For those interested in the details behind the tracks, here they are.

Track Song Artist
1 Dynamite (A Capella Mix) Mike Tompkins
2 Jet Pack Recess Monkey
3 Bicycles Instead Jeff Kagan
4 Sunglasses At Night Corey Hart
5 We Built This City Starship
6 Knocktopus Recess Monkey
7 Let’s Get Loud (VIP Room Liveversion) Ladies Live
8 Vampire Brother Jeff Kagan
9 Somebody That I Used To Know Gotye
10 Gone Jenna Herbst
11 Candlelight Maccabeats
12 Hakuna Matata Joseph Williams
13 The Lines Jenna Herbst

Enjoy!