Winter Estes

 

It is true.  Jesse and I have fallen in love with Estes in all seasons.  Of course everyone loves Estes in the summer (what is there not to love?  Great hiking, critters everyone, no humidity :) 

FALL was just as good.  The aspen leaves looked like they caught on fire and the Elk were roaming around all over the place making their Elk noises and chasing each other.   The weather was surprisingly nice too!!




Just another day at PPLC in the fall

WINTER hit with sudden force...but from what we heard all of the U.S got hit with a pretty hard at the  beginning to November.  I think the low got down to -12 and it snowed for 3 days, but the ground was too warm for much to stick the first couple of days.  It was cold, but beautiful.  The mountains turned white and it looked like you were walking around in a snow globe.  The weather has warmed up since, but we get a lot of windy days in the mountains...our only complaint.

 

The town is coming alive with the Christmas spirit.  We went to the day after Thanksgiving glow parade  (a night parade) and plan on taking advantage of the ice skating rink they created in the middle of downtown Estes.  Every tree and lamppost downtown is covered with lights, all the shops play Christmas music.  It just seems magical.  Estes is proving to be just as lovely of a town in the off season as in the bustling summer time. 

I realize as I write this blog that we have been terrible about bringing our camera out to take pictures...the house has kept us busy, busy, busy.  Don't forget to continue to check out our house blog and I will try to be good about not forgetting to post!

http://home-sweet-renos.blogspot.com/

 

Wah? Kate in Estes?!?

Yes, the adventures of Jesse, Teresa, and Kate continue...but this time in America!

Kate came for a visit at the beginning of November and oh boy did we all have fun.  The extended weekend included lots of hiking, playing in the freshly fallen snow, eating out (thanks to the generosity of Kate's wonderful mom) and drinking our fair share of tea.

I stole the collage of pictures from Kate because she did such a good job capturing our mega hike of 8.5 miles to sand beach.  We bush-wacked a mile straight up the side of the mountain for a "short-cut" to get to the trail and finished the rest of the hike through the snow.  If Kate lived in Estes full-time (which she should) she would be hiking circles around us...this Nebraskan who lived at sea level for the last 2 1/2 years in Tokyo dominated the trail.  Very impressive, Kate.  We are happy to have you back in the states and look forward to more visits to the mountains! 
 

Offically Moved

So I wish we had pictures, but everyone will just have to believe me when I say we did an awesome job packing.  My mom and dad helped pack things into our trailer instead of a moving truck (last minute decision to save some $).  I think everyone present did not believe that it would be possible to squeeze all of our possessions into our 5x8 space, but we did!  ...for the most part. 

Upon arriving in Estes after a VERY LONG day, Jesse's mom and Grandma were waiting to help unload.  The house is going to continually turn into a mess over the next year as we keep up the renos and continue to unpack, but it is our mess and we are happy, happy, happy.

 Once we got settled into the house, we welcomed our newest addition to our happy little home.  Introducing "Bella Marie-Sugar-Pudding Tater-Novak-Williams." (names given to her by her previous owners) We call her Bella for short; or Tubby cat, little land whale, or Bella-potamos works too.  Our whole married life we have had a tendency of picking up free things along the way, so it was of no surprise when my boss asked if Jesse and I would take in her cat.

 

 

 

Bella hanging with the fawn on fawn lane

She is a sweet cat and loves to be around people.  No one is sure of her whole story but before my boss took her she had spent time at a warehouse and the humane society.  She has a bit of weight problem, but that just means more of her to love.  Her whole life she has just wanted to be indoors and now she can spend the rest of her days chilling with Jesse and I in Estes...not a bad life.  We are happy to have her.

 

 

 

 

Where did the summer Go!?

It is crazy how fast this summer went by... A lot has happened and a lot has changed suddenly and I think it has thrown me off a bit.  I can't keep time straight. 


Since May we have been hiking, camping, enjoyed the town's many festivals, attended ranger programs and movie nights. We have been exploring and learning about RMNP as much as we can and still haven't made a dent on the many areas we have yet to explore.  Good thing we are going to be staying for awhile!

Since June we have gotten more visitors than any other place we have ventured off to.  Both parents came for a visit, my cousins from Oregon made a stop, (our wedding was the last time we saw them!) and we got to see the Scholl's for a quick hello.

Since July we realized we were prequalified for a loan and thought "why rent if we don't have to?" and so the house hunting began! 

August marked the date where we found a house we fell in love with and the sellers accepted our very first offer!  I also got to visit my sweet sweet niece and got to go home to Nebraska for a few days and celebrate Dad's retirement.

September is upon us and we just got done celebrating 5 wonderful, crazy, adventurous, (and sometimes stressful) years of being married.  Our big gift to mark the date was the little white house on Fawn Lane :)  We are officially moved in, have internet for the first time in years (expect more blogs), and are already tackling on house projects and renovations...let the adventures of home ownership begin!

 

Check out our new blog "Home-Sweet-Renos" where you can check out all the happenings of our first home!  http://home-sweet-renos.blogspot.com/

 

Estes Park Visitors

Picnic Lunch in Beaver Meadows

 

Jesse's parents came up for a visit at the beginning of August.  We ate nearly every meal outside (Bratwurst at Sprague, donuts at Bear Lake, Picnic at Beaver Meadows, Enchiladas outside on the picnic table, another picnic at Hidden Valley and Hamburgers by the river in downtown Estes) watched the elk, saw an abert's squirrel, shopped around downtown, and enjoyed each other's company.  We are excited for the next time they can come and visit!  Thanks for the good memories!!

We were all up early enough to watch the sunrise over Bear Lake

Look who came for a visit!

I have been a bit behind in blogging lately...time to play some catch up!  

A few week ago mom and dad Barry came to  beautiful Colorado for a vacation and to visit Jesse and I.  We had a great time and it went by far too quickly!  We wish they could still be here enjoying the nice weather and mountain scenery.

The time spent was full of eating good food, fishing, and some hiking.  Of course mom had to get in her share of shopping in downtown Estes.  For me, one of my favorite parts was going to the other side of the park and seeing a mama moose with two babies right next to the road and eating a picnic lunch at Holzwarth historic ranch in the middle of a brief hail storm. 



Picnic Dinner where Dad "made fire!"

Fishing for trout at Dream Lake

Cat nap

A walk around Sprague Lake before bratwurst, beans, chips and Capri suns

Picnic during/after the hail storm.  What a great spot!

Mom roping cattle "I am a cowgirl...yee-haw!"
The video is pretty great too :)  You are
pretty entertaining mom!  Thanks for visiting us!!

 



 

Retired Ranger

Can you tell we both worked for the park service?

My time as a park ranger has been short lived...(never even got a chance to post pictures of me in my awesome uniform!)  It didn't take long for Jesse and I to realize that 1.  We really like Estes Park   and 2.  We are finally ready to settle down!    ...For a little while at least :)

We came across a job opening for a full-time and permanent activities assistant at Prospect Living Center in Estes park and lo and behold they offered it to me!  Now I get to spend my days hanging out with the elderly playing games, watching the mountains, singing songs, taking them on tours of the park (along with a wide variety of other things) and working with what seems to me to be a really incredible and dedicated staff. 

Jesse is still Ranger Williams and we are excited to see where that path continues to take him.  It is a good fit for him and boy does he look handsome in his uniform...AND now I have a job that is a good fit for me as well.  Yay!  Life is good!  Thanks God!

Welcome to the Rockies

Bandelier National Monument

So long New Mexico…HELLO Rocky Mountains!

Surfing the Dunes

We are finally done with our time in New Mexico.  Not that there was anything wrong with 1,000 year old inscriptions and petroglyphs on a really cool questa out in the middle of the dessert,  but we had hiked the 2 mile trail more times than we could count and were ready for a place with a little more going on.    

We said farewell to New Mexico by visiting Bandelier National Monument.  If you are ever in the Santa Fe area this little monument is a must.  It was like a giant playground filled with cliff dwellings, wooden ladders, and lots of rocks …a kid’s paradise.

Had to leave Teresa behind...

With a continuing passion to visit more of our country’s national wonders, our first stop in Colorado was Great Sand Dune National Park.    No longer do we have a need to visit the Sahara Desert…who knew we could pretend to get lost and caught in a sand storm in the middle of Colorado?  The only thing that was missing was a camel ride.  We climbed to the top of a 700 foot sand dune and rolled down the other side…it was marvelous. 

After our venture in the dessert, we drove right into a snow storm and 18 inches of snow welcomed us to Rocky Mountain National Park.  Just like The Grand Tetons we are falling in love with this park’s wonderful mountains, winding trails, aspens, and elk around every corner :)

“The mountains are calling, and I must go.”  -John Muir 

Auntie in Alabama

For me (Teresa) by far the highlight of this spring in New Mexico was leaving New Mexico J and getting to see my sister, Andrew, and Miss Emma.   Alabama was beautiful, wonderful, and full of green goodness.  Even better than all the grass was getting to spend some good quality time with my adorable new niece. 

We went on walks together, planted flowers, cooked up some yummy meals that are going into my recipe book, watched Disney’s Frozen, went to church, had a photo shoot, fed Emma rice cereal, shopped while trying not to make too much of a scene, had drinks at Barnes and Noble, and enjoyed each other’s company thoroughly. 

I hate being so far from my sister and her growing family and it tears me apart having to leave them each time, but for an entire week we got to make the most of it.  I am happy that my schedule allowed me the freedom to go and visit them.  I will be looking forward to the next time we can be together!

Caves and Red Rocks

It has been awhile since our last blog, but for those who are interested in what there is to do around New Mexico, here is what we have been up to over the last month:

Red Rock State Park:

This is an awesome park just outside of Gallup, with some of the best hiking we have found in the area.  The whole time it felt like we were walking through the Desert Dome at the Omaha zoo.  It was also a good spot

for an exciting cliff picnic!

Zuni Pueblo:

Just a half hour away from us is the old town of Zuni.  This marks the point of first contact between the Spaniards and Pueblo people.  It also has a strong connection to El Morro National Monument because the ancestors of the Zuni people that lived on top of the monument hundreds of years ago. 

 

Caving Madness!

This year is destined to be another year of epic caving! Four months into the year and we’ve hit four caves... so far-all of them lava tubes.  The last three have been in El Malpais Nat. Monument just 30 minutes down the road from us.  The Big Tubes were fairly remote, requiring a long drive down a rutted dirt-road, a hike across the lava fields to get to the entrance, and then down climb of about 50 feet to get into the cave itself.  Junction cave was much tamer (which Teresa appreciated).  We were able to see a few bats along the way and celebrate the end with some Easter beef jerky J

El Morro's Newest Ranger

Being a ranger requires many skills and unique qualities…

For one, you have to be able to pull off the whole ranger outfit.  Personally, I think my husband looks pretty darn good in his uniform and big brimmed hat.

Being a ranger requires bravery and the ability to look at your surroundings and think… “Hey, that big rock looks pretty amazing.  I appreciate it.” 

 

And perhaps most importantly is a ranger’s skill of being able to identify the local animal and plant life.  They have a keen awareness of what lies around them and being able to take a moment out of their day to stop and smell the cactus. 

 

 

 

 

 

Well, we finally got pictures up of Jesse in his new ranger uniform and if you are lucky come May you can check out new pictures of me sporting the ranger look.  Jesse and I both got offered jobs and happily accepted positions in Rocky Mountain National Park this summer.  Jesse thinks I will look cute in my uniform…I am pretty sure I am going to look ridiculous in the over-sized hat and hiked up pants… but time will tell.

 

Memoirs from Kyoto

If you have ever watched Memoirs
of a Geisha, this is where
part of it was filmed

Jesse and I are back in the good ol’ USA, but before leaving Asia we found the perfect way to end our Asian vacation.  We went to the old capital city of Japan, Kyoto. 

In front of our Ryoken

There have more than once been moments in our travels where things just seem too good to be true (like your just waiting for something bad to happen, but it doesn’t…because God is just that good).  Like when we stayed at a mountain resort in the middle of China for the price of a super 8 …our pizza picnic sitting under the Eiffel Tower…the moment we flew into Cambodia and looked below us to see a floating village… when we got to feed and bath Thai elephants in the middle of the jungle!   Well, our Ryoken (traditional Japanese lodging) was one of those moments. 

Our Japanese garden

We found a good Ryoken off of trip advisor with good reviews and a VERY fair price for the area.  We booked a traditional Japanese room with a shared kitchen and bath area (the way a typical hostel is set up). When we arrived and checked in the kind staff showed us to not only our private room, but private kitchen, dining, and bamboo bath!  The mini house was decorated both on the inside and outside with an authentic Japanese feel…including the garden.  After she left us the key, our mouths dropped open and asked each other “Is this for real?  There must be a mistake?”  We looked around our wonderful Japanese home and discovered another room in our quarters that could have lodged 6 more people.  “Well, that explains it!  We will just have to wait for the others to check in.”  BUT, they never did.  The touristy city of Kyoto, where you need to book months in advance to get a room, happened to have an empty room two nights in a row right next to us.  Thanks God!  We appreciated it!

So this blog is suppose to be about Kyoto, but our highlight was the Ryoken.  We dressed up in our yukatas (robes), brought dinner home each night from 7 eleven instead of eating out, and took lots of hot baths. 

The day before our flights left, we loaded the baskets on our rented bikes full of food, and rode around the city and river visiting temples and shrines.  We even saw a Geisha and Sumo wrestler on Gion Street!  Kyoto was wonderful and relaxing… a perfect way to end our stay.   We couldn’t have had a better time.

We have been so blessed by the amount of traveling we have been

able to do both as singles and now married.  The more places we travel, the desire to see more continues to grow.  We will be excited for our next adventure overseas, but for now it seems like we have more adventures awaiting us in the States.  Jesse is now a seasonal park ranger in New Mexico for the spring and it looks like we will be heading to Yellowstone this summer!  Maybe someday soon God can continue our adventure in a more permanent setting so we can have a place to call home, but for know I can choose to be thankful for all we have gotten to see and do and continue to see and do!

Monkeying Around

As if visiting Mount Fuji, exploring Tokyo, and hanging out with Kate in Asia again weren’t already good enough to consider this vacation an amazing one…we got to have one of our top traveling experiences of a lifetime…VISITING THE JAPANESE MACAQUES!

We kept trying to get this little guy
to look at the camera, but he
was too interested in us

Kate, Jo (Kate’s co-worker), Jesse, and I all made our way to Nagano this last weekend to see the adorable, fluffy, playful, and at times a little frightening Japanese snow monkeys.  Jesse and I rode on an overnight bus and arrived at Nagano very early (4:30am) Saturday morning.  We hung out in the train station waiting for the sun to begin rising before we headed to a Zenkoji Temple.   We listened to the monks greet the new day by ringing bells, chanting, and bopping the visiting Buddhists on the head with a beaded necklace.  Who knows what exactly was going on, but it reminded me of something out of an Indiana Jones movie with all the chanting and smoke rising from all the incenses.  Not our style, but still neat to see and experience.   

No Jesse, you can't take a
Monkey home with us!

However, the best part of the day was getting on an early bus to head an hour outside of Nagano to visit the monkeys.  The trail was gorgeous and looked like a scene from a movie as we traversed our way up the mountain to get to the park.  Once at the park, the monkeys immediately greeted us and were ready for their pictures to be taken.  The park itself is very touristy, but it was the best tourist trap I have ever been to! 

Jesse and I spent the whole day chilling with the monkeys.  Taking turns using our camera or warming up in the main building by the wood burning stove.  We enjoyed watching the monkeys play around, roll/ fall down the steep mountain side, and sit in the hot spring. 

After we were done at the park, we headed back on the once peaceful and tranquil trail only to find it had turned into a death trap.  The beautiful snow covered trees that had captivated us were now dropping mini avalanches of snow from 40-50 feet in the air.  It was a little terrifying walking back and running every time you heard the branches begin to crack!  Thankfully we only got a light dusting of snow on our heads at times nor did we witness anyone getting hit and knocked out J 

It was another lovely weekend in Japan.  Our vacation is coming to an end, but we are happy with the way it has turned out and will continue to enjoy our last few days here in Asia. 

Mnt. Fuji-san

Last weekend, Jesse, Kate, and I ventured off towards the 5 lakes region near Mount Fuji.  It was a great weekend full of udon noodles, onigiri, sight-seeing, and fun!

 

Saturday:

1:00- Arrived at lake Kawaguchiko

1:00-3:00- Ate onigiri (Japanese rice balls) by the lake and wandered around trying to find Mnt. Fuji

3:00- Checked into our Ryoken and discovered a partial view of Fuji hidden by clouds

4:30- Jesse wandered off to attempt some sunset pictures (still no Mountain) while Kate and I wandered around looking for a good place to eat Udon noodles (fat noodles famous in the fuji area) and drank some hot lemon tea instead

6:30- Dinner at the train station!  For Jesse, Udon Noodles with horse meat.   For Kate and I, Udon Noodles with veggies.

8:00- Firework display over the lake including never before seen (by us) fireworks in the shape of cats, frogs, smiley faces, flowers, ghosts (?), and hearts.

Sunday:

6:00-  Jesse gets up for some sunrise pics (success! Clear skies)

7:00- Teresa gets up to try and find Jesse and ends up on a nice long, cold, walk around the lake with perfect views of Fuji

9:00-  All 3 of us travel to Lake Saiko by bus for more great views of Fuji and some spelunking

10:00-  Spelunking in an ice cave.  Pretty impressive and great price with our discount thanks to the fujigoko enjoy ticket!

11:30-  Arrived in an old traditional village with more awesome views of Fuji.  J and K explored, while I sat and sketched

12:45ish- Attempt #1 getting on the bus to head back to Lake Kawaguchiko… (no show)

1:15ish-  Attempt #2  to board the bus…(still no show)

1:30- Gave up waiting at the bus stop and walked towards a tour bus / large group of Asians taking pictures around the corner in the most BREATH TAKING, GORGEOUS, STUNNING, view of the Mountain we had seen yet.  Definitely worth 2 busses not showing up on schedule J

2:00- finished eating our snack/lunch on the shore of the lake and headed back to the bus stop for Attempt #3…  success! 

3:00-  Arrived back at the train/bus station with enough time to grab some more food at the 7 eleven and wait for our 4:00 departure back to Tokyo.

 

So what are the things that go into making a great weekend?

Getting to spend time with Kate and my husband: check.   

Getting to see Mnt. Fuji on a clear day: check

Capturing some great mountain shots:  check 

Going caving in yet another country: check

Once in a lifetime experience:  check!

Taste of Tokyo

 

 

We have been in Tokyo for close to a week and in that week we have discovered a few things…

 1. Japanese people are much different than Koreans.  Not a bad thing, but a lot more quiet and reserved

Eating WHALE!!

2.  Even though the culture tends to be reserved, individuals still find unique and weird ways of expressing themselves through their clothing (If I didn’t know any better, I would think it was Halloween everyday in certain parks/streets!) 

3.  The dogs in Tokyo dress just as strange as the people.  What is even stranger, is the dogs seem to enjoy wearing their sweater vests, leggings, and even sunglasses J

4.  Tokyo is busy…but not as busy as you would think for being the largest city in the world.  It is spread out far but not really built upward (because of earthquakes) that you can either find yourself in the world’s busiest intersection (been there and done that) or the only one in a peaceful back alley street. 

5.  Japanese food is WONDERFUL!  We never cared much for all the Korean creations they were put before us at meal times, but here in Japan they know what they are doing.

Last week Kate took us to one of her favorite restaurants in Shibuya, a sushi bar.  We never knew all the different ways sushi could be made!  Jesse nearly fell off his chair when he discovered the whale sushi on the menu.  We ordered our selection via a touch screen and then a toy train brought our food right up to our table- how is that for service?! 

 

Tokyo, we have been pleased so far with everything.  We are excited for what else is in store!