Something very strange happened yesterday. Oh, sure. It was getaway day and all that, but the weird thing? We left the cabin at exactly 8 a.m. That, my friends, is the miracle of the Christi Vaughan Absolute Timetable. She has everything planned to the minute. Amazing trip planner, that girl. It’s been fun having her in our corner, mainly because … we’re not so much like that on our road trips. Maybe we’ll learn something from her … or not.
We
noticed some big changes in the Denver area since we left 27 years ago. The
most surprising one to me was the installation of an electric trolley/train
system the runs from a good ways south into at least downtown. Sounds like a
fun excursion … next time.
Our
first stop on the way home was Garden of the Gods outside of Colorado Springs.
Interesting place. When the guy who owned the land died back in 1909, his heirs
gave it to the city with the stipulation that it always be free entry and no
alcohol will ever be sold there and no building unless necessary for park
operation. As it turned out, we got to do one hike - from the parking lot to
the visitor center - about one mile uphill and back down. We opted for the
self-guided driving tour after seeing the intro video. The rock formations were
pretty amazing, but there were thousands upon thousands of people there.
Everywhere. We completed the drive but got out of there as soon as we could.
And after that ordeal, it was definitely time for some Chick-Fil-A. Quick lunch
there and we were back on the road, headed south.
Next
stop - we’ll, after a bathroom/gas break- was the Mount Capulin Volcano. It’s
actually dormant right now, but the kids had never seen a real volcano before.
We all made the hike to the bottom of the crater. That was easy. Coming back
up? Not so much. We all got back to the car just in time. The park rangers were
closing down the road because of an impending thunderstorm with lots of
lightning. We hit the road back toward Texas. Those intimidating clouds
followed us, too - for a while. Sorry, Texas. I tried to get it to come all the
way south.
We
stopped for dinner in Dalhart. Back in Texas. Yay. XIT Steakhouse is what
Christi picked this time. Great food. Best and thickest chicken fried steak I have
had - probably ever. Definitely Texas atmosphere. Deer heads lined the wall
amidst all sorts of ranching paraphernalia. It’s remote - didn’t even have cell
service for a while- but worth a stop.
We
finally pulled into Amarillo and our hotel well after dark. That meant I was
driving, by the way. Chris doesn’t drive after dark any more. After church this
morning it’s on to Waco.
2
Corinthians 10:5 says, “We demolish arguments and
every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take
captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.”
Father,
thank you for holding off those flash floods we kept getting warnings about.
Amen.
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