Some friends and family who subscribe to “Rambles” (What, you didn’t know you could subscribe?!? Just enter your email address below or to the right of any post, where it says “Never Miss a Ramble.”) have expressed concern that we are lost somewhere in the wilds of Wyoming.

So this is a quick update to reassure you that we did, indeed, make it to Denver and then eventually back home to Santa Fe. We couldn’t resist a stop for some family photos in Ault, Colorado (A Unique Little Town), replicating a snapshot my parents, brother, and I posed for 40 years ago. Frankly, there’s not a lot to keep anyone in Ault for more than a few minutes, and the stench of manure was a powerful motivator to keep on truckin’ to Denver.

We had a great time with family in the Mile-High City, including multiple birthday celebrations for yours truly: a concert at Red Rocks, a picnic in Chatfield State Park, and a Rockies game. So far, turning 50 has been a lot of fun–it sure beats the alternative!

The original plan had been to end our trip with two days camping in the wilds of northern New Mexico. But we needed to have some repairs done to our leaky hot water heater, so after two relaxing days at Cimarron Canyon we fish-hooked back up to a campground near our RV dealer in South Fork, Colorado, for a couple nights, before finally making it home.

And now we’re getting ready to head back out for one more trip before the weather turns cold, this time to the Grand Canyon and Mesa Verde. Maureen’s brother Patrick is joining us, and he’s already shipped to our house at least a half dozen boxes of camping supplies. We can’t wait to see what’s inside–and how we’ll fit it all into our truck along with three people and one large, space-hogging dog.