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Blue Mesa Reservoir
Gunnison, Colorado
June 29, 2009

I’ve been working every day for the last several weeks, so yesterday I decided that I would take the day off and drive into the mountains. I had no idea where I was headed, but that was part of the fun. Unfortunately my favorite road trip buddy couldn’t join me, because Mike was out of town, but my dog Ally made for a great companion. We headed west on Hwy 50, and five hours later ended up in Gunnison, Colorado. By this time I was tired of driving and not looking forward to driving home in the dark. I decided to stay for the night, which turned my random road trip into a spontaneous mini-vacation. It was just what I needed.

I bought a sandwich in Gunnison, and had a picnic in one of those pavilions by the lake.

It’s tough to work every weekend in the summer, but it’s great to have a place like this all to ourselves on a Monday evening.

Ally found all kinds of great sticks in the water, and would bring them to me for games of fetch.

This stick was her greatest find, but she couldn’t carry it as well as she’d hoped.

As the sun got lower in the sky, the lake became a deep navy color, surrounded by golden cliffs.

Ally and I hiked around the lake for a while.

We found a great spot to sit and enjoy the view. As much as she loves to run around, Ally will sit right by my side anytime I want to relax.

I love this picture of me with my wonderful dog.

As the sun went down over the mountains, the insects came out to eat me.

It was so beautiful at this time of the night, but ferocious red ants were flying through the air and stinging me. Yes, I know that ants don’t fly, but these were gravity-defying mutants.

I told myself that a devoted photographer would do whatever it took to get great landscape photos during a sunset like this. Then I reminded myself that I’m a devoted *wedding* photographer, and there are no homicidal insects at weddings. So I snapped a final photo from my car, and then checked into a hotel and watched “My Life on the D List.” Because I’m hardcore like that.

This morning Ally and I went hiking at Hartman Rocks Recreation Area outside Gunnison.

Hartman Rocks is a fantastic network of trails for hiking, biking, snowmobiling, and cross country skiing.

We climbed those rocks, then found a big mesa at the top, which we crossed and climbed another set of rocks. I loved it!

On our way back to Colorado Springs, we stopped to take the Monarch Pass gondola to a height of 12,000 feet.

Ally was allowed in the gondola, but she was terrified. She hid under my knees for most of the ride.

I don’t blame Ally for being frightened — the gondolas were old and rickety, and even I was nervous.

But this was the view from the top, so it was definitely worth it!

We’re back home now, happy and tired. Tomorrow I get back to my busy workload, but it has been a fantastic to take a break this week and enjoy Colorado.