After a longer period of blog silence than I have had in a long while (maybe ever? though I have to admit, it was kind of awesome), I am back to inundate you with tales and pictures from our vacation in Colorado.
My family has been going to Colorado for as long as I can remember. For the first half of my life, the whole extended family gathered in Estes Park every other year for a family reunion. We would spend a happy week playing with cousins on the boulders, traipsing between cabins each night for my grandfather to tell us stories, and begging my aunt and uncle to make homemade ice cream and then sneaking away so we didn’t have to churn. Sometime when I was in middle school, my great uncle built some cabins in Buena Vista Colorado and our reunions shifted locations but remained otherwise intact. After high school however, it became too hard to get the whole family out to Colorado. Everyone had jobs, summer internships, camps, sports, etc, and no one could find a two-week chunk where we were all free to trek out west.
It had been over five years since my family has been back to Buena Vista. When we started trying to find a time for just our immediate family to come out, it looked a little impossible. Lyman graduates and moves out to DC (hurray!), Zach has all sorts of research grants for the summer, James can only take so many vacation days, and I… oh wait, I spend my summers reading books and staking out pools, so I was always free. But finally, it all fell into place together and we all made it out here.
There is something about this place that I love.
I love waking up in the lodge that my great uncle built, the realization of the dream that he and his late wife had always held to build it here. 
I love the mountains that surround this valley, rising up and wrapping around you in snowy white peaks.
I love the aspens that grow in endless groves, shaking their bright green, and later silver, leaves in the mountain breezes.
I love the freezing mountain lakes and the bubbling brooks that smooth the stones in their wake. 
I love this land, with all of its memories and majesty.
The Art in Life 
I was born and raised in the foothills in Colorado. When I was a child we went camping every weekend. We went to all sorts of places, the great sand dunes, Estes Park, Buena Vista, you name it we were there at some point. Your pictures made me homesick. Thanks for sharing them.
I’m so glad you liked them! We didn’t make it down to the great sand dunes this time, but that is another totally different area that I love!
Good to have you back! Looks like an awesome vacation…I’m jealous, and I miss the mountains. Blue hills are nice too, but there’s something about white peaks. 🙂
I do love the blue mountains of VA though! But yes… every now and then you just need a white peak.
Have you ever seen Dan In Real Life? Your uncle’s cabin reminded me of that movie, and it’s one of my favorites. The pictures are beautiful though! My parents lived in Colorado before I was born, but we visit every once in a while. This makes me want to go again soon…
I haven’t – but now that I am on my Loooonnnnggggg summer break I might just have to watch this! You should totally go back soon.
It was so fun to see you the other night!
I would love to make it out here- I just spent the weekend vacationing from Denver to Aspen and saw some amazing scenery, but it wasn’t as isolated as these photos look! Glad you had a wonderful time in my new home state : )
Actually, a good number of these pics were taken near Aspen! We drove through Independence Pass and into Aspen one day and it was so beautiful! Lucky you for getting to live there, even if it meant leaving the awesome and brunch friendly city of DC (my Denver friends complain that CO isn’t on the brunch wagon yet, as everyone is out hiking and being outdoorsy all day. ; ) )