As Good As It Gets

So what does it feel like on the day you leave everything behind and leap into the unknown?  While there is all of the emotion anticipated in leaving friends, family and community, the power of the moment still took us by surprise.  We had sold the house earlier in the first week of June, so we camped out on Western State College’s campus as Jess finished her work responsibilities.  (She then changed clothes to her beloved Tevas, t-shirt and river pants that Friday afternoon as she left the Board of Trustees meeting.)  As we walked toward the van to drive north, we felt….

Awestruck. Inspired. Overwhelmed. Excited. Shocked. Amazed.  Joy. Disbelief. Freedom. Adventure.

Those emotions remain almost two weeks later as we travel through the country enjoying the ability to wake up each day and the uncertainty of what the day will bring.  We have watched moose spar, waited for a herd of buffalo to pass, and sat by a baby porcupine while its mother flared her annoyance at our audacity.  We have sat silently and admired Bierstadt’s landscapes then moved into them.

For those of you interested in following our journey northward, we will try to post a story a week.  When it gets cold and dark in Alaska, we will make the jump to our international portion of this journey.  We have no idea where that first stop will be and love not knowing the answer to that question… yet. 

(enjoy the image of our last view of the Gunnison Basin from the top of the Continental Divide as we headed out)

Posted from Cody, Wyoming