Bear Creek Hike (No Bears..)

Jack, Grant, my dad and I went on a snowy hike today. At first we went to the other side of town (the wrong way) and then people that passed us told us where the Bear Creek Trail was. After we were told it was on the other side of town, we walked over to the trail and started up. Thankfully it was awesome outside and the sun was bright. The hike wasn't too bad of a pitch, but was very snowy at some spots. We hiked about 5 miles and then started to walk down. The hike down was really snowy and the views of the canyon were cool. A river was rushing by us as it carried snow melt. I stepped in a snow drift that soaked my boots, so I had to do the rest of the hike with no socks. After about 30 minutes we finished the trail and G and I jumped on the goose (bus). Jack and my dad decided to take the river trail home and walk back. We decided to play hoops after our hike and finished the day with shrimp tacos.

Hank

The Donavon Frankenreiter Concert

Last night my family and I went to see Donavon Frankenreiter play at the Sheriden Opera House, which is a small, historical theatre in downtown Telluride.  He's one of my favorite artist. Frankenreiter is a professional surfer, as well as a musician, so he plays really mellow and relaxing music.  Needless to say, I was inspired and grabbed my guitar and uke and spent the afternoon busking around the theater.  I played his music, Jack Johnson's, Ben Harper and plenty of others.  At about 5:30, a black car drove behind the Opera House dropping off Donavon and his band for their sound check. It was pretty cool because one of his band members noticed me and hung outside for a while - it looked like he enjoyed the music I was playing. When we got to the concert, standing in the lobby of the Opera House was Donavon and the band member that saw me playing. We talked for a while and then Donavon asked me if I wanted to play with him for the encore song - I thought he meant the guitar.  He asked me where I was sitting and then my family and I went into the theatre.  At the end of the concert the security guy told me where to sit and the band left for the encore. When they came back on, he said, "I'm looking for someone to help me out with this song." He looked around the theatre, spotted me and threw me the mic...he expected me to SING! With over 300 people starring at me, including one my music idols, I didn't want to- playing the guitar would have been way more in my comfort zone. After what seemed to be a lifetime of cheers from the crowd, I finally sang along.  The upside of this awkward misunderstanding is my new street cred because when we finished, Donavan said to everyone, "This kid has been busking all day, a true musician." I'm sure that half the town was there and everyone will remember me when they see me playing tomorrow, which hopefully means, well, more dough!

Jack

The Chair Lift

The chair lift is such an awesome opportunity. Some chairs invite a party of four, others seat three, and some are just fit for two. It hit me as I started to think about the number of lifts we have taken and the stories we have heard on our journey. We have ridden the lift with people from other countries, various ages (3 to 90), and fabulous life stories. The great thing about the lift is that over the course of 7 to 9 minutes there is no option, but to engage in a conversation that typically leads to great story telling (unless you are riding with a snowboarder armed with an ipod? There is no where to go... suspended from a cable, floating 70 feet off the ground, with nothing to do but strike up a conversation. The stories that we have heard have been remarkable and inspirational and most people aren't too stressed riding up a mountain on a chair lift. The greatest opportunity has been to ride up with Julie, Jack, Grant and Hank. If you want to have 9 minutes of uninterupted family time, I highly recommend finding a chairlift to ride!! Jay

Teaching Moments

We headed back to Telluride Elementary school for two more presentations about Maine, the boys had a blast working with the kids. One class coaxed them into coming out to recess and literally wouldn't let them go! Word was out that the boys from Maine were heading in and we were welcomed with a Black Bear sweatshirt.

Hank's Spring POW Videos!!

FestEVOL Road Trip

Had a great weekend road trip to see FestEVOL in Crested Butte, CO, which is about 3 1/2 hours away.  Eddie Dickhaut, a Yarmouth friend who is the drummer for The Pete Kilpatrick Band, invited us over to watch them open for The Bare Naked Ladies, Guster and Big Head Todd and the Monsters.  We had two days of a great music at the base of the mountain...Saturday it was 40 degrees and sunny,  and Sunday it was a complete snowstorm.  We were greeted with VIP tickets, which included balcony seats, great food and plenty of drinks.  We opted out of the balcony and joined the crowd right in front of the stage - mingling with band members and their families who watched along side us.  It was Hank's first show, and as you can see from the pictures, one he'll be sure to remember. Thanks Eddie!!

Teaching in Telluride

Today Jack, Hank and I headed to the Telluride Elementary School. Instead of kindergartners we worked with first graders...trust me there is a difference. We put together a slide show on our MAC that played while I taught the kids about where Maine is located, the Maine mountains and habitat, and how that all compares to Colorado. Then Jack talked about the coastline, the ocean, and lobster fishing.  Hank finished with a presentation on what grows in Maine and showed them a "food map" on wild blueberries since their class was working on food unit.  After finishing our presentation we handed out blueberry cake that my mom made and a word search that we put together for them. This is when I could see the difference between kindergartners (like we worked with in Montana) and first graders. Instead of the kids making little bubbles around random letters, or circling  B when the letter was M, these first graders beat me to most of the words. Another great visit to a local elementary school. Heading to a different first

grade class on Friday and two kindergarten classes next week.  Can't wait!!

Grant (Hi Tommy)

Wiebe jammin

Yesterday our family went on a hike called the Jud Wiebe trail. It was a harder and longer hike then the M hike in Bozeman. It took about 3 1/2 hours up and down. At the top of the mountain I could see all over the place - the town, the mountains and a road that went on forever! On our way up the trail we passed other people with their dogs coming down and asked how much longer to the summit. We kept hiking and began to climb through trees, mud and snow, always trying to keep our balance! We sat at the top for a little while to relax and then started our way down the trail. As were walking down the mountain, I started to feel the change of temperature. I noticed that the spots that were getting sun were warm and muddy and the other areas, that were covered with trees and didn't get much sun, had colder temperatures and snow that was 5 feet deep.

 After walking for a while the path started to get slippery. I fell 3 times on the way down :( but started to get used to the ice. After about an hour of hiking down we finally got to the bottom, hopped on the Galloping Goose, took it home, changed and went out for dinner. I think it was cool to work through the tough parts and get to the top of the mountain. I slept hard!

                      -Hank

After School in Telluride

  A week has passed in Telluride and have yet to pull our car out of the driveway, the "Galloping Goose" takes us anywhere we need to go! Jack has taken the free shuttle to street perform playing his guitar  (he's raised $10 so far) and almost daily one of us rides it to town or as a drop off to ski. The boys have been working on their hoop game at the court close by after school and Julie and I have been able to snowshoe checking out the local neighborhood. The average blood pressure reading in town must be at national low, the vibe is as laid back as we have experienced. After school/work we attempt to get outside and take advantage of the 13,500 foot peaks that surround us. The local crowd is overtly friendly and after a week here, we are beginning to understand why.... avg of 300 days of sun helps! We reached out to the elementary school today to see if we could volunteer and have received three offers already. The boys will be heading there soon to work with the kids. W e are loving the "box canyon" of Telluride.

Spring skiing

Back to back days of amazing spring skiing - stunning views, warm temps, awesome snow, and not a cloud in the sky.  Even a little live music mid-mountain. Love it here!
Julie