BEACON - Summer Traveler (June 2014)

Now on the web at www.BeaconSeniorNews.com

Produced by the BeacoN’s advertising Team

Soak up the sunat summer festivals

page 6

BEACON reader Mike Hill reads the March issue of the BEACON on his recent trip to Ireland.

Senior Summer Traveler 2014

Your Guide to Summer Travel, Recreation & Festivals

&Festivals

2 Summer Traveler www.BeaconSeniorNews.com June 2014

By Jan Weeks

Ah, summertime! The season to travel, hit the beaches, the moun-

tains, or the Big Apple (or maybe a small one).

You drag out the checkbook, check the Visa balance, and sigh. No money for vacation—or at least, not enough to support your plans. That’s where peer-to-peer travel comes in. From couch surfing (free) to bed and breakfast places (not free, and some-times as expensive as a hotel, so do your homework) you can find places to stay that al-low you to avoid the sterility of chain hotel rooms if you’re willing to sink the spa, ditch the free waffles-and-boiled-eggs breakfast, and meet new friends.

Couch surfing, mainly considered an option for younger people, can be done by people of any age who are up for a bit of adventure. Hosts live all over the world, as do their guests. If you have a couch, air mattress or spare room, you can meet folks who will expand your horizons exponen-tially. You are not expected to feed, water or transport guests, although you’re free to do so. And who doesn’t like showing off the old hometown? The website, www.couchsurfing.com, offers five introductory videos that explain how the process works. Malia, the spokesperson, explains all about couch surfing, but she does tend to drop the F bomb here and there. However, since the site’s geared for younger people, maybe that’s to be expected.

Relay Rides allows you to rent your car to someone who needs it for just a short time, or you can rent some-one’s car for a quick trip to the beach or shopping. The site checks out both owners and drivers, and provides a

million-dollar insurance policy to go with. This might be the perfect way to see the sights or have convenient transportation to an event without having to rent a car from a national chain. Check out www.relayrides.com for details.

Vayable highlights locals who im-merse you in whatever you’d like to experience, whether you’re a foodie or a photographer. Instead of tour guides who rattle on about sights you’d rather not see, the Vayable insiders allow you to experience just what you want to take away from a

culture. From the Midnight Crawl in New York City that introduces you to various ethnic street food and fun, to the Grave-digger Ghost Tour in Dublin that spooks and

entertains you, you can tailor a tour to your interests. Visit Alternative Berlin to learn how Berlin came to be what it is now, along with visits to jazz clubs and alternative art venues. Go to www.vayable.com and check out all the insider tours available in major cities. Prices range from $20 an hour per person to several hundred for up to 99 people. Browse the site and dare to dream outside the “If this is Thursday, it must be Belgium” tour experience.

If the thought of haring off into the great unknown by yourself and depending on the kindness of strang-ers to sleep gives you pause, yet be-ing herded onto buses, scheduled to death and sharing hotel rooms makes you want to crawl under the covers and never venture out, the Friendship Force might be the answer to your travel prayers.

Friendship Force, an international nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing cultures and people to-

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June 2014 www.BeaconSeniorNews.com Summer Traveler 3

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And travel through the lush jungleto Maesa Elephant Camp, hometo one of the largest collections ofelephants in northern Thailand..

BRANSON OZARK CHRISTMASNovember 10 – 18, 2014

Featuring… Johnny Mathis, Daniel O’Donnell,“JONAH” at the Sight & Sound Theater

and MORE GREAT Entertainers!!It’s been awhile since we’ve had a Branson,

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gether, was introduced to the world by President Jimmy Carter in 1977. The first trip was to Cuba, which had been off limits since the Cuban mis-sile crisis in 1962, to visit with Fidel Castro. Since then more than 360 clubs in 55 countries on six conti-nents have helped travelers connect to locals in those countries on an informal basis. Members can travel just about anywhere: France, Russia, Japan, Australia, Uganda, Taiwan or Greece. You name it and you can find a host family eager to share experi-ences and lives. Sue Palmer joined the Grand Junction group in 2007, and since then has traveled to Brazil, Turkey and Australia, among other places.

Trips are planned up to a year in advance. The average group size is 18 to 20 people who travel across the globe, staying with host families and getting to know local customs and exploring the towns where they are headquartered.

“It’s kind of like a student exchange program for adults,” Palmer said.

And instead of being crammed onto tour buses and given history lessons over a loudspeaker, travelers are split up among hosts’ homes. The hosts provide a place to sleep and breakfast at no charge, and may even spring for other meals. The hosts love showing off their towns and cities and introducing Americans to their way of life. Visitors hang out away from tourist traps and get to know the real faces of the country.

The Grand Valley is of particular interest to international travelers drawn by the red rock cliffs and alpine forests of the surroundings.

At the end of May, Friendship Force hosted a group from Moscow. Activi-ties included a tour of downtown, meeting the mayor, a trip to Glen-wood Hot Springs, a Rimrock Adven-tures float trip, a tour of the Colorado National Monument, and a “Thanks-giving” potluck at Church of the Nativity. Previously, the club hosted a group from St. Petersburg, Russia.

When traveling abroad, speaking the language isn’t necessary, as many local people speak English. But even without understanding the local lingo, guests manage to communicate with hosts and have a great time in the process. There are also “speaking exchange” trips, in which members learn to speak French, for instance, by being immersed in it.

Members of the club also travel within the U.S.

“We’re organizing a trip to Con-necticut to see the autumn colors,” Palmer said. “We’ll also take a side trip to New York City.” Within the states, members travel on their own to their destinations, assembling at a central location, then meeting host families.

Members pay their own expenses for travel and incidentals, but pay nothing to the host families for room or breakfast. However, group discounts on travel are available for overseas travel. Travelers must, of course, have passports, visas, and any shots that might be required to visit a country.

Membership in the club is $50 for families and $30 for singles. For more information or to join, contact Palmer at 260-4653 or visit www.thefriendshipforce.org. ■

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By W. R. Jones

Mention cliff dwellers and you probably think of the ancient

Anasazi ruins of the Southwest built high on the cliff side. Mention gold and you probably think of the beauti-ful shiny metal. What you probably don’t think of is the mysterious un-derground world of the gold min-ers who toiled for the metal lusted after by kings and commoners alike. On Galena Mountain, gold miners combined cliff dwelling and cave dwelling to extract gold at the Old Hundred Gold Mine, located about five miles southeast of the historic mining town of Silver-ton, Colorado.

After the last gold mine closed in Sil-verton in 1991, local assayer Bill Jones and his partners got a crew of out-of-work miners to reopen the famed Old Hun-dred Gold Mine. But it wasn’t for mining gold—it was opened for visitors to tour.

After gathering up historic 1950s-era San Juan mining equipment, cleaning out tunnels, laying new track, installing lights and rebuild-ing the miner’s “dry room,” the Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour was born. Now in it’s 22nd year, the mine takes thousands of summer visitors into Galena Mountain to see real mining equipment in a real gold mine.

The mine has quite a history. The mine tour uses the mine’s lowest tun-nel on the mountain, which was built to access the original mill. The first 700 feet were drilled in 1907-10 but

stopped work long before hitting the vein. Back then, the good gold vein was found to outcrop over 2,500 feet above the valley floor, up at 12,500 feet. But how could the miners get up there 107 years ago, before cars, 4x4s and helicopters? They had to live at the mine tunnel entrance so they could walk to work each day for their 12-hour shift. They needed a boarding house, but where could they build it on the steep cliffs of Galena Mountain? The solution was inspired by the Mesa Verde ruins

discovered only six years earlier—a “cliff dwellers” boarding house.

Built in 1907, the Old Hundred Boarding House is perched at 12,100 feet on a narrow ledge of rock partly blasted out of the cliff. The two-and-a-half story wooden structure was literally pinned to the rock face with wire rope and rock bolts to help keep it standing. Over 30 men lived, slept, and ate in the boarding house for weeks on end. To get up there, they rode in the ore buckets of an aerial tram, like a ski lift, which also hauled the gold ore down to the mill to be crushed and to have the gold extract-ed. Last used in the late 1930s, the

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Bill Heddles Recreation Centeroffers something for everyone.For more information on all ourprograms and amenities please visit our web site at www.cityofdelta.net or call 874-0923

Basketball GymnasiumAerobic ClassesWater & Fitness Classes Silver Sneaker ClassesRacquetball CourtsWeight & Cardio Rooms Pickleball Leagues Tot Pool 25 yd. (6) lane Pool & SaunaWarm Water Wellness Pool & Lazy River

Paonia’s historic Bross Hotel Bed & Breakfast

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old building sat neglected for years. At certain times of the year down

in Silverton, a boardinghouse win-dow reflected the setting sun back to town like a silent beacon beckoning the miners back. Eventually they did come back.

In 1968, Dixilyn Corporation, a Texas oil company, came back to the Old Hundred with big dreams and a big bank account. They reopened the old mill level tunnel, now conveniently located next to a county road, and started tunneling. By the time they fin-ished in 1971, they had blasted several interconnected tun-nels a mile deep into the heart of Galena Mountain looking for the “mother lode” the old timers

missed. But alas, the mountain kept its secrets and its gold. Dixilyn spent millions and found a nice quartz vein but the gold content was too low to make a profitable mine. In 1975, the tunnels were abandoned and tracks and buildings were torn up.

Today, these wide and tall modern tunnels with their excellent ventila-tion and stable rock provide ideal access for visitors to see the under-ground world of the gold miner. After an electric train ride 1/3 of a mile in, the miner-guides walk you through the tunnels, showing you the quartz vein and colorful minerals, and they even fire up the old mining equipment, including jack-leg and lyner drills, an air tugger, slusher and mucking machine. Outside, you can try your luck panning for gold in the Old Hundred sluice boxes.

High above the tour, still clinging precariously to the side of the cliff, stands the Old Hundred Boarding House, now a Colorado Historic Landmark. Open daily through Sep-tember, the Old Hundred can be combined with the Silverton Heritage

Pass, offering a 15 percent discount to visit the new Silver-ton Mining Heritage Museum, 1901 Silver-ton Jail and the 1929 Mayflower Gold Mill. So head on down to Silverton for a day of exploring Colorado’s gold mining heritage.

For more infor-mation about visit-ing Silverton’s Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour, visit www.minetour.com or call 1-800-872-3009. ■

Old Hundred Boarding House, circa 1907.

A tour guide educates visitors as part of the Old Hundred Gold Mine Tour.

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Country JamJune 19-22 Country Jam Ranch 1065 Highway 6 & 50 Mack, Colorado 1-877-569-7767 www.countryjam.com

The largest country party of the year takes place only 30 minutes outside of Grand Junction. This year’s Country Jam features entertainment by Jake Owen, Lady Antebellum, Eric Church, Brantley Gilbert, Joe Nichols, Thomas Rhett, Kellie Pickler, Jerrod Niemann, Brett Eldredge and more. There will be regional and local bands performing on the side stages in the bar area. Even if you’re not a fan of country music, there are vendors, food and rides for the whole family to enjoy. Tickets for single and four-day general admission, reserved, VIP and sky box seats are available. Call or visit the website for ticket prices and performance times.

Strawberry DaysJune 20-22 Sayre Park 1702 Grand Ave. Glenwood Springs, Colorado 970-945-6589 www.strawberrydaysfestival.ning.com

Strawberry Days has entertained generations for more than 100 years. The festival features a FamilyFest area with interactive, entertaining and creative experiences for the grandkids. There will be an arts and crafts fair, food court, an old-fashioned carnival, a parade down Main Street, the crowning of Miss Strawberry Days, and a full entertainment lineup. Of course, there will still be free strawberries and ice cream on Saturday. Admission to the general festival is free.

Paonia Cherry DaysJuly 3-5 Paonia, Colorado 970-527-3886 www.paoniacherrydays.com

Soak up the sun at summer festivals

14th Annual

www.mountainharvestfestival.org

Regional PRoduce live enteRtainment

Quality Handmade cRafts

local Baked goods

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Fruita Farmers MarketSaturdayS June 28 - September 20

8:30 am to 12:30 Pm

civic centeR in downtown fRuita

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A parade, talent show, cherry pie contest and auction, cherry pie-eating contest, coal shoveling contest, live music and dances are among this year’s festivities and will be held at various locations throughout Paonia. Cherry Days is one of the oldest outdoor festivals and will have a mix of events both old and new.

Deltarado DaysJuly 17-20 Delta, Colorado 970-874-8616 www.deltacolorado.org www.facebook.com/DeltaChamber

The 79th annual Deltarado Days festival is still in the works, but the activities are bigger and better than ever. Street vendors line the streets of downtown Delta during this four-day event, which includes a parade, car show, live music in the park, street dances, barbecues, vendors, a 5K and more. Visit the Delta Chamber’s Face- book page for new announcements of events and activities.

Telluride Jazz FestivalAugust 1-3 Telluride Town Park Telluride, Colorado 970-728-7009 www.telluridejazz.org

Telluride Jazz Festival is enjoying its 38th year of bringing world-class jazz to western Colorado. This event is not to be missed, as the Telluride Jazz Festival has earned national and international favor for featuring the best in blues and jazz music. Performances are staged outdoors in the daytime, and in intimate clubs and historic concert halls at night. Along with a parade and wine tasting, this year’s performers include Grupo Fantasma, the Nigel Hall Band, Poncho Sanchez, Lettuce, Dragon Smoke, Jon Cleary and more. Three-day park passes are $115, which includes entry to all Town Park performances. Single-day passes are available for $45 on Friday or $55 Saturday and Sunday. Weekend all-access passes are $165, which includes entry to Town Park performances and participating


For more information call (970) 244-0439 or email [email protected]

Labor Day Weekend 2014 (August 30 & 31)Canyon View Park • Grand Junction, Colorado

400+ Classic Autos & Specialty Vehicles M 33 ClassesCar Registration $35 M Featured Marque: Ford MustangEntertainment M Music M Food M Swap Meet M Vendors

Car Sales Corral M See our Calendar of Partner Events

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Register your car and purchase tickets online at

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night venues. Patron Passes are $625, which includes special stage-side seating at Town Park performances with food and beverage catering. Patrons have priority entry to participating night venues and events. Order your tickets online or by calling the number above.

Western Colorado Classic Auto EventAugust 30-31 Canyon View Park Grand Junction, Colorado 970-244-0439 www.westerncoloradoclassic.com

Hilltop is hosting its annual Western Colorado Classic Auto Event over Labor Day weekend with fun events planned all weekend long. The event will feature over 250 classic autos and is open to sports cars, hot rods, muscle cars, trucks, antiques and rat rods, along with motorcycles and specialty vehicles. There are 33 classes with a “best of” award for each class. There will be vendors, entertainment, drawings and specialty trophies that include Best of Show, Best of Marque, Hilltop

Choice, People’s Choice, and Best of Paint.

Meeker Classic Sheepdog Championship TrialsSeptember 3-7 Meeker, Colorado 970-878-0111 970-878-5510 www.meekersheepdog.com

The Meeker Classic Sheepdog Championship Trials offers five days of sheepdog herding competitions at their finest, as over 130 top international dog/handler teams vie for a grand prize of $20,000. There will also be food, a craft and fiber festival, educational programs and demonstrations, flyball and dog agility demonstrations, and more. Five-day passes for adults are $30 and one-day passes are $10. For seniors, five-day passes are $15 and one-day passes are $5. Purchase your tickets online until August 20. Tickets can also be purchased at the gate.

Mountain Harvest FestivalSeptember 25-28 Paonia, Colorado 970-433-3580 www.mountainharvestfestival.org

Paonia’s 14th annual Mountain Harvest Festival is a wonderful community celebration of agriculture, art, music and life on

Colorado’s Western Slope. This festival draws people from around the West to share in the celebration and features locally grown and produced agricultural products. Come learn about and meet local farmers, artists, musicians, craftsmen and performers from the Western Slope.

Enjoy interesting workshops and tours, and support various local nonprofit organizations through your participation in many different activities. New activities this year include the bike parade, harvest carving, an outdoor cinema in the park and more.

Fruita Fall FestivalSeptember 26-28 Downtown Fruita 970-858-3894 www.fruitafallfestival.com

The Fruita Fall Festival celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. This three-day festival located on the streets of downtown Fruita started as a celebration of the harvest for the farming community. The festival features carnival rides, live music, food and craft vendors, street dances, a magic show, a bed race, a parade, contests and more. Admission is free.

AppleFestOctober 4-5 Cedaredge, Colorado 970-856-6961 www.cedaredgechamber.com/applefest

Cedaredge comes alive with music, food, art and more during AppleFest. AppleFest marks the celebration of the apple harvest, and thousands of locals and visitors flock to Cedaredge to enjoy over 150 booths, a classic car show, antique tractor show, live music and many other activities. ■


After 17 years of supplying cus-tomers with spectacular 4x4

tours of the San Juan Mountains around Telluride, Dave’s Mountain Tours, under the new ownership of Dave Biser, has expanded its service into Ridgway.

“We are looking at offering a few rather mild but spectacular two- to four-hour journeys around town, with views such as the other side of Mt. Sneffels, Chimney Rock and scenes from famous western movies such as ‘True Grit,’ ‘How the West was Won” and ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid,’” Biser said.

Ridgway is rich with ranch history and has amazing views that any pho-tographer would enjoy.

Dave’s Mountain Tours also plans to offer all-day trips into the heart of the San Juan Mountains, including high-altitude adventures, rock hounding,

By Bonnie Richards

Mike and I came to Grand Junc-tion to start our shuttle compa-

ny in 1995. We named the company GISDHO Shuttle, an acronym for “Get In, Sit Down, Hold On,” which was a fun, flip name that people remembered once they knew what it stood for. Later we adopted the name American Spirit Shuttle.

I began guiding wine tours in 1996 when there were only five wineries in Palisade. I later worked with the visitor and convention bureau, the growing number of wineries, and a few hotels on Horizon Drive to brand Grand Junction as “Colorado’s Wine Country.” There are now over 20 licensed wineries in the Grand Valley American Vinticultural Area. More recently, I have worked with the Pali-sade Chamber and town to attract visi-tors to Palisade for agricultural tours.

Trust American Spirit Shuttle for the premier personal-guided quest of Colorado’s Wine Country in the Colo-rado, North Fork and Surface Creek valleys. Our tours fit your leisure

history and a picnic lunch. Choose to meet them at their location at River Ranch or they can even pick you up at your door.

“Last year was my first year behind the reins of Dave’s Mountain Tours and I just had a great time,” Biser said.

With the business, Biser inherited two Pinzgauers (exotic Swiss Military troop transport vehicles) and plans to add a new 6x6 Pinzgauer to the fleet with custom-made, forward-facing seats.

Dave’s Mountain Tours has expe-rienced guides that return year after year. The company will also add a couple of new guides this year who are excited to share what they know.

Visit Dave’s Mountain Tours in either Telluride or Ridgway. To reach Dave’s Mountain Tours, call 728-9749 or visit www.telluridetours.com. ■

time. Join our four-hour Saturday wine tour, or let us help you arrange your custom tour of wineries, brew-eries and distilleries of the Grand Valley. Experience our two-day gour-mand foray into wines, spirits and slow-food in the stunning vistas of western Colorado’s countryside.

You and your guests may want to tour scenic areas of western Colo-rado and eastern Utah. Perhaps you’d like to visit Colorado National Monu-ment and Grand Mesa, or Arches, Canyonlands and Black Canyon National Parks.

Travelers to outlying areas may rely on our dependable transportation services to and from Grand Junc-tion Regional Airport, the Amtrak or Greyhound stations. River rafters and mountain bikers can trust our effi-cient car shuttle services. Weddings, reunions, conventions and business party planners can trust your guests with our designated driver services.

For all your tour and transportation needs, call American Spirit Shuttle at 523-7662. ■

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Kick off your sum-mer of music with

the Grande River Vine-yards’ “Hear It Through the Grapevine” concert series.

Pack a picnic and enjoy a summer evening of music and fantastic wine. Concertgoers love the setting, the friendly crowds and the chance to kick off their shoes and dance. They also wouldn’t miss out on the chance to support many local nonprofit organizations.

The best way to enjoy this sum-mer series is to purchase a season ticket. For just $123, you can enjoy all seven concerts. Plus, you can enjoy a free glass of wine and a 10 percent discount on wine purchases at each show. There are also food and soft drinks available at every concert for purchase. However, no outside bever-ages are permitted.

Hear it through the grapevine Can’t make every

show? The season ticket is transferrable, so if you can’t make it, pass it along to someone who can.

Gates open at 6:30 p.m. and shows start at 7:30 p.m. rain or shine. Ticket prices vary. Each

concert benefits a local nonprofit. See the ad to the right of this article or visit www.granderivervineyards.com/events-concerts for details. Purchase your tickets at Grande River Vineyards, Fisher’s Liquor Barn and Roper Music.

The Indigo Girls, a renowned folk/rock duo, are also coming to Grande River Vineyards for a special concert on July 26 (not included in the con-cert series). General admission tick-ets for this show are $39. Tickets can be purchased by calling 243-8497 or at www.ticketswest.com. ■

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This summer, make plans to visit the Uintah Basin, where you can

experience all Utah has to offer in one place.

Dinosaurland, Vernal, Utah is the only place in the world where you can view and even touch over 1,500 dinosaur bones, all in their original resting place.

Dinosaur National Monument Quarry and Visitor Center is eagerly awaiting the hundreds of thousands of visitors that will enter the park in the coming months. Dinosaurs are not all Uintah County has to offer.

Hitch onto the camper or load up the tent, as there are plenty of camping spots available for a night under the stars. Hiking, biking, boating, swim-ming, rafting, petroglyphs, museums and more are what makes this area loved by those who live and vacation here.

Enjoy a quiet hike on the Sound of Silence trail, or scream and holler as you experience whitewater rafting down the Green River. Dinosaurland is also about rivers. After all, a river is what created the wall of bones. Raft-ing the Green and Yampa rivers is

Explore Utah in Dinosaurland

one of the best ways to see the area. It will be an experience you will not forget.

Exploring the monument on foot will allow you to view massive arches and rarely seen petroglyphs.

Vernal is home to three state parks: the Utah Field House of Natural His-tory Dinosaur Museum, Steinaker, and Red Fleet Reservoir State Park. You can have your boat launched and ready for a day on the water in less than 20 minutes from downtown. Don’t have a boat? Don’t let this stop you. Steinaker is home of the “Vernal Beach.” Enjoy a day building sand castles, swimming or playing on the swim dock.

Red Fleet has been referred to as “Little Lake Powell” with its gorgeous scenery and huge red cliffs. Don’t for-get to watch out for dinosaur tracks as you play and explore the land around the lake. Make sure to inquire

about canoe and paddleboard rentals.The Field House of Natural History

Museum provides a hands-on experi-ence where visitors can learn more about the history of the area, view life-size replicas of dinosaurs, learn about the fossils that are found in the area, and view paleontologists as they work on newly discovered fossils from the observation window in the curatorial facility.

If you really want to ride world-class trails, you can pick your plea-sure: slick rock, alpine forests or desert canyons. With small crowds and great trails, the area is truly a bicyclist’s dream.

Make your next adventure getaway in Dinosaurland, Vernal, Utah. You’ll want to stay forever. The dinosaurs did.

For more information, call 1-800-477-5558 or visit www.dinoland.com. ■

Stay & Playin Dinosaurland

Visit Dinosaurland-Vernal, Utah You’ll want to stay forever...the Dinosaurs did!

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Call or visit our website for more details

800-477-5558 dinoland.com

Now open every Friday & Saturday evening for dessert and coffeeClosed Mondays starting June 2nd.

See and touch over 1,500 dinosaur bones at Dinosaur National Monument in Vernal, Utah.


If enjoying a mouthwater-ing rib eye steak cooked

over open coals in a distant mountain location appeals to you, then take a trip with Colorado West Jeep Rentals & Tours to their famous Outlaw Mountain Cookout.

To accompany your cooked-to-order steak, en-joy Outlaw potatoes, corn on the cob, western-style baked beans, fresh garden salad, French bread, fresh seasonal fruit, coffee or lemonade, and marshmal-lows to toast over an open campfire.

One of the unique features of the Outlaw Mountain Cookout, which is offered every June through Septem-ber by Colorado West Jeep Rentals & Tours in Ouray, is that attendees can take a mini 4x4 tour from Colo-

30 years of food, 4x4 and fun at the Outlaw Mountain Cookout

rado West Jeep Tour’s office on Main Street in Ouray (or from a Main Street hotel) to the cookout, which is sure to also include mountain lore and tasteful jokes, making it an event the whole family can enjoy.

Chris Bonattii, who owned the

famous Outlaw Restaurant in Ouray, started the cookout in the summer of 1984. The original location was at the Camp Bird’s hydroelectric plant along Canyon Creek. After helping with the cookout for almost 20 years, Bob Burdick of Colorado West Jeep

Rentals & Tours took over the cookout in 2005 and moved it to its current location at the historic KHE-Dive level of the rich Bachelor Syracuse mine. But after a life-changing ac-cident in 2013, Burdick sold Colorado West Jeep Rent-als & Tours to his sister and nephew, Judy and Jeff Lind-berg, who plan to continue the cookout and family-run business.

Call 1-800-648-5337 to RSVP. Cookouts are available

for groups of 20 or more, so make sure to call to be added to a group so the minimum of 20 can be met. The cost is $34.95 per person. Tours start at 6 p.m. and return at 8:15 p.m. Cookout guests also receive a $5 dis-count on tours booked with Colorado West Jeep Tours. ■

Delicious food, mountain lore and tasteful jokes make the Outlaw Mountain Cookout in Ouray something you, the kids and even the grandkids can enjoy.


By Anne Ashley

You would think that planning

for a vacation was a good thing. You would be forgiven for assuming that being able to get away from it all would fill me with joy and excitement. (Some folks I know even get as much pleasure from the preparations and booking hotel rooms and necessary foreign accouterments as they do the actual getting away part.) However, no, the feeling is quite the opposite for me.

In fact, I get separation anxiety the moment my long-suffering husband mentions anything even remotely associated with us being away from home. You know how adults spell out certain anti-social words in front of children? Even the slightest indica-tion that my husband is contemplat-ing relaxing elsewhere sends me into such an instant panic that he now disguises his intentions to vacation outside the home by using gentle ex-pressions such as a “rest” or “break”

or “breather” in

order to broach the delicate subject

without incurring the inevitable fallout.

Poor man. What he wouldn’t give to be married to one of those women you see in movies or advertisements that can throw a hairbrush and an extra pair of underwear into a plastic bag and go without hyperventilating into a paper bag at the thought. What he wouldn’t give for a life partner who surprises him with a romantic stopover in a quaint B&B somewhere just because, without needing to down Valium like M&Ms.

I’ve never been one to relax or unwind at the end of my day, even at home. To me, unwinding simply means finding the next thing to do after finishing the last thing I did. I find it difficult to switch off or to “chill” at the best of times, but a vacation, mini-break or whatever my better half camouflages it as, fills

me with utter dread. The thought of having to choose meals from an unfamiliar menu or having to perform cosmetic miracles in a hotel room where electrical sockets are situated 30 yards from the mirror, or the win-dow is facing in the wrong direction, is guaranteed to hasten a meltdown. Moreover, you do not even want to get me started on what passes for an ad-equate iron in hotel rooms these days.

By the time I’ve finished pack-ing my essentials plus the things I might need, plus my “what if” items, my husband’s baggage allowance is reduced to no more than a pillow-case—which reminds me—pillows! I mean, is it asking too much that I’m provided with a pillow that can at least support my head? The last hotel I stayed in offered pillows so thin I had to confiscate all four cushions and leave my husband to fend for himself with the travel pillow. He didn’t mind the discomfort as much as he minded the addition to the list of essential things I have to bring. Two pillows minimized his space to a little more than a lunch box.

I have always been this way. I don’t understand the logic behind setting up a comfortable and familiar home, only to go somewhere uncomfortable and unfamiliar with your free time. Surely, the place to enjoy your down-time in is the place you just furnished to accommodate your every need.

This last week was further proof, if proof is needed, that vacations are not for me. A short flight and a stay with family resulted in more angst than if I had been planning a high-altitude orbit into outer space. Between the arguing over what sunblock people on planet California use and which travel sickness pills work the fastest, I fear I might have exhausted my saintly husband’s pa-tience. I am sure that on one of these trips, he’s not going to bring me back. Which, you guessed it, causes me to rethink that essentials list. I mean, if I am going to be abandoned somewhere without my familiar fun-damentals, I’m going to need…well, everything, right?

It’s good to stay home. ■

Vacation vexation

BEACON - Summer Traveler (June 2014)

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Transcript of BEACON - Summer Traveler (June 2014)