The Pro Leisure Tour

It's a hard life, but somebody has to live it.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Just sitting around waiting for the mail to come in hopes that I have a birthday card or two today. It's a big day.

Homeward Bound

On July 20th I decided to drive up to Piney Lake with Gracie for an afternoon drive and possible hike. This is the story of my little Gracie and our "Homeward Bound" adventure.

We get up to Piney River Ranch around noon and start to hike Upper Piney Lake Trail. It's a beautiful hike with great views of the mountains and lake below. Our destination: the falls located where the mountains are in the photos below. I took the photos at the beginning of our hike.

The trail quickly reaches the Eagle's Wilderness National Forest and the hike goes deep into thick woods. Gracie is her joyful self on the hike and trotting just behind me as we increase in elevation, walk through streams running over the trail and climb over aspens blocking the path.

The photo above was the last photo I took of Gracie before my nightmare began that afternoon.

We are an hour deep into the trail and I begin to think we should turn around before we get caught in the two o'clock mountain storms I see rolling in. My thought, "We could hike to the falls another day." We come across a couple families who inform us we are only ten more minutes from our destination. I trek past the families then I notice Gracie frozen, scared of all the kids in front of her. She won't follow me as she had for the past hour. I call her, but the kids start walking towards her only scaring her more. Gracie starts walking in the opposite direction, back-tracking along the trail. Before I know what is happening the kids walk around the corner. I lose sight of Gracie, so I go after her to carry her past all the kids. When I reach the kids with their dad, he informs me that Gracie has ran up the side of the mountain off the path.

I call for her, "GRACIE!" Nothing. I continue to yell for her, "GRACIE!" Still nothing. Nothing even rumbling in the brush surrounding the trail. No barking. Nothing. I am panicking after running up and down the trail around the area where I lost her. Oh God, the thought in my head makes me panic and I start crying uncontrollably. I lost Gracie.

After about three hours of running up and down the trail yelling for Gracie, I decide I need more help out here. The other hikers I run into on the trail say "we'll keep our eye out for her" but I know that's not enough in this situation. And I don't know if my many prayers I'm repeating over and over are being answered at that moment. I have no cell service on the mountain, but hope that I'll have better luck back at Piney River Ranch. I'm told by the owner of the ranch about a corner in the building that receives service but only if you have Verizon. Thank you thank you, Verizon Android HTC phone. I call my friends, Wendi and Jonathan, and they are quickly on there way. This would be a good time to explain the location of Piney River Ranch...

The road I live on in Vail leads to a dirt, all-terrain road. This road is only open to traffic from July - September and is closed all other months due to snow and poor conditions. The ten mile road winds up and down the mountain with monster potholes, boulders and tree limbs all along the way eventually reaching Piney River Ranch . This ten mile drive takes at least 30 minutes to drive when you are going as fast as your four-wheel drive vehicle will allow you. So quickly isn't how you get to Piney River Ranch from Vail.

By the time I run into Wendi and Jonathan on the trail I've already hiked it three times. I've told everyone on the trail about my lost dog and I'm sure they've heard me crying as I walk away to continue my search. I'm buckled over crying when Jonathan walks up to me. They hug me and we agree to head back to the ranch to see if Gracie has made it back to my car.

It's seven o'clock and she's not at the car.

With the sun starting to set and still no sign of Gracie, I realize I will be spending the night up here. We spread the word about my lost dog to all of the young guys who live in teepees at Piney River Ranch during the summer. We also decide that it's best to leave my car where it's at in case Gracie can smell it or knows to go to it. I get sick to my stomach as we drive away knowing that I'm leaving my little girl on the mountain in the middle of a national forest.

As soon as I get home, I knock on my neighbor's door asking for supplies to hike at night. I'm changing into warmer clothes for the cold summer night and notice my sock is soaked with blood from my cut foot. I slip a fresh pair of socks on and ignore the cuts and blisters. Word spreads fast about Gracie and I have neighbors knocking at my door to bring me headlamps, a sleeping bag, warmer layers and a plate full of food. My neighbors are amazing people. Robyn and Brian offer to drive me back up, give me hugs and hand me a cup of wine to calm my nerves.

It's eight o'clock when they drive me back up to Piney with all my gear in tow. Along the way I get a call from Nathan (who I called earlier) saying he is leaving his date at the Rockies game and is on his way. (I should mention that it's a two hour drive from Denver to where I'm at.) I have the most amazing brother who will do anything for his little sister. After Robyn and Brian drop me off at Piney, I hang out in the main cabin with the guys waiting for my brother. The college boys inform me that they've seen two bull moose the last few nights and to be really careful when we start hiking again. (Note: Moose kill more people than bears every year.) I can't stop thinking about why I'm here.

At eleven o'clock Nate shows up with his dog, Riley, at Piney and we gear up to start our hike, which is my fourth hike of the day. I'm exhausted, drained but still powering through on adrenaline to find my little Gracie. Nate and I stop throughout the hike to scan our dark surroundings with our headlamps and flashlights. Glowing eyes just stare back at us. We stare back at them studying if they are large enough to be moose, bear, mountain lions or small enough to be a corgi. Mostly deer. We reach the area where Gracie ran off and let Riley off his leash to sniff around. Riley runs through the brush and up the mountain. We can tell he smells her, but he never finds her.

We decide to call it a night and get back to the cars at 2:30AM. Nate plans to get up at 4:30AM to start hiking again and sets his alarm. I'm restless in the sleeping bag in my car while Nate lays in his car parked next to mine. At 3:00AM my brother knocks on my car to remind me to crack my windows for fresh air. I'm still restless but dozing on and off.

At 4:00AM Nate wakes up before his alarm goes off. Riley must have woken him. He steps out of his Jeep. Gracie is sitting there between our two SUVs.

I wake up to Nate aggressively banging on my window to wake me. I see him standing there holding up Gracie and saying "It's Gracie! It's Gracie, Bec! She found us!"

I'm in shock. I stumble to unlock the door and Nate puts Gracie on my pillow. She's covered in mud, soaking wet and shaking. It all feels like a dream. Is this happening? Did she really find us while we were sleeping? Am I going to wake up to start hiking that trail again and again searching for her? Then, Nate grabs my shoulders and says "Bec, she came back. It's really her." In that moment it all hits me and I start crying hysterically holding my little Gracie Bear.

Nate decides to capture the moment after finding her. I feel like my look says it all.

Gracie inhales a bag of dog treats, the dog food I packed and a piece of steak I saved from dinner earlier. I hold her and repeatedly thank God for this wonderful blessing. I compose myself after 16 hours of hiking and searching, dehydrated and exhausted. We decide to drive back to my home and rest.

I do not plan to hike Upper Piney Lake Trail ever again. And if so, Gracie will be on a leash attached to my waist.

Needless to say, my little warrior slept a lot for the next several days and I was so happy to have her snuggled with me at home.

The whole neighborhood is convinced that there will be moose carcasses found up at Piney Lake from an unknown source. :)

I'm Baaaaaaaaaack!

Helloooooooooo! (in Seinfeld voice)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvCDHKYT3xQ&feature=related

It's been a long time since I last blogged. There's been so much living happening in my life and Mile High Marshall has definitely taken a back seat. My bad. I love writing and I truly believe that to be a good writer you have to practice, practice, practice. So I'm back in the open and sharing my Colorado adventures. Here's a rundown without tiring you with details. I'll work my way from recent happenings 'til I forget.

-About to move back to Denver

-Living it up in Vail

-Lost, then found my dog in Eagle's Wilderness Forest (recap the 16 hr ordeal in another post)

-Lots of out-of-town visitors every week for the past month

-Mountain biking, hiking, rafting, BBQing, drinking and having fun in the neighborhood

-Skied 22 days (20 on Vail Mountain...happens when you're within walking distance)

-Worked at the local dog boutique in Vail

-Living the mountain lifestyle to the fullest for the past year

-Enjoyed the city life in Denver and about to pick up where I left off in the Mile High City

Well, that's a summed up version to say the least. Let's start anew and I'll keep you updated with all my adventures!

Stiff Goats

Funniest thing I've ever seen. If only I can see them in person...

If I have a farm when I'm older, I will have a goat farm with just these guys. Everyday would be a good day.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=we9_CdNPuJg
(I'll get a better link to view the video, but this will do for now.)

Back in the Saddle

Obviously, it's been a long while since I last wrote. Life has been a whirlwind, but I'm back in the saddle again (as Steven Tyler would say.) I won't bore you with the details of life since my last excerpt, but I will let you all know the latest and greatest...

• I live in a great little home in Denver and absolutely love the place. (The same place I posted pics of early on.)
• I finally landed a big girl job back in April - an outstanding company with terrific coworkers, not stressful and no demanding hours. I couldn't ask for more. What do I do? A little difficult to explain (definitely not the quick "I'm in advertising" response that I favored.) I'm an inside sales rep for a software company responsible for its licensing renewals. Huh?...I know, but it was worth a try to explain. The point - I'm happy and for those of you who knew my advertising days, you understand how big that is for me. Cheers to being happy with my job.

That's the big stuff you've missed since my early weeks in Denver. As for making more friends in Denver, I'm no longer befriending the squirrels in the park. I'll leave that up to the homeless crazies who probably put peanut butter on their lips to talk to the squirrels.

Highlights: Film on the Rocks for The Big Lebowski, Wii party with coworkers, hiking in the snow in June and the funniest Apples to Apples game. Inquire about any or all and I will share the entertaining details.

Accidental Denver...

My new favorite store in Denver is Le Equipment in Larimer Square. I stumbled upon it one day when I was roaming around the city during my first solo trip downtown. It's a quaint shop that sells anything wine or drinking-related with a store owner who entertains with stories and recommendations. To top it off, there is a sweet golden retriever who mans the place by laying on the hardwood floors in the most inconvenient spots. His strategic resting gets me everytime and I end up petting him for half the time I'm there. The reason why I love stumbling upon something new in Denver.

Life is good at high altitude and looking forward to what's still to come.

Drag Show...and I'm not talking racing

Chris and I went to our first drag queen show last Friday. We had planned to meet a new friend of mine and some other girls for drinks and dinner. It just so happened that they were going to have drinks and dinner at Hamburger Mary's...on the first Friday of the month...when they host Denver's best drag show. The plan was to stay for dinner and leave before the show (for Chris's sake) except the show started before our dinner was done. We could've easily snuck out after our burgers, but Chris seemed to get a kick out of the comedy from the MC, Miss Jessica Summers so I took that as "Sure, Beck, let's stay for the show." :)

We had a blast and Chris hung in there like a champ...and actually enjoyed parts of the show. Since it was my first one, I didn't know what to expect. The MC leads with a comedy bit and then introduces each performer. The performer then lip-syncs a song and dances among the crowd. It's all pretty harmless and extremely entertaining, especially when the ladies pick on the straight guys in the audience (which surprisingly there were quite a few of.)

Chris made the wrong decision to take a bathroom break during Miss Nicole Summers's performance (there were two Miss Summers.) She was walking to the back of the crowd when she eyed Chris walking in the front of the stage. Nicole made a beeline for Chris and stood there singing to him...all 6'8" of her. Chris stood there like any straight guy would react and then told her, "I have to pee." That's my man, my very very straight man.

They sang and danced to many of the latest pop songs in various outfits. One performer stood out like no other based on a particular "outfit." The show in general is rated R for the language and content in the comedy bits, but for the special guest, Jennae Burdeaux, it was another story. She came out shaking and dancing to one of my favorite songs, Milkshake (a classic house party song from my freshman year at KU.) The jaw-dropping part was her outfit...if you could call it that. She wore pasties over her non-existent chest and pasties (or maybe just body paint) over her lower regions. All of us girls could not stop staring and trying to figure out..."Where did it all go?" The way she was shaking and dancing around...there was no telling. Chris took the opportunity to order double Jack and cokes until the end of the night. He deserved every shot that night.

At the end of the show, we decided to go to a "straight" bar. Chris was happy. We topped the night off with a few more drinks. Despite a few uncomfortable dancing moments in the show, Chris said he had lots of fun...although he will not be returning anytime soon. I had the best time and I look forward to more entertaining shows at Hamburger Mary's.