Girls Trip to Cheyenne! (Days 3 & 4)

Sunday, September 20

I repeated my morning Zumba and yoga workout, and A took advantage of the empty pool to swim laps. I had picked up some breakfast stuff at Safeway, so we didn't need to make a Starbucks run before we headed off to explore Curt Gowdy State Park, which is about 30 minutes to the northwest of downtown Cheyenne. The very friendly and helpful park guide recommended that we hike the Crow Creek trail to the hidden waterfall, so we followed her advice and were extremely pleased with the scenery and experience. The trail was mostly shaded, and we had fabulous views of the creek as we started off as well as some interesting rock formations throughout the entire hike.

We successfully found the hidden waterfall, which required a short and VERY cold water crossing in order to get a glimpse of the tumbling water.

Another of my favorite sites from the hike was the tiny chipmunks that scampered around and in and among the rocks and woodsy areas.

Although the weather was relatively cool and the trail was shady, I still felt in need of a change of clothes before we figured out what our afternoon activities would be. We picked up lunch at the Subway across from Walgreen's and ate in our room before heading to the Putt Hutt mini-golf course in Lion's Park, just behind the Botanic Gardens. Neither of us came close to making par, but A beat me by a good handful of strokes! After our game, we explored more of the Botanic Gardens grounds, including a lovely labyrinth, and then sat on a bench in the shade near the Kiwanis Community House to gaze out at the lake and watch folks enjoying the lovely day.

On the way back to the hotel, we got our takeout dinner at Bejo. I ordered the seaweed salad, which was much larger than I expected, and a salmon lover's roll. A had the seafood pho, and we shared the plain edamame. Everything was fresh and delicious! I had bought some more wine at Provisions Wine & Spirits in downtown Cheyenne, so that plus our takeout food comprised our in-room dinner for the evening.

Monday, September 21

Another round of Zumba and yoga for me for the final morning of our trip. I finished up the mixed fruit from Safeway for breakfast, and we placed a mobile order at Starbucks for coffee to pick up on our way to tour the Capitol building. We strolled the perimeter as we finished our beverages and then tried to find the main visitor entrance, since none of the doors was clearly marked nor was there any sign of security to control entry and exit of the building. 

We entered an open door on the lower Garden level and found ourselves practically alone, only encountering a handful of staff during the entire time that we strolled around, admiring the architecture, stained glass ceilings, and statues.

Eventually, we made our way to the underground connector that leads to the Herschler building, which houses lots of office space and was part of the renovation project as well.

Both A and I were impressed by the amount of natural light that infuses the historic building. I learned later, after reading the informational brochure about the renovation project, that previous alterations to the interior had significantly covered over many of the historic details and impeded the abundant natural light sources. I'm so glad we got to visit after the renovations! One striking element still missing, however, is all of the necessary furniture for the offices in the Capitol. Each office we saw contained temporary folding tables for computer workstations, and the one staff person with whom we chatted told us that there were challenges with the original order and vendor, so they're now hoping to finally get furnishing by December (more than a year after the renovation work was complete!).

Our final stop was at the Wyoming State Museum, which is diagonally across from the Capitol. We browsed in the gift shop, where I picked up some locally roasted coffee beans and a set of jackalope note cards, and then we toured through the Museum exhibits. On our way back to the car, I got a protein box from Starbucks to eat for lunch on the way to the airport. Then we headed back to the hotel to finish up our packing and complete our checkout. A dropped me at the Denver airport just after 1:30pm, so I had plenty of time to give Mom a call while waiting for my 3:15pm return flight to Sacramento.

Such a fun trip! And I'm looking forward to returning to Denver over Halloween to see A and the rest of her family (hoping Mr. E will join us, too).

Girls' Trip to Cheyenne! (Days 1 & 2)

Friday, September 18

Cheyenne, W(h)Y???

That seemed to be the most common response when I told friends and family about my girls' weekend mini road trip plans. I flew into Denver, where A picked me up at the airport for the short 90-minute drive to the Wyoming state capitol. A and I have done a couple of girls' trips in the past, and when we were planning for this time around, we landed on Cheyenne thanks to its proximity to the airport, its status as a state capitol (for me), and its location being convenient so that A could just drive rather than fly. 

We arrived at the Little America Hotel & Resort around 9pm on Friday 9/18. Unfortunately, the specific room type I had reserved wasn't available, which was a bit frustrating, but the staff was very friendly and helpful and confirmed that we could switch for the remaining two nights. A had packed some snacks, and I bought a bottle of wine at the bar for our in-room late-ish dinner since the restaurant was closed by then and there weren't any other nearby convenient restaurant options. At least all of the rooms have mini fridges and microwaves, so DIY in-room dining was an adequate substitute.

Saturday, September 19

I did Zumba and yoga in the room for my morning workout. A went out for a walk around the property's golf course, and we then headed into historic downtown Cheyenne to find the Starbucks for breakfast and coffee. We made a stop at Walgreen's for some provisions and then found parking near the Cheyenne Depot, where we were due to pick up our tickets for the 11am Trolley Tour. Since we had some time to wait, we admired the brick station and the first of the painted boot statues that are scattered around the historic area.

The plaza in front of the Depot also featured a horse sculpture, which was a motif we saw echoed throughout some of the distinctive mural art that we found throughout the downtown area.

Our 90-minute tour was guided and driven by Dewey, who regaled us with stories about Cheyenne's history and unique moments that make the city and area distinctive, such as the fact that women in Cheyenne have had suffrage and other rights (jury duty, owning property) since 1870, which is 50 years before the 19th Amendment was ratified. Part of this was that Wyoming as a territory needed to attract more population, especially before it was eligible to become the 44th state. But really, who knew it was such a beacon of equal rights for women??!! One of the other boot statues (near what is now a Wells Fargo bank) commemorates this part of Cheyenne's history.

After the trolley tour, we walked north to the Botanic Gardens, stopping along the way for a few more boot photos.

Only the first floor of the Conservatory was open for the Botanic Gardens, but we did discover some unexpected animal occupants as we strolled through!

On our way back to the car at the Depot, we walked through the Capital area, which had undergone a major renovation and restoration project that finished up last year in July 2019. (We learned more about this on Monday when we were able to go inside).

Our search for a restaurant with decent food options and outdoor dining was unsuccessful, and neither of us was particularly comfortable with indoor dining, even with the limited capacity and spread apart set-up that are currently allowed in Wyoming. So instead we found a nearby Safeway and procured some frozen items to make for dinner later in the room -- thank goodness for that mini fridge and microwave! 

We spent a little time out by the pool after we got back to the hotel and relocated to our new room, which was literally next door to the original room. The pool was relatively crowded with families at first, as this hotel is clearly a favorite for larger groups (and for canine traveling companions). By the time some folks cleared out, I had finished my daily chat with Mom, and neither of us felt like getting wet and possibly cold. So we just headed back to our room to settle in for the night and relax with our DIY dinner and some TV viewing.

Small Plates Tasting on the Terrace

Mr. E and I met up with friend A at J Winery on Saturday afternoon to enjoy the outdoor Small Plates Tasting on the Terrace. The air quality in Healdsburg was much better than here in Sac, and we actually got to see some blue sky during our visit (something that's been sorely lacking in Sac for the past three weeks or so due to the ongoing fire and smoke impacts). 

 As usual, the chef and kitchen staff did a great job accommodating my dietary restrictions, so I had a dairy-free selection with fish instead of beef. Yum! The entire experience included a starter of bubbly followed by five wines with accompanying small plates -- another Brut, a Brut Rose, two Pinot Noirs, and finishing with more bubbly for dessert. We also got to pick up our current wine club shipment and procured a magnum of XB for E & C as a little something special for their weekend.

The COVID modifications and the slightly warm temperature didn't really impact the overall experience or our enjoyment of tasting some yummy food and wine on a lovely outdoor terrace. At least wine-tasting is one activity we can continue to partake of during this weird time in the world!

New Family Member!

Mr. E and I took a trip to Austin last weekend for the Labor Day holiday to visit J, B, and C. And we got to meet our new family member, MTM! J and B are adopting a baby boy, who was born a bit early on August 24th, so he was just about two weeks old when we met him for the first time. So fun! An unexpected surprise and extra benefit for the family visit.

We arrived on Friday evening and enjoyed dinner and some chill time with the family. Yummy sushi and other snacks for dinner thanks to J's grocery trip as well as our first interactions with MTM! 

On Saturday, we all had breakfast together on the screened-in porch before J went to a noon yoga class. I had done my usual Zumba + yoga + mini laps in the pool workout, which was my routine on Sunday morning as well. I spent time with C looking at the coin collection that I was passing off to him from Grampy and Dad, and we found quite a few pennies in his bag of change that filled in open spots in two of the penny books. Mr. E and I then went off to Whole Foods to procure some items for Saturday grilling by the pool, anticipating that we'd be welcoming some guests. I had to work for a couple of hours on a grant proposal that was due on the Tuesday after the holiday weekend, so Mr. E got started on some food prep. When J got home from yoga, we learned that the guests wouldn't be able to come after all, which gave us more flexibility with timing for the afternoon and evening. Everyone except Mr. E enjoyed some pool time followed by a yummy dinner of shrimp cocktail, chips and avo, grilled veggie skewers, grilled corn, and BBQ chicken. And some different friends, B and M, ended up being able to come join us, so we had a few guests after all, which helped to diminish the amount of leftovers, especially for the chicken.

Sunday morning was a repeat of breakfast on the porch followed by a session of family photos, starting in the backyard and finishing up on the staircase in the house. The temperature was a bit warmer than the day before, with fewer clouds as well, but at least we got to see some lovely blue sky and sun, which has been missing from Sac for Mr. E and me for about the past two weeks or so due to the awful widespread fires around Nor Cal. Grandma K came over in the early afternoon to look after MTM so that the rest of us, including the dogs, could head out to a nearby access point of Violet Crown trail for a hike. We walked for about 45 minutes before stopping for a snack break on big boulder in the shade. Despite the recent rains earlier in the week, we didn't encounter too many water crossings. We were all pretty hot and sticky by the time we got home, so B, C, and I all headed out to the pool to cool off a bit while Mr. E got started on food prep. Dinner this evening was grilled steak and boiled lobster tails from Maine, which Mr. E and I had ordered from Maine Lobster Now as a surprise for J to belatedly celebrate her 50th birthday. Yummy surf and turf!

I started off Monday with a run and explored a different part of the trail near the Amenity Center. I finished up with yoga and mini laps again before joining C for breakfast. J went to a 9:30am yoga class, so C and Mr. E and I had some time together in the morning to work on the pinata from the most recent Little Passports package. The decorating part was definitely the trickiest, but the mini cactus pinata looked pretty good by the time we were finished. We spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon just hanging out with MTM and C and B and J, with some lego action, of course. Then J and C took us to the airport for our 3:15pm flight, and we were back home in Sac with the kitties by about 6:30pm.

J and I talked about planning a Thanksgiving trip for just the two of us plus C, so I'm hoping we can come up with a fun destination that doesn't have too many restrictions!