Drive: Sedona to Durango

"Maps encourage boldness. They're like cryptic love letters. They make anything seem possible." ~Mark Jenkins

June 20: More uphill driving. All day from 7:15 am until 4:30 pm. That's over 9 hours if you're counting. Arrived at my cousin Kevin's house in Durango just as Kevin was leaving to go set up for his "gig," playing electric guitar in a jazz duo at a restaurant downtown.

The photos above and at left were taken shortly after I entered Colorado from New Mexico. I immediately decided that Colorado was a prettier place than either Arizona or New Mexico.

Now, don't get mad if you think otherwise. You didn't just spend 9.25+ hours driving on hot Interstate highways here! The green of Colorado is immediately soothing to one's beige rock and red stone-parched eyeballs.

I played two rounds of "Loot" the pirate card game (and one of my favorite games) with Kevin's daughters, Maria (16) and Kayla (14). Then we went downtown to the restaurant where Kevin was playing jazz. I had a lovely grilled chicken and toasted walnut salad and two glasses of Cabernet Sauvignon. Sorry to disappoint the hard-core beer fans, but I like wine too. (Nice break actually.)

The girls and I sat outside and enjoyed the warm and breezy Durango evening, and Kev's music.

Once home, Kevin and I caught up on what all our relatives were up do. I hadn't realized the time zone change, so we were up talking until 1:00 am! I slept well and hard - until nearly 9:00 am.