Lady Gaga's "Boys Boys Boys" needs to be remade into a childrens' song called "Toys Toys Toys".

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Today I attended a legal writing seminar. One of my assignments is to keep a daily journal. Each entry should be no more than 3 paragraphs. Each day I should spend no more than 7 minutes writing it. I can already see the utility in this exercise. It is difficult to write well out of the box.

Good writing is a skill. Sometimes, the most difficult thing to learn is the most obvious. If you are arguing a meritless argument, say it is so. If you have little caselaw to support your argument, say so. Honesty and common sense make for a cogent argument.

Mount Galbraith Park

Mount Galbraith Park is just outside Golden, CO. It's an unassuming park, accessible only by a small parking lot just off the highway, however as always in Colorado, it does not disappoint. The trail spirals up and around the mountainside and in most places is only about two feet wide. We ran the trail, and the narrow trail and steep sides of the mountain below you guarantee some skipped heartbeats in some of the rockier portions of the trail. The trail begins with about a 1.5 mile ascent as it curls around the mountain and switchbacks up its sides. Mostly desertlike for the first few miles, we spotted some prickly pear cactus and other prickly-looking plants lining the trail. Later, as we approached the peak and the trail curved around the back side of the mountain, the terrain became a forest ecosystem with evergreens, moss and a soft pine needle carpet under our feet.

The rocky descent from Mount Galbraith requires lots of concentration while running. It also punishes the lazy who don't pick their feet up, as I unfortunately found out. Distracted but the incredible views from the trail, I caught a toe on a protruding rock and found myself skidding to a stop on my forearms on the trail. Lucky for me, no major injuries, just trail rash all over my hands and forearms and large bruise on my thigh that's shaped like Africa. But from what I've heard, spills are inevitable for trail runners. So on down the trail we went, a bit more carefully and quite a bit more slowly. In a few weeks when the scrapes heal, a small hole in my running pants a much more watchful eye on the trail will be all that remains from my misadventure!

Rain...

Unfortunately for our vacationers, Sunday was not one of Denver's fabled 300 days of sunshine. As beautiful as Saturday's 75 degree pristine blue skies was, Sunday was cold and wet. However, the rain hadn't started when we woke up in the morning so we went to Red Rocks Park to get a bit more outdoor playtime in before rain stopped us.

Red Rocks Park has been described as the Eighth Wonder of the World. I haven't seen any of the Seven Wonders, so I can't really pass judgment. But Red Rocks is certainly a spectacular combination of prehistoric geology and modern day rock and roll. The rock formations themselves were caused by some kind of mighty geologic upheaval, and look like gigantic shards of shattered red clay jutting up from the earth. The terrain at Red Rocks is also different. Unlike the flat grasslands of the prairie to Denver's east, and the evergreen-dense forest of the mountains, Red Rocks is like the desert. The soil is sandy and mahogany-colored and covered in yucca, prickly pear cactus, and fiery-red low brush (fireweed? sumac?).

We parked near the Trading Post and hiked the steep ramp to the amphitheater. Even though it was misty and overcast, the ramp offered great views of downtown Denver and the plains. Once in the amphitheater, the two enormous monoliths that rise up to make up the walls of the amphitheater make you feel dwarfed and awed (360 view of the amphiteater). And of course, in keeping with our dwarfed and awed feeling, we snuck behind the gate and went on to the Red Rocks stage--the same stage where so many of music's biggest stars had played in the past.

Estes Park Sunshine

We woke up early on Saturday morning to get a jump on the beautiful weather and decided to head to Estes Park. The view of the mountains was crystal clear from the balcony and we were all looking forward to getting into the mountains.

The views in Estes Park are spectacular. The centerpiece of the town is a huge sparkling blue lake which is surrounded on all sides by the snow-capped Rockies. And Saturday, with clear blue skies and crisp fall air certainly didn't disappoint.

We headed to Devil's Gulch Road to the Gem Lake hike. Kevin and I had hiked Gem Lake twice before, once when we first arrived in CO, and again when Danica came to visit. But it's a great hike, with breathtaking views and a free entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. It also changes with the seasons. In May, the trail was lush and green. In August the trail was flanked with yellow and purple wildflowers. This time, in October, the trail was alive with brilliant yellow aspen. We stocked up on granola bars, beef jerky, water and fruit roll ups and headed off.

About halfway up the trail is a large boulder field that offers a bird's eye view of the town of Estes Park. We scrambled over a few boulders to a flat outcropping and took in the sights. To our front, was Long's Peak (the tallest mountain in the picture) one of Colorado's "fourteeners" (a peak over 14,000 feet to the uninitiated). Below was the town of Estes Park. Possibly the most thrilling part of the view though is the fact that it is 360 degrees. The mountains and blue sky aren't just in front of you, they surround you on all sides!

We continued up the trail, enjoying the precarious boulder formations and getting a great workout from the switchbacks and steps on the trail. Our reward for the two mile hike was Gem Lake, a small lake, carved out of granite, that sits nestled in the top of the mountain. We scrambled over the boulders that surround the lake and found a nice spot for a snack and a nap.

On our way out of Estes Park, we saw some of the town's most famous residents--elk! In the center of the town, we were sidetracked by a huge gathering of people, who we later discovered were observing about 100 elk that had congregated on a public golf course. We also heard the famous "elk bugle" of the bull elk, kind of a wierd screechy grunting noise. I have a hard time believing that female elk find the noise sexy, but I guess I'm not an elk.

We left Estes Park and took the scenic route back toward Denver. Most of the time, the expression "scenic route" is simply a euphemism for "long way home" but in Colorado, the scenic route is actually that--scenic. We drove in and around the mountains, where the road meandered around switchbacks and clung to the sides of steep cliffs. The views varied from exhilarating drops into deep ravines, wide open fields of flaming yellow aspen with snowcaps in the background, and neck-craning views of 14,000 peaks.

Our drive ended in Golden, possibly one of the most charming towns in the Denver metro area. Home to the ubiquitous Coors brewing company (sorry guys, the "twins" don't live in Golden), Golden's Washington Street is a pristine mile-long street with cute stores and a wild-wild-west feel. Contented and relaxed from our long drive and the cool breeze that swung down from the foothills, we stopped at Mesa Grill for a few drinks to enjoy the setting sun and do a bit of people watching. We then moved across the street to Woody's Pizza, Kevin and my newfound favorite-pizza-in-CO, and stuffed ourselves silly with salad and pizza.

A bird's eye view of Estes Park, CO.

Johnny & Lisa enjoying a nap in the sun at Gem Lake. 

Gem Lake