December 10-12
After watching several feet of snow fall in Crested Butte the week before, Brandy booked a room in Gunnison, CO, for the weekend of December 10-12.
The week leading up to the trip was quite a roller coaster of emotion. On Wednesday, December 8, I passed my final exam for my EpicCare Ambulatory certification.
The following day, I got word that my very dear friend from work, Cheryl, passed away after a years-long battle with cancer.
A trip to Colorado was definitely something I needed after that week.
Packing Up
A couple days before we left, we packed up, sharing one large suitcase instead of two small ones. That was ultimately a wise choice; loading and unloading was so much simpler with one bag. I was able to put my CPAP and Dopp kit in the suitcase as well so we only had one trip to and from the car.
We’re Off
We dropped Ash off at the sitter and started our trip up on Friday afternoon after I was off work. This wasn’t the first time we’ve driven to the western slopes at night in less-than-ideal weather. Just after passing into Colorado on highway 285, we encountered some weather- snow began falling and covering the highway. It quickly cleared up though and we continued on our way.
Once we hit Saguache and started through the winding mountain roads, the conditions worsened. We drove over whited out and iced over roads, not even able to make speed limit.
I knew once we hit highway 50, conditions would improve, and they did. The heavily-traveled road was devoid of ice and we made quick time to our destination, The Gunnison Inn at Dos Rios.
The Inn
The office at the inn was a stand-alone building not attached to the rooms. I pulled up to the door to let Brandy jump out to check in and get the key. She came back and we drove up to our room at the back of the parking lot. I backed up to our door and we quickly unloaded the car.
The room was nice, newly remodeled. The furniture was nice and modern and the bathroom was spacious and roomy.
The sink was separate from the toilet and shower. There was a door between the sink and the water closet, but not between the sink and the room so when I got ready in the mornings, I had to be super quiet so as to not wake Brandy.
There also was no coffee pot in the room, which I think was a first.
The ice machine was at the complete opposite end of the building from our room. Thankfully there was a hallway at the back end of the room so I made my way down the hall in socks for ice. About midway down was a general entrance for the building, in which were stacked several mattresses, clearly left over from the recent remodel.
We had some leftovers that we’d brought from home so we ate that and settled in with some drinks before calling it a night.
Adventures in Crested Butte
The next day, I did my standard practice of waking up well before Brandy and heading to the office for coffee and breakfast. Since the office was across the parking lot, I really had to bundle up. I had the heavy coat I’d gotten for my birthday in 2020 so I layered that over a long-sleeve Henley and flannel. I had my boxer briefs under jeans so my legs were cold, which prompted me to buy a pair of long johns from Amazon.
The free breakfast at the inn left a lot to be desired. COVID has destroyed the hot continental breakfasts normally provided by hotels. I will say, at least the Gunnison Inn had self-serve waffles, a pre-mixed batter that you pour yourself into a hot and waiting waffle iron. Aside from that, all that was offered was the standard cereal, fruit, Danishes, milk, orange juice, and coffee.
I sat in the lobby of the office until I got the morning text from Brandy then headed back. We took our time getting ready then headed the 30 miles up highway 135 into Crested Butte.
Once there, we parked and started shopping.
We went into several stores, including one place where Brandy bought a bunch of small dreamcatchers for her friends’ and family’s cars, a place where she bought three tie-dyed hoodies (one for herself and two for her friends) and a place where we got a cute little frame to frame a picture of ourselves.
Linner
As the day quickly slipped away, we decided to grab a quick bite at The Last Steep Bar & Grill on Elk Ave. It’s a place that Brandy told me a few times that her mom loved and I’d wanted to try it for a while, so we stopped in.
We waited a while before someone came to seat us, then he basically ran to the back of the restaurant, leaving us way behind. We didn’t see where he ultimately wound up so we had to ask for directions to where he’d gone.
We were seated in a tiny room that was lined all the away around with a long, continuous bench with three tables set with chairs in front of the bench. We were initially alone in the room.
Our server took our drink order, Brandy ordering a bloody Mary and me ordering a rum and Coke. They didn’t have any Captain Morgan so they subbed it with Sailor Jerry’s, which is a close substitution for the Kraken that I normally drink.
I wound up ordering a Ryder Burger:
Grilled 1/2 lb burger topped with cream cheese, jalapeños & teriyaki marinated pineapple
I was expecting the cream cheese to be spread on the bun, but it was a slab of cream cheese set on top of the burger patty.
While it wasn’t on the menu, Brandy got the kitchen to make her a mushroom Swiss burger.
After we ate, we made a hasty exit to try to get back to Gunnison before it got dark to avoid any issues with the roads or with traffic.
On the way back we stopped for a picture at the Christmas Tree on Main Street in Gunnison:
We headed back to the inn and watched Aerosmith Frontman: Steven Tyler on Reelz. It was an interesting 2 hour show about the singer of one of my favorite bands of all time. Granted, much of the information presented I already knew from reading the Aerosmith autobiography, Walk This Way, but the more recent events were new to me.
Not too long after that was over, we called it a night.
The Return Home
The next day, I had my breakfast in the office as I’d done Saturday. When I got the message that Brandy was up, I returned, we packed up and we left.
Out of the five or six trips we’ve taken, I think this was my favorite trip to the western slopes. Brandy seemed so much happier than she’d been on any of the other trips before and that goes a long way in making a good trip.
In fact, this trip produced what will be my profile picture for some time to come.
Since our time there (as of January 6, 2022), another 15 feet of snow has fallen. I’ve mentioned a return trip but her being unemployed has her understandably reluctant. I will see what I can do to get us out there before it melts off for the spring.
I have a handful of pictures in my Photo Diary, go ahead and head on over there to take a peek.
Up next, our Christmas trip to Iowa! You don’t want to miss that one.
Until then, as always, thanks for stopping by, I appreciate you!
-Phil