People sometimes laugh at the speed I travel.
Category: USA Southwest Travels
80 degrees + two black dogs + one overweight white girl = a bad combination
In the land of margaritas by the yard, non-existent open container laws and glassy eyes from a long night before, I found myself not at the head of a craps table, or mesmerized by a sparkling overhead light parade, but at a brewery. Although Las Vegas may be well known for its sin city ways, they do have a decent amount of breweries in the area. And you know me, I love checking out new breweries!
In the dark of night, the dynamite charges explode. Puffs of sparks and debris shoot out the windows and the building begins to lose its balance. Wobbling, as though it has become weak in the knees, knowing its final moments are near. The walls give way and floor after floor comes crashing down to the ground. It is the fate of many hotels in Las Vegas.
It was a night in early January of this year. I laid awake, tossing and turning for more hours than I was able to sleep. I had had an extra stressful week at work. In addition to that, I also had building pressure from financial woes that had been plaguing me for the last few months. If it could happen, it did. My refrigerator died on me, check. Unexpected car repairs, check. Trouble with my main heat source for my home during an unseasonably cold winter, check. Canceled my annual spring road trip due to reallocating funds to lame adult responsibilities, check. Pulled over for the first time and given a ticket, check.
Why have one location when you can have three? Kannah Creek Brewing does just that with its three locations. Recently opened Kannah West is located in Fruita Colorado, and “The Edge” and “The Creek” are both located in Grand Junction Colorado. At the time of my visit to Grand Junction, The Edge and The Creek were my choices. Typically there would be no need to choose between two different locations. They both offer the same beer and both have food. But it is the food that sets them apart. The Edge food menu features burgers while The Creek features pizza. So what’s a girl to do? Is it pizza and beer or is it burgers and beer? Well, I may surprise you as I am usually a burger and beer kind of girl, but on this day I went with pizza. Which meant that I visited The Creek location.
Traveling solo can sometimes be lonely. The isolation alone causes many to give up. It is one of the reasons I travel with my dogs. Although I may not have a human companion, I do have two furry friends who love adventure as much as I do. They help push through the feeling of loneliness, as well as giving me someone to talk to. Granted I look like a crazy person driving around talking to my dogs, but we all have our quarks.
Typically I am a fan of walking into a brewery and having it packed full of people. It is usually a sign that they have good beer. On a Wednesday night in April I wasn’t overly thrilled when I walked into a full house at Horsefly Brewing because the only seating left was outside. YIKES! Colorado in April. Yeah, it wasn’t warm. But there was beer to be had, so I braved the elements for you because it’s the least I could do. I’m nice like that.
Located in a historic brick building complete with a ghost sign of J.F Warren Storage is Two Rascals Brewing in Montrose Colorado. Once I stepped inside I looked for a place to sit. There I was greeted by two helpful guys at the bar, telling me I could sit anywhere, except there and pointed at a random table and chuckled. I gave them an eyebrow raise and a slight smile, letting them know I found them only slightly funny. I contemplated just dropping my purse on the table they had pointed at and plopping myself down. Really what were they going to do?
It was day 8 of our spring trip and 2400 miles (3862 km) had been driven in those eight days. It was time to spend a day for the dogs. The trip had taken its toll on all of us. We were cooped up and ready to stretch our legs. Fortunately day 8 had us visiting Curecanti National Recreation Area in Colorado. The main reason I chose the national recreation spot was its affinity for dogs. Every trail is dog friendly as well as the three reservoirs that make up the recreation area.