...The Traveling Powells...: Trips to the West

Thursday, August 29, 2013

Trips to the West

The lats couple of weeks, I've been in Colorado for a meeting and then in Montana to see family. (Brendon flew with the girls to Denver, met up with me and we went to Montana together.) All in all, it was 2.5 weeks of gloriously non-humid weather, [real] mountains, and a wonderful time with family and friends!!

First Colorado:
Steamboat Springs is such a wonderful location for a science conference. It's located at about 6,500 feet in elevation and right in the middle of the mountains. Tons of hiking, etc. The conference was great (I gave a talk- see page 2- and got good feedback-- which also meant I didn't have to haul a poster there. WIN). And I was able to see my former mentor, Missy Wong, and go hiking and to the hotsprings with her, some folks from my lab and and one of her postdocs, Nick, (who actually did grad school in Eugene right next to a lab where a friend of mine worked. Small world). We found out the hotsprings were "clothing-optional" after dark, and some people were taking advantage of that. Thank goodness it was VERY dark out! Great trip!

Missy and I taking a break from a hike

Western US streams are something I will never take for granted!

One of the views as my lab mates and I approached RabbitEars Pass on a hike

My lab mates and I as we made it to the top! 9,500 feet!

Brendon sent me pics of the girls everyday. This was a favorite. They look so grown up!

Now for Montana: We went and visited my mom and dad. We didn't see my little sister Katy, as she was out in Seattle, but are looking forward to seeing her in December or January. Mostly, we stayed in Great Falls, where I am from, but did take a 2 day trip up to my parents cabin they bought a couple of years ago. It's 20 acres in the middle of the mountains on the Continental Divide in Montana. Its a wonderful little spot and we felt lucky to visit it!