Loving the beautiful fall colors

So I came up with a name for the property---Views of Vallecito.  It's descriptive but not too pretentious.....sort of rolls off the tongue.

I left Vallecito last Monday morning heading towards Angel Fire, NM for a two day visit with my friend Kimberlee Acker and her parents at their lovely home in the mountains.  As I left, it was rainy and cold.  Right before I got to Pagosa Springs, I saw an oncoming car swerving, a handful of deer scrambling on the highway and a pick up truck driver pulled over inspecting his bumper.  Thankfully I was able to slow down and avoid a collision with the ever present deer who seem to be popping out of no where on a regular basis.  It's for that reason, that I prefer not to drive at dusk or in the dark given the potential for a collision on the skinny, winding mountain roads leading up to the lake.

Speaking of wildlife, I saw a slew of wild turkey on Kimberlee's parent's deck and a herd of elk surrounding their property.   The lovely views, warm hospitality and a gorgeous home in the mountains was a nice diversion from perhaps a little too much solitude in Vallecito.....No actually I don't mind the solitude, if I could overcome the internet dilemma which makes it difficult for me to take care of lodge business.  

The pull off on Lake Vallecito where I stop to access internet

Anyway, following my short visit in AF, I drove to Taos to see a stylist who does a great job giving me that short, spiky haircut that I like so much.  With all my years in Houston, I was never able to find a stylist who mastered that cut.  Now, Amber is just 4.5 hours from Vallecito when I need a good cut.  We talked about how I could determine if there might be any stylists in Durango who could do the job next time.

Following the salon visit in Taos, I made my way back down Mora, NM (45 min south of Taos) to visit one of my favorite intentional communities--Hummingbird.  It had been 3 months since my last visit and it was good to get caught up with everyone.  I shared with them my adventures at the Tiny House Jamboree, my surprise at seeing the BIG prices that tiny home builders are charging in CO, my visit to see Holly's tiny house (built by the Hummingbird company in Canada) in Golden and my overnight stay at Wee Casas in Lyons where I got to experience one night accommodations in the tiny house built by Durango's, Rocky Mountain home builder.  And, of course, we talked about my recent purchase of the property in Vallecito.  I always feel so warm and welcome and I value the opportunity to visit them and learn more about how they make community not only work but thrive and grow.

I got a late start leaving Hummingbird because I hung around to participate in Ami's yoga class for the community.  By the time I got on the road, it was starting to get dark and it was raining.  I drove an hour and a half to a cozy little place I found (in the middle of nowhere) on Airbnb.  It's in Glorieta, NM on the way to Albuquerque where I'll fly home to Houston on Friday to meet up with Reid who is flying back into the US f
rom Sydney.

Oh what fun it is to get to experience the fall colors in the Rockies, to meet new friends and to catch up with others I've known for a while and to fly home to Houston to re-connect with Reid and my family and friends.