Francophile in the West

It has been a hugely busy fall so far, and there are plenty of recent adventures to be shared. Here are some photos and snippets of this lovely autumn in Colorado, Washington, and Illinois: Ben Tyler Trail Owen and I hiked part of this trail in early October. This is one of his family's favorite multi-generation Colorado trails, and it was a gorgeous day to check it out! We missed most of the fall Aspens in their full glory, but it was beautiful to see the Aspen groves in a late state, with some bare trees, some still with mostly full leaves, and others in between. The rainbow of gold in the leaves on the trees and in those covering the trail like natural confetti was just lovely, particularly with the diffused early autumn light.  Our perfect trail - his middle name and my last name. Coincidence?? ;) Hello, you beautiful thing. Maroon Bells, Aspen, CO The following weekend, my roommate, Owen, and I drove out to Aspen for a visit. O had been there before on

Life continues to be filled with love and outdoor adventures here in Colorado! With the summer officially at an end and fall sweeping in to take her place, Owen and I wrapped up an eventful hiking/camping/backpacking season with a few more excursions, both urban and wild: Classin' it up at a fundraiser for CU-Denver's summer music camps for teens. We celebrated our six-monthiversary in early August by taking a cooking class together at The Kitchen Table . We had a blast, rocked the kitchen, and came away with full bellies and several days' worth of leftovers of incredible food. I highly recommend this spot for a great evening and good food. Yum!  Thanks, Chef Jorge!  (Free) rented bike adventures in Golden, CO. In early September, we went on a pretty, quick hike up the Mayflower Gulch (out by Copper Mountain), enjoying a gorgeous day, ruins of old 19th century mining cabins, views of local 14ers, and a nice pack lunch along the creek.    Our

From being a tried-and-true Seattleite to an adoptive Coloradan, certainly a lot has changed in the past several years for me, geographically speaking. However, my love for the PNW and for Seattle in particular has not faded, despite more than two years since my last trip there! This spring, I expressed an interest in visiting Seattle and Owen was game, so we made a plan and at the end of July, away we went! It was wonderful to be back home in the Pacific Northwest. I've missed it something fierce. Owen had been to Seattle once before a few years ago to visit friends, so it was fun to explore the city with him and show him the "native's tour" of town.  Our first stop the morning after we arrived: the University of Washington campus! Having been a tour guide in college, and with the UW as my all-time dream school, I had to show it off to O with a personalized campus tour. :) And, of course, no visit to the U-District is complete without a trip to one of the ne