Team hike with our main man / tour guide Greg, fellow Mainer transplanted to the higher elevations.
Colorado never lets us down. We feel like very lucky fellas to have made a whole bunch of trips to that rugged state over the past several years and we always look forward to it. We rolled into Denver via Wyoming this time around, a departure from the normal route. Big shout-out to Wyoming...
Cervantes in Denver was a truly kick-ass time like it always is. We were over in the Masterpiece Ballroom side of the building this time around, where we caught a great show by the Travelin' McCourys last time around. The Maine contingent was strong at Cervantes' this trip, with some old friends and some new faces making an appearance, and we'd like to thank you all very much for comin' out...
After a night-off hanging with some friends up in Summit County drinking too much tequila and singing John Denver songs while ribs cooked on the grill and snow fell down, we headed down towards the Sangre de Cristo Mountains for a private party. New friends, UFO stories, a big old campfire and great times...
Sangre de Cristo Mountains, Colorado
Fire
Morning after the gig our hosts told us they had to show us a castle so we piled into the van, pulled out into a convoy of three or four vehicles and wove our way through the hills for an hour or so before parking on the side of the road in front of a shit-you-not, real-life castle in the middle of the mountains. We did the tourist thing with our new pals and had our minds blown. If you're ever in the area we'd recommend taking a trip over to Bishop's Castle.
Princess Nick and Princess Chuck look out from one of the towers at Bishop's Castle - black and white filter added for effect.
"I will live as they once did - wild and free," reads the stained glass above the castle's large, central room.
After the castle visit it was back down to civilization, lunch at the golf club frequented by our new crew followed by a quick visit to the driving range and a long trek back eastward. We pulled into Davenport, Iowa as the sun was setting on the Mississippi and loaded in to the Raccoon Motel for our final gig of this tour, and our first ever show in Iowa. We were opening the show for a band out of LA called Tree Machines and we want to give them a nod because they were super nice dudes and absolutely brought the house down. Check 'em:
Big thanks to everybody. Colorado and Iowa - see ya soon.
Cervantes' Masterpiece Ballroom - shot by Denver Jamgrass