Our Wedding - Colorado River Float

Friday we organized a float trip down the Colorado River. It would be the perfect way for people of all activity levels to take in the desert. I rented sixteen duckies (inflatable kayaks) and borrowed an eight man white water raft. We ate a quick breakfast at the lodge and headed down to the Big Bend boat ramp on the Colorado. The scenic drive along the La Sal Loop Road through Castleton Valley would set the tone for the day.

Castleton Tower from Above

And Below

At the boat ramp the duckies were waiting and people had already assembled. I got to the business of blowing up the raft. It took a lot of pumping, but Nick, Chad, Lee, and I made short work of it. Once everyone had boats and gear we assembled at the shoreline. Run off from a few days of torrential rains had turned the water from its normal brown to the color of vanilla mocha. The current was swift (for this section of the Colorado) so we would make good time.

Duckies

Blowing Up the Raft

Marion & Carol

Charlie, Andrew, & Eliza Blowing Up a Ducky

Nick & Patty

Still Pumping

Sean & Sally

Allan & Pat

Chad & Doug

Finally Inflated

Raft People

Jonny V, Jen, & Sean

Jo, Andrew, & John

The Group

Chris would guide the raft with Chris, Tessa, Chuck, and Ann paddling and Cherry, Pat, and Allan along for the ride. Everyone else was in either a single or two person ducky. There was one tiny rapid at the put in, after that the water was flat all the way to our take out at the pedestrian bridge. The weather was perfect and everyone enjoyed the lazy float down the most powerful river in America. Blue skies and red rock canyon walls towered above us with green shrubs and tan water below. When I moved out west my first experience on the Colorado was surreal, I hoped my friends and family were having a similar one. Although, I did occasionally interrupt that experience with a blast from a squirt gun I picked up at a yard sale the day before we left.

The Raft Off

The Tiny Rapid

Jo All Smiles

Eliza & Andrew

Lauren & James

Andrew

Nischom & Linda

Charlie

Lee & Amy

Jo & Alex

Adam & Kristie

Aly & Nicole

Chris Captaining the Raft

John & Tracee

Sean & Sally

Nick & Patty

Carol & Marion

Tree Growing from Rocks

We regrouped and stopped for lunch on a big rock near Negro Bill Canyon. Jo called out my Mom for eating half a sandwich and putting it back in the bag. Everyone laughed hysterically. Then everyone laughed again when my Mom brought it up in her wedding toast.

Lunch

Back on the river it was just a matter of time before someone found themselves in the river. I went in first. The water was cold, but felt good once your body adjusted. Andrew was next followed by Carol and Marion. I looked up and Chris had left his post as raft captain and was paddling away with my bride. I got on Andrew's boat and we caught him and my bride. The tom-foolery was contagious and soon everyone was going into the water. When Chris got back on the raft Andrew, Lee, and I had to work together to extract him. Chris is an expert at fending off our attacks, it was like trying to put a cat in the toilet!

Someone is Going In

At the boat ramp the dunkings continued until I accidentally tackled Jonny V. in shallow water and lost his sunglasses. I felt horrible, but luckily he was okay and we got straight on the glasses. Jean Paul showed up as we were waiting for the shuttle vehicles and helped us pack up the truck. The mission was a success and everybody made it safely down the river. It was time to rally back to the lodge for the rehearsal dinner.

Lee with a Bucket

Andrew Fight Back

Nischom Patiently Waiting for the Shuttle

Our Wedding - Road Trip to Moab

After months of work and planning it was time, our wedding weekend had arrived. A year of researching, reserving, meetings, invitations, thousands of emails, and finding someone who would deliver sumo suits to the middle of the desert had preceded this weekend. Since our engagement Jo had taken a liking to wedding shows on TLC. I endured my fair share of these shows and learned a valuable lesson. Most of the weddings I saw on TV portrayed boring people spending obscene amounts of money in vain attempts to be special on their special day. This is a gross generalization, as everyone has something that makes them special, but the majority of weddings I saw looked lame. I'd like to think Jo and I aren't boring and we don't have much money, so we were headed in the right direction. The weddings that failed the worst were the ones where people weren't true to who they were. For our's to succeed we had to be true to who we were and share that with our friends and family. The end result would be a fun-filled weekend in the desert and mountains above Moab, UT. We found a picturesque lodge, scheduled a float down the Colorado River, and would have sumo suits, small bikes, and fake cakes at our reception. There was no more time left. The weekend had arrived. It was time to stop planning and start doing!

We stayed up late the night before loading a ridiculous amount of gear, food, and drinks into our three vehicles. Lee, Amy, and Chris had arrived in the morning and helped with some last minute shopping. An unseasonably cold day had turned even colder as a light mist fell. We stood in our driveway next to the sagging shocks of our overloaded vehicles and prepared to embark. We didn't make it far because my card wouldn't work at the gas station. The strip had been worn to failure so I had to bum cash off of Chris and Lee to fill the vehicles. Typical!

Loading Up

The Raft

Soda and Martinelli's

Lee, Amy, & Chris in Front of the Tacoma

I was driving the M Coupe with Chris, Lee and Amy were in the Tacoma, and Jo was enjoying some quiet time in the Element. As we traversed the eastern Rockies the Aspens were in full form with leaves colored in brilliant yellows and oranges. We made Edwards by sunset where we met up with Sean and Jonny V in his M Coupe. After a dinner of Lark Burger we pressed on to Grand Junction where we would bed for the night.

Our Caravan

Overloaded Element

Vail Aspens

In the morning we split up. Lee and Amy headed to Moab, Jo met up with her parents to do some shopping, and Chris and I washed the M Coupe confident we would catch everyone. I had never driven the M Coupe to Moab so the scenic route was definitely in order. What a route it was! After blazing through miles of straight, desolate, lightly patrolled interstate we found Route 128. Which is an even more desolate two late stretch of road that meets with the Colorado River at Dewy Bridge and follows it through red-walled canyons past Fisher Towers and Castleton Valley. It was one of the single most enjoyable driving experiences I've had in the M Coupe. Needless to say, we made good time!

Utah

The "Scenic" Route

Ahh Bliss...

Dewy Bridge

Wait It's Over Here

Fisher Towers

Wait, They're Over Here!

Chris Happy to be Alive

Beautiful Canyon Walls

In Moab we found Lee and Amy and headed up to Whispering Oaks Ranch. Whispering Oaks is nestled at 8000 feet in the La Sal Mountains above the Moab desert. It's surrounded by a mix of pinions and junipers with peaking yellow aspens slightly higher. The main lodge is a rustic mansion that sleeps 24 comfortably. It has a wrap-around two level porch complete with a hot tub on the southwest corner. Below the main lodge are three smaller cabins, a large pavilion, manicured green lawns, and three small ponds. I can think of no better place to get married. It's the perfect intersection of rustic outdoors and luxury.

Whispering Oaks

From Above

After we settled in we headed higher up the La Sals to Werner Lake to reserve a few campsites. Werner Lake was some how more picturesque than Whispering Oaks. It's an alpine lake surrounded by aspen groves which are capped by rocky peaks. Larry, the mildly intoxicated camp host, and I hit it off like we were old friends and he was happy to reserve a few spots for us. By the end of our conversation I gave him a big hug and invited him to the wedding!

Driving to Werner Lake

The La Sals

Amy in the Aspens

Werner Lake Cabin

Werner Lake

Larry & Ziggy with Our Crew

107 Year Old Aspen Carving

By the time we got back to the lodge more friends and family had trickled in. Mom, Andrew, and Bill had arrived from Maryland, Adam and Kristie from Atlanta, John and Tracee from Albuquerque, Eliza, Andrew, and Charlie from Philly, and cousins Chris and Tessa all the way from England. Jo, Pat, and Allan had caught up to us, Rachel, Lori, and Jayden, came from Denver, and Nicole and Aly from New York City. We took in the evening grilling on the porch and enjoying the sunset from the hot tub. The festivities had truly begun.

Adam & Kristie

Sunset

From Inside

John and Tracee

Aly, Nicole, Lori, & Rachel

Philly Crew

Chris & Tessa all the Way from England

Ending the Day with a Dip

The Perfect Wedding

Where to begin? So many stories, so many pictures, I've got 16 gigs of pictures to sort through. For now this sums things up pretty well for those of you that missed it! Thanks to Nicole for capturing it!