Home at Last!

/ ridingwithgary

The Carbondale homestead beckons.

So, I say goodbye to the McBrides, and roll out of Palisade on the last leg of my journey home.

The route is quite simple. I can probably do it without the nav system engaged, just listening to spirited ’70s rock and enjoying the scenery and fresh Colorado mountain air.

East on I-70 for 72 miles, take a right, blow through Glenwood Springs, and 10 minutes later, when you see Mount Sopris towering in the distance, you’ve arrived at the Lesser/Murr homestead.

There are several interesting sights to see along the way. A few miles after leaving Palisade, I ride past past De Beque, population 500, perhaps best known for becoming the first incorporated town in Mesa County to approve the retail sale of recreational marijuana. In De Beque, you can stop at Kush Gardens and be helped by some of the best budtenders (yes, that’s what they’re called) in Colorado.

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Budtender Delplena Silas helps a customer smell the aroma of cannabis buds at De Beque’s Kush Gardens. Business is booming.

Truth be told, Sarah is a fan. We’ve done some retail at Kush Gardens. She has a lot of back and neck pain; it’s what kept her from joining me in South Dakota’s Black Hills on this trip. It turns out that a drop of sublingual marijuana under the tongue occasionally helps her sleep at night.

Those of you reading this blog with your chardonnay or vodka tonic in hand should immediately re-consider your judging of her choice. Medical marijuana is now legal in at least 29 states and the District of Columbia; recreational use is legal in eight states, including Colorado.

While the national discourse clearly favors legalizing marijuana, federal law still considers cannabis a dangerous illegal drug with no acceptable medicinal value. Federal law still treats marijuana like every other controlled substance, including cocaine and heroin. There is a clear conflict between federal and state laws when it comes to marijuana use.

Someday, we’ll look back on this time in America and wonder what took us so damn long to legalize what has been criminalized for eons. Remember how well Prohibition worked?

Pot in Colorado is such a thing that the state’s leading newspaper, the Denver Post, has its own marijuana critic, Jake Browne. He works alongside the newspaper’s wine critic, theater critic and movie critic. Jake’s paid to smoke marijuana – and then write about the high.

Marijuana has truly gone mainstream.

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OK folks, put down your glass of chardonnay and let’s talk about it.

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From DeBeque, I roll northeast past the town of Parachute, which is about halfway between Palisade and Glenwood Springs. Next up: the towns of Rifle, Silt, and New Castle. I love Colorado place names.

If I continued another 150 miles east on the interstate, I’d be in Denver, Colorado’s biggest city.

But really, what would be the point of that? I’m heading home, and my exit from I-70 is in Glenwood Springs, directly ahead of me.

Glenwood Springs is the county seat of Garfield County, where we’ll soon go for fun DMV activities like registering our cars and acquiring Colorado driver’s licenses. Glenwood Springs is also home to Doc Holliday Harley Davidson, named after the Wild West gunfighter, pal of Wyatt Earp, and participant in the Gunfight at the O.K.Corral.

In the 1957 movie about the famous 30-second shootout, Holliday, who was grazed by a bullet, is played by Kirk Douglas.

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That’s Kirk Douglas on the far left, as Doc Holliday, on his way to the shootout at the O.K. Corral. Holliday is buried at a cemetery in Glenwood Springs, about 10 miles from Carbondale.

Best line from Doc Holliday, referring to his ability with guns: “I do handle them pretty well. The only trouble is, those best able to testify to my aim aren’t around for comment.”

Doc Holliday was also a gambler and dentist, receiving his DDS from the Pennsylvania College of Dental Surgery – now part of the University of Pennsylvania School of Dental Surgery. He died here in Glenwood Springs in 1887 at the age of 36, not in a gunfight, but of tuberculosis. You can visit his resting place at the Pioneer Cemetery in Glenwood Springs.

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Doc Holliday’s final resting place, in Glenwood Springs.

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Minutes later, under beautiful blue Rocky Mountain skies, my 19-day, 4,100-mile adventure comes to an end, as I arrive in Carbondale.

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Carbondale. Home at last
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Harley, too. That’s Mt. Sopris in the background.

I enjoyed having you along for the ride.

It took nearly 35,000 words to describe the journey in this blog.

But I can sum it up in two words: I’m home.

Our new address is 150 Sopris Mesa Drive. Hope you’ll come visit.

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The view from your guest room at 150 Sopris Mesa Drive in Carbondale. It should be ready for you in May 2018. Just bring your toothbrush and pajamas. And fly fishing gear. Or skis. Or golf clubs. There’s a lot to do here.

The house, which we’re calling our Cozy Carbondale Cottage, should be complete in May 2018.

Home at last!

Vroom, vroom.

To be continued … next year.

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They’re pouring the concrete foundation walls today. The new Murr/Lesser home is really happening.
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Woo-hoo! Only nine months (ish) and we’ll be moving in.

***

Day Nineteen Summary: Retail cannabis at Kush Gardens, the sure aim of Doc Holliday, home at last!

Click here to see today’s complete route from Palisade to Carbondale.

***

Today in Bucket List History:

Bucket List Goal: “Throw a Big Party That No One Will Ever Forget.”

Goal Achieved: On August 15, 1969, the Woodstock Music & Art Fair opens in New York State on Max Yasgur’s 600-acre dairy farm in the Catskills. The festival, billed as “Three Days of Peace and Music,” attracts an audience of more than 400,000. Opening act on August 15, at 5:07 pm: Richie Havens, singing Freedom. Closing act, on Monday, August 18 at 9 am: Jimi Hendrix, the Purple Haze guy. Far out, man!

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Richie Havens opens the Woodstock Music Festival on August 15, 1969.

What’s on your bucket list?

24 thoughts on “Home at Last!”

  1. Gee, can you tell you are a 1960’s hippie or what? Marijuana and Woodstock! Welcome home fearless leader. Now go have a bowl or a pint and enjoy the memories. Another great ride and I look forward to many more my friend. Hugs to you Sarah! Gary will be back with you very soon indeed! We didn’t mess him up too much. See you in Carbondale next May (Gary told me I could stay with you two for as long as I want … LOL!)

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    • You and Gail can stay as long as you want, Dave. We are bringing our La Quinta lodging brand with us to Carbondale: ” Five-star quality, Zero star prices.” As to the ’60s hippie stuff, um, I was always a little too mainstream to take that route, though I did have the “look” (pics available on request). I, too, look forward to many more rides.

      PS . I told our builder about your “marking” of our lot, and he said that’s a common (though somewhat unorthodox) practice. Can’t wait for you to mark the inside of our house, too.

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  3. Though it has taken some time to move marijuana to the main stream. I think as you do Gary that someday we will look back at this time and giggle.
    Sorry I’m giggling now.

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  4. Many happy trips ahead gary. Sarah, Gary also invited Jo and I to come and stay as long as we want.
    We will wait till your new house is finished before putting our place on the market.

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  5. I’m way behind in reading the blogs, but enjoy each and appreciate all the references to click on and learn more. I’ll get to all postings eventually, but grateful you took so many of us on your trip!

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  8. Gary great ride and wonderful blog. Travel is one of the most energizing things a person can do. The beauty of the world and the US is amazing. Thanks for the history lesson along the way and for the good French vocabulary that you threw in just for Paula and me. You will love your new home and life and just remember in 1980, while in the DA’s office in Orange County I said we should legalize drugs, especially MJ. We have friends living in Amsterdam and the system works well there and how has it worked out in the US with our jail rates the highest in the world and lack of treatment centers because we don’t want to pay for them or to have good healthcare.

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  10. So glad you had a safe and fun trip Gary et al. Michael and Jim are really jealous. Exciting to see pictures of the lot and building progress. The British contingent will be there mid summer 2018, Ok? Miss you and Sarah loads. Off to England Tuesday. Do you and Sarah want to join me and you can do the blog? Very little work involved, right?

    Love JJJ and M.
    Three same letters are “in” at the moment I have been hearing- yours was CCC and mine is JJJ.
    P.S. You have some great shows to catch up on. John Oliver was brilliant on Sunday.

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  11. Hey Gary, Thank you for taking the photo of my relation…..Doc. Holliday!!!!! How special to see on your travel blog.
    Again, I enjoyed your travels along with others!
    Thank you and blessings

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  13. Incredible Journey..
    So Happy you arrived home safely !
    Your stories and pic’s were so inspiring…
    it was a pleasure following /You🏍🏍🏍🏍🏍

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  15. Baby Bear: We are finally ending our journey as well and now have better internet access at LHR. Don’t think we haven’t been reading all along. Have enjoyed your travels, although it is a pretty slow download on the ship’s satellite internet so we didn’t get them all. Keep in touch. We’ll talk soon.

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    • Hey Mama Bear … nice to hear from you. Assume LHR is London Heathrow, and you’re on your way home, from somewhere. Can’t even remember where you and Steve went (somehow I must have missed your blog?). Hope it was an awesome trip and will look forward to hearing/reading about it. Vroom, vroom.

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