Michael woke up not feeling great. It’s probably a combination of us being on the road a lot, the dramatic changes in temperature we’ve had at various points (including going from hot desert to snow in a day), as well as eating some leftover chicken the night before that was past its prime.
Our plan was to head over to the region of Grand Junction to do some grocery shopping and refuel, before arriving at Colorado National Monument to see some epic canyons, rock formations and landscapes. We weren’t on the road for long before we spotted signs for an alpaca farm, and Lisette, who loves alpacas, suggested (or was that pushed for?) a detour back in the opposite direction to see them.
Sopris Alpaca Farm
The Sopris Alpaca Farm is run by Kim and Cory Wesson, and you can tell that they love animals. They have several pet cats, about 80 alpacas (they also sell them so numbers vary), and 2 Scottish Highland cows called Daisy and Ferdinand. Given the animals on the property, dogs aren’t allowed to wander around, so Sheila stayed inside the RV while we checked out the farm, which also has a bed & breakfast.
There’s a small shop where the Wessons sell a variety of alpaca items (such as yarn, hats and clothing). Not all of it is theirs, but they do sell hundreds of dryer balls every year that come from when they shear the alpaca. We have been using our wool dryer balls for years, and add a few drops of lemongrass essential oil to make our clothes smell nice and fresh! We spent $5 to buy a bag of feed for the alpacas, to encourage them to come and meet us by the fences. The crias (baby alpacas) were not interested in eating (although they still came over to say hi!) as they had probably just been fed, but the adults on the other side were more than happy to peck away at the feed. The alpaca were all so adorable, happily coming over very close to us (and even giving Lisette a peck on the hair or cheek), although they did sneeze a bit, leaving some nice green snot on Lisette’s hands!
If you’re lucky, during the springtime you could see the birth of a cria, as they are always born between 9.30-2pm, so chances are pretty good. We didn’t see a birth while we were there, but Cory told us that guests have come and seen it, and it even brought tears to a lady in her 80s who had never seen anything like this in her lifetime.
We also said a brief hello to Daisy and Ferdinand, the two Scottish Highland cattle, as they dug into a fresh batch of hay. Cory gave them a bit of a brush (using a rake!) as their fur was getting a bit tangled. While their fur looks thick, it’s really quite fine, so unlike alpacas, there’s not much to do with it once it’s been combed off. The Sopris Alpaca Farm was a pleasant detour, and the website also has more about the Wesson’s story, and fun facts about alpacas (for example: did you know there are 2 breeds of alpaca, the suri and the huacaya, and the latter make up 90% of the US population)?
Grand Junction: Mica Mines Trail and Colorado National Monument
Moving on, we arrived in the city of Grand Junction, which is the gateway to Colorado National Monument (among other national parks), and is also a wine region. Speaking of food, we stopped at the Safeway to top up on groceries and ended up buying some really good sushi there for lunch. We know, sushi from a grocery store usually sounds like a bad idea, but we were pleasantly surprised by the fresh sushi that they made and sold at this Safeway!
Mica Mines Hike
We continued on with plans to arrive at Colorado National Monument, but a “wrong turn” led us to park at the start of the Mica Mines Trail, which turned out to be the right decision! We loved this dog-friendly hike – it’s about 4.34 kms (2.7 miles) out-and-back, and was incredibly eventful in terms of all the different flora, rocks, minerals, sandstone spires, and washes we could see along the trail and canyon floor.
As we walked along the trail, we were greeted not only by sagebrush, willows, and even snow on part of the trail that was partially shaded from the warm sun, but also hundreds of chunks of quartz, granite and mica! The quartz looked like crystals or marble in the sunlight, reminiscent of what you’d find in many homes (such as on a kitchen countertop)! At the end of the trail we were greeted by a large cave, where we inspected the mica-covered walls carved into the wall, and clambered up a bit higher to the upper section to explore. We thoroughly welcomed and enjoyed the opportunity to go on a hike on a warm and sunny day, after spending the last few days freezing amid the snow! Sheila also seemed really happy to get out and about more.
After our hike, we continued on toward Colorado National Monument to orient ourselves to the area, and do a brief scenic drive. We were not prepared to see such spectacular views driving along Rim Road Drive, with sheer drops and flat canyon walls that a cat wouldn’t be able to scratch up! We’re excited to explore these sheer-walled canyons and rock formations further in the coming days.
We left Colorado National Monument and found a quiet spot along the road to park for the night. Lisette was cooking dinner on the stove when she reached over to plug the kettle into the electrical socket–only for her beloved Cotopaxi jacket to catch a bit of the flame, igniting and burning some parts of the jacket. Lisette was distraught and initially thought she’d have to buy an entirely new jacket, but she’ll be fixing it up in a few weeks with GEAR AID tape that’s used to fix jackets, tents, and tarps (thanks in advance Brian for letting us order the tape online and send it to your house)! While the jacket won’t be the same, it’s better and cheaper than buying a whole new one, and now there’s a story behind it if anyone asks why there’s a length of blue tape on Lisette’s jacket!
Route Map
