Stories, Tales and Tidbits~



This is where I come to write thoughts and stories or just ramble on.  Some things you may find entertaining and others may bore you. I have a deep passion for words and how one can express themselves with the use of creative writing. I learned from a young age how the imagination can take you places.

Growing up in the country of Northern California I fell inlove with the outdoors and wildlife.  When I became a writer it was no wonder that my work had a lot of nature in it. Even though I get many kinds of readers from different areas of life, theres something for everyone in my work. I hope you too will enjoy the adventures splashed across the screen of my site as well as my books.




April 8th 2013

Heres an update for all those out there that is wondering where Ellie went. I'm still around and still writing. My move to Estes Park has been a adventure of a life time and things continue to be a exciting. Living at the "Gateway" to the Rocky Mountian National Forest has got to be one for anyones "bucket list". To look out my window and see elk grazing along the house or to drive down into town and have to stop and wait for a herd of elk to cross the road.

I have to admit a few years ago I'd never would of thought I'd be here. It's an amazing place. The wilderness and animals are breath taking indeed.

                                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


The Pikes Peak Adventure                                              
    Entry August 8, 2012
         

                              


Here I am standing on the top of the world at 14,115 feet above sea level, Pikes Peak is the 31st highest peak out of 54 Colorado peaks. Truly a breath taking view and believe me it did take my breath away. 
I am elevation challenged... yes I'm scared of heights, so this venture was a huge challenge for me. Oh, don't laugh, this was a huge step for me. The road up to the guest center, located at the very peak of this majestic mountain is very steep in areas and winding with sheer drops if you were to unexplainably run off the road. (thoughts that seemed to monopolize my mind)

I believe in order to beat ones fears you must first face them. In most cases once you take the fear quest in hand you find its not to be feared after all but viewed as a form of growth, a place to learn and move ahead.  This is what I did. I've been back up this incredible mountain several times and plan on hiking the Barr Trail.  This trail may be the greatest base to base summit climb any where in Colorado. With the altitude gain of over 7,800 feet is a 12 plus mile hike. I think its going to be a difficult trail for me because of the elevation gain and the distance.

This kind of hike isn't to be taken lightly. I have been planning on the best route, food and clothing for this exciting adventure.  The best one can do before a big hike is "condition"  yep, get ready for the distance, the elevation and the climate. I have been studying the climate of the beautiful mountain, talked with fellow hikers of the experiences they've had. The condition of your body is what will make or break you when you go for a long hike as well as one has got to have really good foot wear!

We have started a hiking and exercise routine to gain muscle strength and stamina. A great place to purchase really good hiking foot wear is REI. They carry, in my opinion the best of the best in most sporting and outdoor gear.

The plan for this memorable journey is next summer when we are well prepared. I think one should never rush into something like this, planning is essential to success!

As a writer I have a need to be out and about experiencing different things.  I'm not real big on being indoors for long periods of time. Colorado has so much to offer the outdoors person. Since moving to this beautiful state I've hiked daily, fished often and now learning the awesome art of GOLF! What a incredible blast I'm having, the fun just never ends! When the snow flies I will be out snowshoeing.                           
                                           



The Tree..
Entry July 30, 2012


There’s a long dirt road just down from where I lived in which I walked every evening. At the end there was this huge oak tree. I'd no clue as to its age, I had to without fail reach out and touch the rough and gnarled bark. I remember looking up into it's glory of intertwined branches and leaves, one could lose sight of the fact that the highway was but a few thousand yards away. This was where I'd come to get lost in thoughts, to make decisions in my life or just relax.

I'd close my eyes as I stood under its majestic countenance, gaining a sense of security by it's age and size. It was almost as if there was some unexplained connection between man and nature. The sound from the highway off in the distance could be heard shhhhhing through it's out reaching branches that hung above my upturned face. I walked around the girth of the massive, silent monster. I ran my soft palm against it's ridged bark as I softly I talked to it as if it could understand my need to communicate in some fashion. Feeling slightly silly I looked around, sheepishly, no one was there. I turned one last time, looking up and taking a deep breath, turning I head for home along the dusty road that brought me here.




Searching..
Entry July 29, 2012

Life’s full of many wonders that we tend to take for granted till it’s gone. We search for something exceptional and many times we don't see just what we have till it’s gone. Not till we are landed in a new situation, one we thought was suppose to turn out better but didn’t. The question is, do we see the loss and what we gained in our haste. Filled with regret and pain wishing we'd had better foresight and not made such thoughtless decisions.
I try very hard to take each decision I make in stride. I think that each of us should set and think out our needs and wants, see just how it will affect ourselves as well as others. Based on this we make the move to step forward into something that will perhaps change our lives or that of our loved ones, hopefully in a positive way. It sometimes turns out discouraging even after such thought out planning. My thoughts on this are to do the best out of every situation as you can. Something good can come from any thing you do. It’s all in the attitude and how we process the things we decide on. 
Life is about change; no matter how we look at it or go about it life is full of change. Fact is if your alive and breathing each day brings change of some kind.
We search and find new and exciting adventures that fill our lives, each one is a lesson to be learned. We some times search just to find what we search for is right before us.. if we just stand back and look.








No comments: