Every summer we spend a good amount of time frisbee golfing. The course we go to the most is called Cottonwood Creek and it is lots of fun. For some, especially for girls starting out can be frustrating but once you get the hang of it, it becomes enjoyable.
So what is frisbee golf? Frisbee golf is exactly what it sounds like, it is golfing with frisbees. The frisbee that you use is a little bit different than your average frisbee it’s a bit smaller, thinner, and harder. Because of these features you can drive the disc long distances easily up to 400 feet. Instead of a hole in the ground you need to get the frisbee into a metal basket.
We play with a par 4 meaning that if you get the frisbee in the basket on your fourth throw you get zero points or par. If you get the frisbee in the basket on your third throw you get -1 or birdie. Get it in on your second throw and you you receive -2 also known as eagle. On the other hand if you don’t get it in until your fifth throw you bogied it and receive +1. Obviously you want to stay in the negatives with this game. The less points you end with the better.
There are many frisbee golf courses in Colorado the main two that we know of are Cottonwood Creek and Fountain Creek which is south of the Springs. If you haven’t been before and you live near a course it might be worth trying. Check out our recent frisbee golfing trip here
I recently decided to purchase a juicer, and after a lot of research I finally found the one I wanted to purchase. I bought an Omega J8005 it is a masticating juicer which will run you around $230 online. So far I am very pleased with it and am happy that I did not go with the cheaper centrifugal type of juicer such as a Jack Lalane or Juiceman juicer.
The masticating juicers literally squeeze and grind the fruit at low speeds, usually around 80-120 rpms. This does not disrupt the cellular structure of the fruit or vegetable and pretty much eliminates oxidation preserving the natural nutrients and enzymes of the fruit.
Centrifugal juicers use a shredder, and run at high (3600 rpms) speeds, they cause oxidation that destroys important enzymes which leaves you with very few of the natural nutrients. It destroys the natural structure of the cell and gives you a low quality juice.
The juice from a masticating juicer produces higher quality juice with a more solid color, whereas the centrifugal machines juice is clearer with no enzymes or nutrients and has almost a metallic taste. Masticating juicers produce almost 20% more juice from produce than a centrifugal juicer, and there is also much less foam.
Centrifugal juicers are cheaper but you can get a great masticating Omega or Champion juicer for $50-$80 more than a high end centrifugal juicer and it certainly seems to be worth it. Masticating juicers are often capable of more than just juicing, mine can juice just about anything including soft vegetables like wheat grass, parsley or spinach and it can also make nut butters and pasta. So in a lot of ways you get more for your money ;).
Today I went hiking with my dad and younger brother JJ. We decided to try something new and we drove out west taking highway 67 to the Horse Thief Falls trailhead. It was a nice day probably in the 70’s but very windy. We arrived at the trailhead at around 7:45 am. It wasn’t very clearly marked, and at first I was not sure if we were at the right spot. Eventually we came to a sign; left was Horse Thief Falls right was Pancake Rocks.
Pancake Rocks was the longer of the two being a six-mile hike round trip. However, by the time we reached this reassuring sign we were ankle deep in snow. Considering it is going to be June next week snow is not something that crossed our minds and none of us were prepared. We didn’t want to turn back so we made the mistake of trying to trek through it.
The snow got worse as the elevation increased and we found ourselves in three and four foot drifts on the trail. JJ and I were wearing short pants, which made this quite miserable. Every time the packed snow gave way we sunk and fell and the thick ice scraped up our legs; this combined with the bitter cold made the experience excruciating, to say the least.
Despite common sense we continued upward until we reached the top of the little mountain. The top was snow free because of the sun so our hopes rose a little. They were soon dashed to pieces after we went down into the valley and realized the snow got even worse. At this point we were exhausted from the trek up and we all decided to turn back, dreading the miles of icy snowy that awaited us. We never saw the Pancake Rocks.
The hike down was worse. I made the desperate attempt of going straight down rather than wasting my time on switchbacks and got stuck in about four feet of snow. I was about to cry at this point my legs were in terrible shape and I was literally stuck in the icy frozen snow. My dad came down with a hiking stick and we made it back to the trail…
Several hours later we made it back to the sign, and despite our low spirits we decided to venture out to Horse Thief Falls. This was packed with snow but not as badly and it was much shorter, so we did get to see a pretty waterfall. The hike was difficult and took us almost six hours because of the snow. When we got back to the car my legs were severely scraped up and my hiking boots and socks were soaked in blood because my socks were to short and the wet snow caused rubbing.
I don’t think there is normally this much snow on this trail during this time of the year from what I have read. It was a learning experience and I will definitely not try this trail again until I am sure all the snow is gone ;).
I took a few pictures and we have a youtube video but I didn’t get the really deep parts because taking pictures was the last thing I was really thinking about as we crossed through this part.
Today we went to Queens Canyon, which is located in Glen Eyrie. It was a beautiful day; one of the first that we have had in a long time, but it was perfect for hiking. If you plan on hiking at Glen Eyrie you must fill out reservations on their website as well as print and sign wavers for each adult in your party. There are several trails, but Queens Canyon was the first one we did and seems to be one of the prettiest.
Andre and I invited Pierre and his new friend Christina; it was a very pleasant and scenic hike. The trail is short and it contains lots of makeshift bridges along cliffs near a river. Eventually the trail ended and we found ourselves heading of off private property and into a national forest. We had to cross the river several times in order to make any progress and eventually it became to difficult to continue and we turned back.
Everyone managed to stay dry but me, I got so tired of trying to balance across the river on loose rocks that I began just walking through the river in my hiking boots. When we were done with the trail we decided to try another. We started hiking a trail called Fire Road, which was nothing like Queens Canyon. It was dirt trail without any trees that was pretty much a straight incline for several miles. Eventually we all got to hot to finish it and turned around, but it did have some nice views of Garden of the Gods and the city.
Overall Glen Eyrie is a beautiful piece of property with some great trails, it’s certainly a good place to go hiking especially if you like hiking near water. I also made a video of our excursion check it out at
This past weekend we decided to join VillaSport which is an athletic club and spa. Although it is a bit pricy you seem to get what you pay for, and we were pleasantly surprised with all of the amenities that are provided when you become a member.
It’s a fantastic facility that’s bigger than any gym I’ve been ever been a part of. The locker rooms contain a lounge with big screen TV’s, cable, and leather couches. In both the men’s and women’s locker room is a steam room with a TV, a sauna with a TV and each locker room has its own hot tub. There are plenty of individual showers with glass doors for privacy, each shower contains large bottles of shampoo, conditioner, and body wash. There is also an ample supply of body lotion, mouth wash blow dryers etc. The lockers have their own digital locks that you simply make up a code for and enter when you need to get back into it. You really don’t need to bring much from home which makes it nice and easy to get up and go work out.
There is a café that serves breakfast lunch and dinner, a bar, free Wi-Fi, and a spa (not included but you do get a discount). The facility has a large amount of workout equipment; including free weights, weight machines and an ample supply of cardio equipment (every single treadmill has its own TV with cable). There is a full sized basketball court, a fire pit, five pools, four water slides (two outside, two inside) and a third hot tub that is half inside and half outside. Enough said. It’s pretty awesome.
We’ve been a couple times so far and I’ve got to say, it has been really nice having somewhere to workout and go swimming even when the weather isn’t so good. Every time I have gone it’s been relatively empty, or maybe it just seems empty because it’s so big. The only complaint I have is there are a lot of kids, not to sound old and grumpy or anything but there are several pools designated for adults only and there are always kids in them, so I don’t think they really enforce it. Overall it’s a great place to work out and hang out and I’m sure we will be spending a lot of our summer hours at the outdoor pools.
Today we decided to take advantage of some of the nice weather and ventured out to Helen Hunt Falls for a short hike. The weather was great when we got there and we got some nice pictures. We hadn't been there before but it's not long at all, the trail is less than half a mile. There is lots of water which makes it really pretty. When the trail ended we didn't stop despite the warning signs, we did a little bit of scrambling and made it to the top of one of the waterfalls. At the top there was a road and a creepy closed down tunnel along with some more nice views.
I have been making lots of youtube videos with imovie and made a video of this trip. To view my videos just go to
