three to ride nights in bliss colorado 1

But with my heart pumping after just 10 minutes, and my lungs starting to feel scraped clean, it’s hard to disagree with their thinking. The 112-year-old resort (which inspired Stephen King to write The Shining) dates from an era when doctors prescribed mountain sojourns as a cure-all. Rewarding, too: Less than halfway up, we score panoramic views of Estes Park and the red-roofed Stanley, the hotel we stayed in last night. Rather than beelining it for the higher terrain, we’ve decided to acclimate with a four-mile hike lower down-and at around 8,000 feet, the staircase trail to Gem Lake is still plenty challenging. It helps that our bodies are still on East Coast time-“We’ve got a natural two-hour head start!” Dana, a natural early riser, points out-and I’m feeling pleasantly alert as we pull into a trailhead parking lot just outside of town and begin striding up Lumpy Ridge, a stunted appendage of the main range that awaits us within Rocky Mountain National Park. We’re at Kind Coffee, one of the few places in Estes Park that opens before 7 a.m., amid a crowd that’s a mix of wisecracking old-timers and fit younger types in trail runners.Īs much as I enjoy a laid-back kaffeeklatsch, we’ve got a lot more on our plates today. We need fuel-not merely a quick caffeine fix-for our first full day in Colorado, so this morning starts with peanut butter toast for my wife, Dana, and a hefty egg-and-potato burrito with homemade salsa for me. A criminal syndicate believes she still has the stolen painting and they’ll kill to get their hands on it.Rocky Mountain National Park / Photo: Aaron Colussi Day 1 Traversing Rocky Mountain National Park and strolling through Vail But the dark forces behind the robbery in Dallas have followed Jen home. First and foremost, she has to return to Bliss.Īgainst the backdrop of the Winter Festival, Stef and Jen’s attraction catches fire. Jen is thrilled when her bail is met, until she realizes her savior is Stef and he has a few conditions. When the art gallery where she works is robbed and a precious painting is stolen, Jen is accused of the theft. She moved to Dallas to start over, but nothing is going as planned. Cool and distant, Stef was like a marble statue and no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t break through his shell.

She had come to the mountain town seeking a mentor but found much more than she bargained for. Jennifer ran from Bliss to put Stef behind her. It is intoxicating and terrifying, and he can’t get her out of his head. But she lives her life like she paints-with wild, passionate abandon. Though she is younger, her talent as an artist is unquestionable. Nothing good comes from chaos, and that is why he has refused to allow himself to get close to Jennifer Waters. He approaches his life with the same meticulous precision that he uses to put paint on his canvas.

Re-released in a second edition with new content.

Three to ride nights in bliss colorado 1