After visiting with them, it was time to head to Outlaw Rafting Company, where we were signed up to go on a 2-hour rafting trip down the Animas River. We had been planning to do a rafting trip since our first day in Durango, when we stopped to talk to one of the several companies that offer them. Our main concern was Cady, since she isn't quite 3 years old yet, but they said she would be fine, that the area they take you in is only Class 2 rapids. We were all so excited!! Well, when Colin called on Tuesday to make our reservations, the person he talked to said that due to the spring runoff, where they go is too wild for such a little one right now. Cady was devastated!! We all were, but Colin and I felt worse for Cady! So, like good parents, we decided to try calling another one to see if they were willing to risk our 3-year olds life!!! (It really wasn't as bad as it sounds - really)! The very next one we called said no problem, that they just do their trips right around town and she would be fine! We were all excited! There were actually enough people signed up to have to take 3 rafts that afternoon. We all loaded up into 2 different vans and headed out to the river. On our raft was an older couple from Springfield, Missouri, our guide, Jake, a guide-in-training, Josh, and the 4 of us. Jake put us up front, with the kids nestled in between Colin and I, and assured us that it would be fine. All three rafts left at the same time and we could tell right away that we got the best guide. Not only was Jake cracking jokes and pointing out landmarks, telling us a little history of the town (we didn't notice any of the other ones doing that), right at the beginning when it was real calm he did a backflip out of the boat into the water! He was pretty funny (and crazy, I thought - that water was freezing, as most of it is melted snow)!! He also was a little more cantankerous then the others and made sure we all got wet right away (spitting fish - yeah right!). We didn't mind, though - it was fun! Of course, I didn't take my camera with us, but they actually took pictures of us as we were going through the Smelter Rapids, which is the wildest part of the trip. I bought a CD with 15 different pictures of us and these 4 were my favorite:
Jake said these were only Class 2 rapids, but I really think they were closer to Class 3 (I overheard a man from one of the other rafts and he said they were Class 3)! It was so much fun, and the kids were never in any danger - they were holding onto our lifejackets as Colin and I helped paddle - but that water was FREEZING!! I know I got it worse than Colin, although he disagrees! Colton's face can be seen in all but 2 pictures (counting the one above, of course), and he has the biggest smile on his face in everyone!! Cady, did really well until those rapids. She was laughing when she got wet and liked the little "waves" as she called them. As we were going through Smelter, though, she got smacked with a ton of that frigid water - right in the face! After that, she was crying and not a happy camper! Well, not only was she upset, but our raft started taking on water - it was midcalf when Jake decided we'd better pull over. Something happened and one of the air valves got pushed in, letting a little air out, and a lot of water in (oh, and one little trout, too)! The other raft that was behind us pulled over to help and by this point, Cady was pretty much hysterical!! Everyone kept coming over to ask if she was ok and tell her how brave she was. She was mostly cold, and Jake pulled his dry t-shirt out of his pack and gave it to her to wear. It was so cute - it went all the way down to her feet! That helped, but she kept saying she did not want to get back in the boat and one of the other guides told us they could have the van driver come pick her and I up, if she didn't want to get in the raft for the last 15 minutes. She finally calmed down and said she would go after Jake promised to let her and I sit towards the back. She sat next to me and leaned her head into me, and 5 minutes later I could tell she was fast asleep and stayed that way the remainder of the trip! When we were finished, Colton was ready to turn around and do it again, but Cady was ready to go back to the camper, although she had calmed down enough to laugh a little about it by then!When we got back to the camper, after putting warm, dry clothes on, we rode bikes, played games and just hung out there for awhile. The campground had a little picture taking area that we took advantage of:
We went back into town and ate at a place called Serious Texas BBQ and it was so good! Have you ever heard of a Texas taco? That is what Colin and I had and it was bbq brisket, topped with grilled onions and jalapenos, topped with cheesy potatoes and all wrapped up in a flour tortilla. It was delicious! Afterwards, the kids tried out their mining hats they had bought - complete with lights! Colin helped them look for nightcrawlers! They only found a couple, but they had fun trying!
We went back into town and ate at a place called Serious Texas BBQ and it was so good! Have you ever heard of a Texas taco? That is what Colin and I had and it was bbq brisket, topped with grilled onions and jalapenos, topped with cheesy potatoes and all wrapped up in a flour tortilla. It was delicious! Afterwards, the kids tried out their mining hats they had bought - complete with lights! Colin helped them look for nightcrawlers! They only found a couple, but they had fun trying!
After lunch, it was time for our tour of Cliff Palace. 
While a lot of dwellings are believed to have been single-family homes, Cliff Palace is believed to have sheltered as many as 150 people as a multi-family dwelling. It goes back 90 feet into the alcove, but most of the back was used as storage. It was pretty amazing. I am used to the Gila Cliff Dwellings, being from that part of NM, but these were 10 times as big! 
Here is another shot from a different angle:
Lots of fun ladders and stairs to climb up and down! The kids really enjoyed these!
We then headed over to the Spruce Tree House for our self-guided tour. On the way there, we spotted a bunch of deer just hanging out next to the road. Can you see them under the sign?
This buck below looked like he was going to be a big one! Their antlers are just now growing back in, and are covered in velvet. So beautiful! They really didn't seem to mind the traffic and the people like the other deer we had seen earlier in the week.
The Spruce Tree House wasn't quite as large as Cliff Palace, but it was just as neat. It even had a below-ground kiva that we could climb down into to get a closer look.
One of the Park Rangers let the kids try their hand at using the manos and matates that were used to grind corn:
At the Visitors Center when we first arrived, the kids were given little activity books that, when completed, they could turn in and get Junior Ranger badges. Colton worked real hard on his and did the activities, and answered the questions. Cady couldn't do too much with her only being 3, but she gave it a good effort. So, both of them were "sworn in" as Junior Rangers and given these cool badges:
On the way back to Durango, we stopped at an Elk Ranch to check it out. They had a nice little gift shop and then you could walk around and look at their breeding stock. They had about a dozen cow elk penned together and then close to 30 HUGE bull elk. The funniest thing, though, were these signs:
They were just chillin' out and enjoying the evening. This one had some odd antlers, but at least he looked right at the camera for me:
We bought some elk jerkey on our way out and the kids ate it right up! They love jerkey of any kind!!
While we were waiting for them to bake our pizza, the kids enjoyed the swing they had outside on their patio. It was made of an old ski lift chair which made the perfect swing!
Oh, and the pizza? It was great!! Some of the best pizza we have eaten! Besides the beautiful scenery, Durango has some of the best local eateries, and lots of them! Each time we have eaten out has been a different local restaurant, and we haven't been disappointed! 
We then came to Ouray, which is known as the "Little Switzerland of America". A very quaint little town with a lot of neat shops and eateries on the main street. 
We then drove back to Silverton and ate at a neat place called "Handlebars" (as in the moustache) followed by a quick visit to see Cady's friend "Earl" again (her idea)!!
Next, we drove 5 miles past Silverton, to the Old Hundred Mine. I read about this place in my Family Fun Magazine and we've been planning on it for quite a few months now. Colton LOVES to watch the mining shows on TLC and Discovery with Colin, so I knew they would like it. We had time to kill while waiting for our 3:00 tour, so Cady and Colton did a little panning for gold and silver with their Daddy.
No gold, but they did find some silver pieces and that was pretty exciting!!
Then it was time to get ready for our tour. You are taken 1300 feet into the mine, via an old mining cart like this: 
The ride in is fun, but it is wet. Water is dripping on you from the ceiling and it gets dark and cold. It was 47 degrees in there, and they say it pretty much stays that way all year around. 
We were down there over 30 minutes and went on a walking tour with our guide, who really knew his mining history and was quite entertaining. There was quite a bit of equipment that still worked that he demonstrated for us, and Cady, who still is afraid of the vacuum cleaner, hated it!
Colton was chosen by our guide to demonstrate the dynamite - Stan showed him how to do it and then started running, telling Colton to make sure and yell "Fire in the hole!" and to give him enough time to get out! Colton wasn't too sure but the rest of us on the tour found it very funny!
We all had a blast (no pun intended) and thought this mine tour was right up there with the train!! Not only educational, but a lot of fun, too!
I snapped this shot of Stan in the drivers seat, right as we came out of the tunnel, into the daylight. We were sad that it was over! Cady said that riding those mine cars was like being at Disneyland and Colton added that it was better than Disneyland! That made Colin and I feel good about our choice for vacation this summer!
On the way back down to Durango, after finding a large patch of snow for the kids to play in...
...and taking a family picture by a pretty waterfall...
...we stopped at Molas Lake to try again to catch a fish or two. On Sunday, our bus driver said that this lake had only thawed out about a week ago, so the fishing should be good. 
This next picture is Colton putting a worm on for Cady!
I didn't fish this time because I was freezing! So, I sat in the Tahoe and took pictures from the window. These next few are some of many that I took of Cady picking flowers after she got bored with fishing (I think it only took about 3 minutes for that to happen). She was singing to herself the entire time!
