I had a very lazy, seedy start to the morning. It has been so long that I’ve been out drinking that my throat felt raw and my head was spinning a little. First hangover in the van?! I was happy to doze, my curtains effectively blocking out the bright morning sun. It didn’t feel too cold this morning, eventually I donned my clothes and head into the Walmart for the bathroom, then straight onto some hot oats. I had efficiently managed to consume all of my perishable food in preparation for parking the van for a month, using up my last apple.

I had another email from Canada regarding my visa so I got right on to reading that. They allowed me an extension to submit the FBI check, giving me until early March. Hopefully everything holds up! Nothing I can do now, I was just glad I could deal with all of it before going overseas.

I finally rolled out of the carpark after 10, all the while distracted by the huge mountains in the background. Yesterday I’d forgotten what the flat, vertical features were called that jut of of the walls, they are suitably named flat irons because that’s exactly what they look like.

It was nice to drive in full sun today, I could actually see tarmac on the roads again! It took me over an hour to drive up to Fort Collins the long way so that I avoided highways. I needed to be there by 12noon for my New Belgium Brewery tour! This brewery’s most famous beer is Fat Tire, a beer I quite enjoy! I’d found out they they run tours seven days a week with free beer tastings thanks to my Lonely Planet Guide. It was my only planned activity for the day, apart from meeting up with my new friend tonight.

Downtown Fort Collins is cute and historic and just outside of it are rows and rows of breweries, apparently it’s a thing to come here and do a bunch of brewery tours. I was early, so I parked nearby and walked up to the brewery, steam rising from somewhere within the complex. It was just warm enough that I got away without taking my down jacket, but still cold! Inside the brewery the main bar was a great atmosphere with tastings and full size beers on offer. I didn’t waste any of my money since I knew I was on for some free stuff. Our guide Mindy gathered the group when it came time and off we went. She told us about how the brewery got started, the usual story of a guy home brewing in his garage, then he went over to Germany and really learnt about beer.

We toured the vats, the barrel room, the bottling line and the canning line, having a generous tasting of beer at each stop. I liked all my tastes except for the sour beer in the barrel room, it was a very heavy dark beer. While the brewery stuff was interesting, I loved all the bike details that riddled the place. The founder was not only a huge beer nerd, he was a passionate rider as well so there’s bikes hanging from the ceiling, chairs made out of bent wheels and tubes, chandeliers consisting of beer cans and bike wheels, bringing the whole lot together.

By tour’s end I was easily tipsy (I’ve turned into a Cadbury since I don’t drink much anymore) and so thoroughly enjoyed the tornado slide at the conclusion of the tour. With no particular function except for fun, there is a aluminium tight spiral slide to go down, which I and a few other adventurous people on the tour did.

Right as we finished Lizzy called so I sat in a quiet corner of the main bar and caught up with her. We’d barely spoken since she visited in September so it was good to touch base and see what’s what in Lizzy’s life.

My lightheadedness gone, it was past 2pm and it was food time. While I felt a bit guilty buying again, I treated myself. I wandered into downtown and after a quick check in at the visitor’s center, went across the road to Coopersmith’s where I had a huge glass of water and chicken pot pie. Mmmmm. Sitting at a window, I pulled out my laptop and did some blogging to while the afternoon away. The last few days have definitely been lazy but I relished in it and didn’t leave the restaurant until after dark when I had a bit more of a wander then back to the car.

I got to Marianna’s place just before 6pm and she was ready to go climbing as we’d talked about. I met Marianna and her partner Jerry at Mt. Rushmore where they offered me a place to stay and park the car for a month. Jerry, who lived down the road from Marianna, wasn’t coming climbing so I got my gear together and me and M drove a few minutes down the road to her local gym. It was a tiny little shed and with half-price Friday in action, only cost us $6.50 for entry. Having not climbed in weeks I was climbing like a pansy and using my arms way too much, but it was still great to get back on the wall.

I earned some fans while doing a 5.9 corner climb. This gym, unlike the ones I’m used to in California, don’t sandbag the routes, they rate them as if they are outdoor climbs. After coming down a pair of climbers offered their hands for a high-five and congratulated me on an awesome job. Climbers are such cool people. I encouraged them to get on it which they did and with some banter they got up to the roof. We didn’t climb very long, barely two hours, but the climbs were short and within that time we’d run up most of the stuff within our capabilities. Looking forward to food, we bid ado to our new friends, who were off to Hawaii to spend Christmas with their families. Bet it’s nice and warm over there!

We stopped in at “Wich Wich”, a sandwich place which was cheap and had really good food, including a free cookie that I got for filling out a survey. Marianna overloaded me with information about all the cool stuff there is to do in the area, not much of which I can remember, but all of it I want to do when I come back.

Back at M’s place, I got straight to work packing and making sure there was nothing in the van that would smell after a month left alone. It was a frantic pack and not much thought went into it, I just made sure I have everything I need for my US tourist visa. With that, my passports and some money I should be right.

Before bed, Marianna showed me a few photos from her adventures in Colorado and more scenery from places further afield she is yet to explore. I think we’ll be doing an adventure or two when I come back this way!