I hate to say this but this might be the only show I didn’t need to see this summer. It was the night before school started for the kids and it was pretty flat. After seeing shows with 20-30 songs from other bands, these guys put on a pretty standard set with 15 songs and called it early.

Setlist

• Stoke the Fire
• Gasoline
• Truth
• Nobody Praying for Me
• Rise Above This
• Save Today
• Country Song
• Words as Weapons
• Fine Again
• Broken
• Black Honey (Thrice cover)
• Breakdown
• Fake It
• Let You Down
• Remedy

So many songs. And these guys always start early and just bring a lot of energy. I never miss them.

Rained a bit but then stopped. Made for a great night outdoors with my ladies.

Then during the middle of the set, Billie started picking on the oddly placed Subaru parked near the audience. A promotional thing for the venue for the summer. Then he decided to smash a guitar on it. Pretty rock and roll. I must be getting a tad old because I kept thinking “Not sure you should be doing that”. Punk rockers. Here is some other dude’s video of it.

Setlist

• Know Your Enemy
• Bang Bang
• Revolution Radio
• Holiday
• Letterbomb
• Boulevard of Broken Dreams
• Longview
• Youngblood
• 2000 Light Years Away
• Hitchin’ a Ride
• When I Come Around
• Welcome to Paradise
• Minority
• Are We the Waiting
• St. Jimmy
• Knowledge (Operation Ivy cover)
• Basket Case
• She
• King for a Day
• Shout / Always Look on the Bright Side of Life / (I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction / Hey Jude
• Still Breathing
• Forever Now
• American Idiot
• Jesus of Suburbia
• 21 Guns
• Good Riddance (Time of Your Life)

Let’s just watch Gavin in action.

One more time.

Setlist

• Everything Zen
• Testosterone
• Nurse
• The Chemicals Between Us
• The Sound of Winter
• Mad Love
• Greedy Fly
• The People That We Love
• Swallowed
• Alien
• Peace-S
• Little Things
• Machinehead
• The One I Love (R.E.M. cover)
• Glycerine
• Comedown

This was only their 4th show performing live so Josh complained it was rough around the edges. But it was super fun to see at this tiny outdoor venue. I just enjoy Josh’s dance moves. I feel like I can do them.

Here is the video for the big hit off the album so far. My kids love this song.

I hope they sell some records. I dig this album.

When this was announced, I will admit I wasn’t thrilled. Axl was a dick to fans for so long that he wore out his welcome. I tried to get my wife to go with me and she said: “never again”. I guess nobody makes her wait 3 hours before they come on stage and gets another chance. I talked with JP and he and I schemed together and met up in my seats in about the 20th row on the floor. Then as the date got closer, I heard more and more good things about this tour and I was ready. Ready to see Guns N’ Roses one more time. A thing I thought I would never ever say given the Axl & Slash feud.

The show started right around the promised time. The weather was good. This was going to be a great night. And it was. They played over 3 hours and just killed it from the start. Even for a bunch of old dudes. Axl isn’t exactly the same as the kid from long ago — but he made a hell of a run at keeping that spirit alive. Enough of the voice is there that you know it is him. Some really high stuff is gone but oh well. Go listen to the old songs.

Let me say that Slash is like no man I have ever seen. The guy doesn’t age first off. Then he played the guitar harder than anyone I have ever seen and for so long. It was amazing.

If I could pick one show to see again this year, this one.

Setlist

There are 30 songs below. And none of them were short. They played intros, outros, and just jammed on every song!

• It’s So Easy
• Mr. Brownstone
• Chinese Democracy
• Welcome to the Jungle
• Double Talkin’ Jive
• Better
• Live and Let Die
• Estranged
• Rocket Queen
• You Could Be Mine
• Attitude (Misfits cover)
• This I Love
• Civil War
• Yesterdays
• Coma
• Slash Guitar Solo
• Speak Softly Love (Nino Rota cover)
• Sweet Child O’ Mine
• Used to Love Her
• My Michelle
• Wish You Were Here (Pink Floyd cover)
• November Rain
• Black Hole Sun (Soundgarden cover)
• Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
• Nightrain
• Don’t Cry
• Whole Lotta Rosie (AC/DC cover)
• Patience
• The Seeker (The Who cover)
• Paradise City

Here is a taste of it from my seat.

However, there is great stuff on YouTube from the Apollo just before the tour kicked off.

Hope they come back around one day.

Setlist

• Another Know It All
• The Clincher
• Young Wicked
• Take Out the Gunman
• An Island
• Jars
• Vitamin R (Leading Us Along)
• Closure
• Rivers
• Joyride (Omen)
• Face to the Floor
• Still Running
• I Get It
• Door to Door Cannibals
• Hats Off to the Bull
• The Red
• Comfortable Liar
• Forfeit
• Send the Pain Below

We also went to Glenwood Caverns.  Another favorite.  The kids didn’t remember much of the caves.  I always enjoy the tours into the caves.  Just amazing inside.  Pictures suck in there.

How do you really photograph a cave?

Such weird formations that took millions of years to form.

Reagan and I took a selfie on the overlook.

There is the town down below.  You can see the world’s craziest swing there on the ledge.  I posted a video on Facebook of the kids on it.  It is totally insane.  Swings you out over that canyon.

More cave stuff.

Random shot of tour.  That guide was really good.  Dan the Cave Man.

Then there was this new ride. A giant swing. On a cliff. I hate the swings even in normal locations. My stomach just says it is getting too old. This one was ridiculous. They would swing you out over the canyon and if the cable broke (not that it would), you would basically fall a few thousand feet down to the Colorado River.

Kayla would ride with hands up. I swore to her to hold on so she didn’t fly out of the seat.

Ride the alpine coaster?  Sure!  Always fun.  Can’t use your phone on the ride so I just took one shot on the climb back to the start.

Another shot of the valley below.  Facing west.  That is I-70 winding its way out.

Kim rode the sweet zip ride.  They put you in the chair and back you up the mountain and let you fly back down.

After our time in Glenwood Springs, we headed further west to meet up with Tim, a friend, who lives in Grand Junction. It was pretty out there. Not such a fun place in the summer. First time we turned on the A/C in the RV to cool it down for the night. We decided to go with urban indoor adventures for the day. Here is a compilation Tim put together of the events.

To escape the heat, Tim took us up on the Grand Mesa. It sits at 10,000 feet so it was 40 degrees cooler than Grand Junction just 30 miles down below. It is the largest flattop mountain in the world. You drive up on top and it unveils a big forest with tons of lakes. So we got out the toys and played in the water. Tim made us a small video.

“I going to get one of these”, says Tim.

Cooper came along in the RV.  Our dogs didn’t come on the trip so it was fun to have a surrogate 4 legged friend for the day.

Nature’s TV trays for holding your lunch.

Sydney likes the board.  We didn’t have these when we were kids.  We had black intertubes.  Your butt would have been cold.

Later at dinner, Sydney believed she found good luck when her knife could pick up her spoon.

Before we headed out, Tim took us out to the desert to shoot guns. First time shooting a rifle. That was a kick.

Thanks the for the visit, Tim. It was good to see how they live on the Western Slope.

We even finished the ride by stopping at Gringo’s for some nourishment.

I had fun with you, buddy!

I usually try and hit one 14er each summer with the kids. Reagan somehow got it in her head when we did Elbert that she needed to do Massive next. I wasn’t too pumped because Massive is long and sort of boring. But that would complete her local Leadville 14ers so that made some sense. I then remembered that a lot of runners like to descend the southwest side during Nolan’s attempts. I had never been over there so I cracked open the Roach book and realized this was a better option. Less trail. Fewer miles. The kids are slow at that stuff because they only move one speed.

The weather all week sucked. Thunderstorms every day. I kept watching because we had the luxury of going when we wanted and there is nothing worse than aborting an attempt with kids. So suddenly a window opened for today and we went for it. Even though the trailhead is close, we were still up at 5. Left around 6:15. Hiking by 7 AM.

I chose to take Roach’s advice and park at the junction of the 4WD road. However, I quickly discovered that next 1/2 mile is easily covered in the truck. The road is single lane but nice and wide. Just some rock inclines. Then plenty of parking at the trailhead. Noted for next time.

It had rained the night prior and the low clouds were still hanging when we left for the trailhead. However, within minutes of starting up through the basin, we saw blue sky. It was going to be a good day.

The trail meanders through the basin for a bit then you hit the big right turn to head up to the Massive ridge. The books said it was possible to miss but I found it pretty easy. There are no other right turns before this. It is pretty obvious right at the end of the clearing. Marked with a cairn and a sign as well.

Then you just go up. The footing is good. Better than say, Sherman. Sort of back of Hope Pass switchback-ish at times. We just kept at it. The kids were having a good time but struggling a bit here or there. No training leading up to this so this was the speed for the day.

We kept at it for a few hours and hit the ridge. I knew things would be easy going from there. You just wind along it searching for the high point which is a bit of a distance north on the ridge. We were all alone on the summit. Stayed for maybe 20 minutes and headed out. The clouds were building and the kids are slow on the down so I wanted as much time as possible. Ended up just being a sprinkle with no thunderstorms or danger on the descent.

Overall, a great day and a successful summit. I was glad to help the kids check another one off their list. I will be excited when we get to do one that is new to me someday so we get to increase our totals together.

My Garmin watch was dead today so I just used the Strava iPhone app for the distance. It overshot according to everything out there. The sign at the trailhead said 3.4 mi (I think) to the summit.

The girls make their own videos for their YouTube channel. So I got out of that job!

Here is the story in pictures…

There was an Army helicopter crash near the trailhead in 2009.  Many in Leadville remember it because it occurred just days before the Leadville 100 that year and a portion of the course was closed to the public to work the crash scene.  The race was re-routed that year and has never returned to the original course.

A shot of me just ahead of the girls.  You can usually spot Reagan in the pink shirt pretty easily.  That furthest mountain in the upper left is Mount Elbert, tallest in Colorado.  Mount Massive is number 2 by only 12 feet.

We started down in that valley floor along the creek.  You might see if it you zoom in.  Here we are just working our way up 3000 vertical feet of hillside.  Sometimes rock, sometimes grassy.

Getting up pretty high now.  Somewhere in the 13,000′ range.  Starting to see the peaks to the west.  Lots of good 13ers out there that are not as climbable as our 14ers.

Random pano from the saddle on the summit.  Massive has five 14,000+ peaks on this ridge.  We are just hitting the highest as that is considered the summit.

Here we are!  I didn’t realize Reagan was laughing.  Wish we had another shot.

Sydney wanted to be the 2nd highest person in Colorado so she stood on the rock.  We laughed that a bird had done his business on it.

My two climbing girls.  Been doing it with me since they were 7 years old.  Kayla, your turn next time.

Here we are coming across the ridge just off the summit.  The top of a mountain is a weird place.  Doesn’t look like I ever expected they would.

Ozzy and I were just chilling out on the descent waiting for the slow talkative girls to catch up.

This is a cool rock formation on the descent.  I was sort of queasy watching Sydney climb up there.  Although the space was huge and not at all scary.

Until next time.

Our friend, Barbara, had finished up massage school in the area and now has her own practice. So she came out to the lake and gave Kim and I a session RV-side. Not bad. People drove by yelling “me next” the whole time.

Ozzy patrolled the lake for 2 days.  He wanted to say longer.

I could have.  I guess.  It was such hard work.

Luna agreed.

But it was getting to the end.  This was our nightly ritual.  Getting everyone into their own bed.   We have to setup and tear them down each night.  Takes a few minutes but we have the hang of it now.

Kayla has the toughest job.  She gets all 3 dogs in her bed.

But it was finally time to head home.  We had a full day of driving ahead.  Everyone was tired. This is where the RV makes sense.  Kayla curls up with a dog on the couch and watches movies the whole drive.

Luna sleeps right between the driver and passenger chair.  The floor is sort of hot there from the engine but she likes it.

Lizzy just takes up the whole place.

And after some crazy driving, we pulled in at home around 1 AM and traded our mobile home for our real home. Until next time.