Category: Uncategorized

Back from camping but exhausted

I really think I am too old for camping. I enjoy it but I never sleep well.  The first night there was a lot of noise from dispersed campers (another post on that later), the second night we slept well, but last night a camper came in late at night (her dad and brother were already there but she came in separate car with canoe). We went to bed at 9:30 but they yacked by the campfire until 12 at least. If I hadn’t been in bed already I might have gone over and asked them to keep in down. Most campgrounds request quiet by 10 pm.

Anyhow, we had a good time catching up with my brother who is hiking the Colorado Trail. I am so happy to be sleeping in a regular bed tonight. The scenery was spectacular, but the weather was really unpredictable in the afternoon. That is typical for Colorado, however.

The picture is the view from our campsite, Lakeview Campground near Twin Lakes, Colorado.

I am getting my EasyJet refund!

Back in June I got notification from Norwegian Airlines that my round trip flight to London from Denver in the fall had been canceled. While they were encouraging people to apply for credits for future travel, I opted for a refund (it was buried in the e-mail at the bottom). They refunded me within a week.

Once I got notification about my flight cancellation with Norwegian, I immediately started working on getting a refund on an EasyJet flight I had booked for Barcelona to London. This proved to be a difficult task but after a lot of searching I found they had a Covid-19 Help Hub. Like Norwegian, they were pushing vouchers and discouraging refunds. But with some digging I found a refund request form. I filled it out and waited. After two weeks I had no response, so I filled out another one. Still no response. I knew calling EasyJet would be a difficult task. I had done that once in the past and it meant getting up super early as it wasn’t a 24-7 operation. So I decided to contact my credit card company. They told me they would give a conditional credit, but it was not guaranteed since it was a non-refundable flight. I pointed out that there was no way I could use this ticket (yes, this route is still being flown) and given the circumstances I felt it was a legitimate request due to pandemic.

Two days ago I finally got an e-mail from EasyJet saying they were processing my refund. I don’t know if this was because of my refund request or because of the action taken by my credit card company.

I have heard that other airlines such as British Airways are using shady tactics just like EasyJet to make it difficult to obtain a refund for American citizens, instead offering vouchers. Don’t give up! Since I first applied for my refund with EasyJet I noticed that they have changed the form and no longer have it up in the help hub. However, you might try this contact form.  Explain to them that as a US citizen you can no longer fly to Europe and request a refund. I believe they took the refund request form down because they probably got hit with a ton of requests and want to discourage people from asking for them. Don’t let that deter you.

On the trail again

Last Thursday, July 16, my oldest brother started hiking the 485 mile Colorado Trail. It’s part of the Continental Divide Trail (CDT), but not many people hike the entire CDT in one shot. It’s considered the most difficult of the 3 thru hikes in the US, which also include the Pacific Crest (PCT) and the Appalachian Trail (AT).

My brother did the PCT when he was 19 and 40 years later he did the AT. He had planned to hike the PCT again this year but then Covid-19 hit. (Hikers need to resupply and clean up at small towns along the route, and with the virus, many were closed down to hikers) So he decided on the CT instead. Colorado towns are open now so he’s keeping his fingers crossed than our numbers stay down and we don’t have any more closures. It should take him about 6 weeks. Younger hikers can easily hike it 4 weeks, but my brother is now north of 60.

He flew into Denver on Wednesday and we took him to the Waterton Canyon trailhead southwest of Denver on Thursday morning. He’s starting slow – 10ish miles a day – until he gets used to the altitude. We’ll see him in 2 weeks when we go camping at Twin Lakes. I had planned that camping trip back in January before I knew he was hiking. When he told me he was doing the CT, I remembered that the trail passed right by our campground. So we’ll bring him a resupply box and treat him to a beer and burger in Twin Lakes Village.

I’m following his progress on Garmin GPS upload. In Colorado cell service is pretty poor in the mountains so this is an essential tool for hikers. So far he appears to be on schedule.

Here are some pics from the sendoff:

  • AT tat on left and PCT on right!
  • 30 lbs now compared to 60 lb pack 40 years ago
  • Big horn sheep

My mourning dove family

A few weeks ago I noticed a mourning dove had moved into the empty robin’s nest on the second floor window ledge outside my son’s bedroom (he’s currently not living at home.) This nest was not used by the robins this year, but it was in great shape, only being a year old. It looks like the doves added a few pieces of straw to make it their own.

Anyhow, I never noticed any eggs as a dove is always sitting on the nest. That is quite different from finches and robins. I’ve had the chance to observe both of those birds and they usually spend some time away from the nest, unless it’s really cold.  Once the eggs hatch, the parents are busy getting food for the young birds.

So yesterday, I was surprised to catch a glimpse of the babies nestled safely under one of the parents. Another dove landed on the outside window ledge, started their characteristic dove cooing sound. The dove on the nest flew off and the other one hopped on. I counted about 3 babies before the parent fluffed up and covered them.

I can’t wait to see the babies once they’re a bit older. Their nesting habits are very interesting.