Trevor knew I would love Durango, and he was right. What a fantastic city for so many reasons. We had the good fortune of scheduling a house and pet sit here for about 5 weeks. What a wonderful time it was for so many reasons, not least of which was a lovely home and the smartest and sweetest dog. As it happened, the Animas River that flows through the city had been a bit high. During our stay there were several more bouts of heavy rain. Tricky for dog walking and hiking, but it was interesting to see the change in the river over this period – from flood stage to clear and clean and back to flood.
We happened to be in a neighborhood with easy access to the Animas River Trail. I don’t know how long it is in full, but it was a 2.5 mile walk to the Saturday Farmer’s Market. I think I only missed one Saturday. Quite a jump start for a plan of walking for exercise. Great river views and a frequent change to see the Durango-Silverton train though we never got a photo. Beautiful plants and cool wildlife including a change to watch an eagle chow down on a fish. That was a wild caught fish as the Fish Hatchery along the trail has nets protecting their tanks.
I now miss that Farmer’s Market. Trev was thrilled to find a booth roasting green chilis. I found booths selling goat milk cheese as well as soap and lotion. And I admittedly developed an addiction to Ginger and Turmeric cookies from a local (and miraculous) baker. One Saturday a month they actually hold the market on a blocked off city street for blocks. Live music, many more vendors, and community outreach by the City from police, utility, and other departments.
Our timing was also pretty phenomenal for feeding my fiber (of the textile kind) habit. The Mountain and Valley Fiber Festival was held the second weekend and I signed up for a class to learn Navajo Spinning. We also kitted ourselves out with lightweight hiking shoes and for me a needed and much used raincoat at a local outdoor store. We put that gear to use on many hikes in the area and towards Silverton, which I’ll post about separately.
In everything we did from shopping to walking to wandering to eating out, one thing really stood out. People here are so incredibly kind. Maybe it is because they live in a beautiful place. Maybe it is because everyone seems to always be out walking, biking and exercising and endorphins are the difference. It was a visit I won’t forget and is easily a city we would return to.
