Saturday April 19 continued. My girlfriend Melissa's daughter Madison lives in Reno with her boyfriend Jason. Melissa visits them around Earth Day every year. I timed my trip to coincide with hers. Since Madison and Jason don't have a spare bedroom, Melissa and I would be staying at Circus Circus Reno. There was an Earth Day festival going on in Idlewild Park across the street from Madison and Jason's, and attendees filled up all available parking spaces, so I went directly to Circus Circus. Got there at 11:50, parked in their garage, and went to the registration desk to make sure I didn't need a permit to avoid a ticket or towing. (I didn't; there is lots of free parking in Reno.) At noon I left on foot, walking along the Truckee River...


...and arrived at Madison and Jason's around 12:45. Jason was at work, so the other three of us walked around the festival for a while. Then we went with their dog Basil to Revision Brewing in nearby Sparks (it also has a location in Reno) and tried:

Me, Basil, and Melissa.


There had been a highly rated brewery nearby called IMBĪB, but it had closed less than two months earlier.

A little after 3:00 Madison dropped us off at the hotel. When I'd been there at noon and it was empty they told me that I could've checked in, but there would be a $28 charge for early check-in. Now there was a long line of tourists checking in. It took about a half hour before it was our turn. We put our stuff in our room and relaxed a bit. Then Madison and Jason picked us up and we went for all-you-can-eat (AYCE) sushi at OA Sushi (there are several AYCE sushi places in Reno). I was so involved with ordering and eating that I forgot to take photos. Jason and I put away a lot of delicious sushi.

Then we all went to Lead Dog Brewing, whose beers are brewed at Revision, and ordered:

Melissa, old guy, Jason, and Madison.


Afterward they dropped us off at the hotel.


Sunday April 20. Melissa and I left around 7:00ish and stopped at a place called Maverik, where she got coffee and I filled the vehicle with gas, which was a dollar cheaper here than in California, but still a dollar higher than in most other places. Then we went to Madison and Jason's, and the four of us went to Lake Tahoe on a gorgeous sunny day.


A little after 9:00 we arrived at Sand Harbor State Park, which provides a walking trail alongside Lake Tahoe.

Interesting tree.
I see a face in this.
The pinecones were enormous.


When we left the park at 10:50 there was a long line of cars waiting to get in. We drove along the north side of Lake Tahoe to Olympic Valley (which used to be called Squaw Valley until it was renamed in 2022). There is a resort there called Olympic Village, which hosted the 1960 Olympics.

Panoramic shot.


We had lunch at Rockers. Jason ordered a lager that I actually liked. Madison's pancakes were huge. The food was very good.


There is an aerial tram that goes up the mountain. Tickets are $74 for a one-way 9-minute ride (you can then ride or ski down for free), but since Jason works in the village, he was able to get us free tickets. There were some nice views on the way up.


At the top there is a museum, a restaurant, and some nice views.

Original rings from the 1960 Olympics.


Then we rode the tram down...


...and went north to Donner Memorial State Park, which has a museum with information about the famous Donner Party. We walked to Donner Lake.


Then we returned to Madison and Jason's. Melissa and I went to the hotel to shower and rest a bit, then around 6:15 they came with their friend Abby to pick us up and go to dinner at Fox Restaurant & Brewery's Reno location (there is also one in Carson City). The brewery has a marginal rating so my beer expectations were low. We tried:

So, as expected, the beers were so-so, but the food and company were great.


The five of us returned to Madison and Jason's, walked across the street to Idlewild Park, and got stoned (it was 4/20 after all). Then Madison dropped Melissa and me off at the hotel.


Monday April 21. Woke up around 2:00 and couldn't get back to sleep, which was just as well as I hadn't updated this page in two days and I would be leaving early.

We left the room a little before 7:00 and got lost finding the garage where we had parked, as the maze of floors and corridors was confusing. I dropped her off at Madison and Jason's at 7:15 and headed east for 516 miles on Route 80. Once I got about a half hour out of Reno there was virtually nothing but desert and mountains all the way to Salt Lake City.


There were also some salt flats. The first photo is from Nevada and the second is from Utah.


It took 6½ hours to get to Epic Brewing. I lost an hour due to the time zone change so I arrived at 2:50. Epic has a "tapless taproom", where everything is poured from a can or bottle, because Utah law prohibits having beer over 5% ABV on draught, and everything Epic makes is over 5%. The taproom is Salt Lake City's smallest bar. I got samples of:


Less than a mile away is Templin Family Brewing, which opened in 2018. I arrived just after 3:30. Unlike Epic, this place doesn't serve samples from bottles/cans; you have to commit to a whole one. So I got a can of:


Checked into a Quality Inn in nearby Midvale and walked...


...to 2 Row Brewing. As with Templin, no samples were offered from bottles/cans, so I paid $17 (plus tax and tip) for a can of:


Around 6:00 there was an influx of people. Some played cornhole and others played a variety of games.


Walked back to the motel, crashed a little after 8:30, woke up around 11:00, got up an hour later, took an edible, and wrote for a while.


Tuesday April 22. Stopped writing at 2:30 AM and tried to get back to sleep. Dozed for several hours but not sure I slept. Got out of bed at 6:30 and left at 7:10. The drive across Utah was a mixture of desert and flat-topped mountains.


Got to Canyonlands National Park at 10:30. There were only a handful of vehicles waiting to get in. My first stop in this park was Shafer Trail Viewpoint.


Next was Mesa Arch.


Then the Buck Canyon overlook.


Got to the Grand View Point trailhead a bit after noon, which is the worst time of day to go to any popular spot because that's when parking lots fill up. Sure enough, every spot was taken, but I was able to find space in the dirt. Spent about an hour on this trail.


Got to the Upheaval Dome trailhead at 1:45 and hiked to the dome and back in 45 minutes.


Here are a few more Canyonlands photos.


Left the Upheaval Dome trailhead and drove to Arches National Park. Cell service was spotty so it was fortunate that I'd printed out directions. Arrived shortly before 3:30. Had to use a timed entry pass because this park is so popular. Got to the Devil's Garden trailhead at 4:00 and there were a lot of people there. The trail is challenging, with lots of hiking up and down rocks. There's lots of nice scenery.


Here is Landscape Arch.


Here is Double O Arch.


Here is Partition Arch.


Some more photos from the trail:


Got back to my vehicle at 6:10 and snapped this:


On my way out of the park I pulled over for this:


Checked into the Adventure Inn Moab at 6:50. Unpacked, showered, and wrote. I was pretty tired.


Wednesday April 23. Woke up at 3:00 and left at 6:35. Went back to Arches National Park. When I arrived at 6:45 they were already taking entrance fees (most of the national parks I've been to don't start charging until 7:00). Stopped along the road to take several photos.


When I got to the Delicate Arch trailhead there were already about 100 vehicles there. Hiked...


...up to Delicate Arch.


One section of the trail is a steep rock face.


There are some petroglyphs.


Returned to my vehicle and drove to the Windows section at 9:25.

Turret Arch.


South Window.


North Window.


North Window.


Double Arch.


Had to take this photo.


Then I went to Balanced Rock.


The final area I went to is called Park Avenue.


Made it back to the visitor center at 11:00. Uploaded my photos (there was no cell service in most other parts of the park), changed clothes, hit the restroom, and left at 11:35. Most of the drive through Utah was plains. When I crossed into Colorado there were more mountains.


Got to Casey Brewing & Blending at 2:20. It started operations in 2014 and has been at this location since 2019. Everything I tried was good, although the farmhouse ales were a bit too sour for me.


Driving out of Glenwood Springs the road was surrounded by mountains.


Arrived at Outer Range Brewing at 4:30 and sampled:

View from the upstairs balcony.


Met my cousin Bob, who I hadn't seen in 40+ years, at a place called Vinny's in Frisco. Some friends of his were having a birthday celebration, and we hung out with them for a few hours.


Then we went to nearby Ollie's Pub & Grub and shared memories and what's been going on in our lives.

Bob and me.


I followed Bob to his place in Keystone and crashed there a little after 10:00.


Thursday April 24. Woke up sometime between 3:00 and 4:00, and got up about an hour later. Had breakfast with Bob and headed out at 9:00. It was a beautiful sunny day. The first part of my drive was on winding roads surrounded by snow-covered mountains (I was at over 9000 feet). The road actually climbed higher before it descended, with the temperature dropping to 36 degrees.


Arrived at Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre at 10:00. There is a loop trail that begins and ends at a building called the Trading Post, but the parking lot was full (apparently it's a very popular place). However, there is a road that leads to the amphitheatre, so I went up there. They were setting up for a show that would take place later in the day and they had the bottom section roped off, so I couldn't go all the way down to the stage to take photos from there.


I would be hitting many breweries before I stopped driving for the day, so I would get no more than 4 ounces of beer at each.

Drove to New Image Brewing, which has two taprooms just outside Denver. The one in Wheat Ridge opened an hour earlier so I got there at 11:00. They had some highly rated high octane BBA stouts that I wanted to try, but I passed them up because I was driving, so instead I got:


Went into Denver and stopped at Crooked Stave Brewing, which I'd visited in 2018 when it was at a food hall called The Source. It left there at the end of 2019 and moved to its original taproom a few weeks later. I got there before it opened at noon and sampled:


Stopped at TRVE Brewing, which I had been to in 2018 (it also has a taproom in Asheville NC). The smallest pour this place serves is 10 ounces, none of their beers were highly rated, and even their table beer cost $10, so I didn't drink anything here. I did take some photos though.


Next I went to Cerebral Brewing, which has two locations with another to open sometime this year (2025). I went to the one in Congress Park at 1:00 and tried:


One wall is papered with pages from old textbooks (similar to the Modern Times taproom).


Then I went to Cerebral Brewing's Aurora Arts location, arriving 20 minutes before it opened at 2:00. I thought I'd give one of their sours a try since it had a good rating.


Stopped at Cohesion Brewing a little after 2:30. All this place makes is Czech lagers. I got:


At 3:15 I arrived at Burns Family Artisan Ales, which used to have another location called the BarrelHouse until it closed in September 2024. I was here in 2018 when it was a corn-based brewery called Dos Luces. Burns has been in business since 2018 and opened this location in 2023. It offers 2-ounce tasters, so I got:


A few doors down is Monolith Brewing, which opened within a week of its neighbor Burns. I was here in 2018 when it was another brewery called Black Project. Arrived at 3:30 and sampled:

Belgian feather bowling.


Went to the River North Arts District, where there are several breweries walking distance from each other. Hotels there are expensive, so I stayed at an Airbnb, which was about half the price of the hotels, but still pricey: $162, the most I paid to stay anywhere on this trip, and by far the most I have ever paid for an Airbnb. Arrived at 4:10, brought in my stuff, and walked to Odell Brewing, arriving a little after 5:00. My friend Kevin, who lives south of Denver, met me here. Odell has a taproom in Fort Collins (where it was founded and I'd been in 2018) and two in Denver. It also has a winery in Fort Collins. We were at the Five Points Brewhouse. We had:

Me and Kevin.


Just down the street is Ratio Beerworks, which has two taprooms in Denver. We were at the RiNo location.


We got to River North Brewery, which also has two taprooms in Denver, at 6:23. We were at the Blake Street location.


At 7:05 we arrived at Black Shirt Brewing, which opened in 2012, and tried:


Then we went to Great Divide Brewing's RiNo Barrel Bar & Cellar, which I'd been to with Kevin in 2018. As of this writing Great Divide has 4 other locations with another on the way.


At 8:20 we arrived at our final brewery of the day: Brewdog, which is headquartered in Scotland. This location opened in 2024. We got:


14 breweries in one day. A record for me.

Kevin dropped me off at the Airbnb at 9:10 and I went to sleep shortly thereafter.


Friday April 25. Got up around 4:00 and wrote for several hours. Left at 10:10. It was cloudy, drizzly, and in the mid 40s, and would remain so all day. Stopped at a Trader Joe's in Boulder, which was very busy. Went to Avery Brewing, which I'd visited in 2018. Arrived a few minutes before it opened at 11:30 and tried:


Went out of my way to visit a highly rated brewery. Had to drive up a mountain to get there.


Arrived at Knotted Root Brewing shortly before it opened at 1:00. The people were friendly and the beer was good. My server gave me free samples of several beers in addition to the ones I ordered, so I tasted:

My server put my sticker on the side of the fridge.
They put this guy on one of their beer labels.


Bought a 4-pack of Blurry and Green, drove down the mountain, and arrived at Odd13 Brewing at 2:20. This place makes a beer that was my favorite at the 2018 GABF. I ordered it today and it was good, but not as great as it was 7 years earlier.


Got to Oskar Blues Brewery at 3:00. It has two locations, both of which I'd been to. I was at their taproom in Longmont.


Went to nearby Bearded Brewer Artisan Ales at 3:20 and tasted:


Also nearby is Left Hand Brewing, which has two locations in Longmont and one in Denver. Arrived at one of the Longmont locations at 3:50 and sampled:


Went up to Greeley, which is an ugly, smelly, industrial area with trains going through. Checked into the Rainbow Motel at 5:20 and walked in the drizzle to two breweries, both of which I'd visited in 2018. First I went to Wiley Roots Brewing. Got a bit lost on the way. Arrived at 6:15 and tried:


Then I visited WeldWerks Brewing at 7:15 and sampled:


Returned to the motel at 8:20 and crashed a little while later.


Continue to Segment 5 (South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, Ohio)