Entries about in review

Looking Back

2020:
Well, that was an interesting year.
There was some things that were new and crazy like the pandemic and my truck getting stolen and totaled. Meanwhile other things stayed the same just like any other year with camping, hiking, biking, running, volleyball, moving, and road trips.

Most activities this year was somehow affected by COVID related news, including working remotely for 41 weeks of the year. I had several concerts, events, and international travel cancelled. The trips would have been to Italy, Croatia, Austria, Canada, and the Cayman Islands.

However that allowed me to take more US based trips. I was able to check out a lot of National Parks included Rocky Mountain, Colorado Monument, Dinosaur Monument, Arches, Yellowstone, and Grand Tetons. Plus had the time to see a lot of family, friends, and enjoy hobbies (all at a distance of course).

Well, here's the review:

Activities

Things that happened in 2020:

Big Travels

• Egypt - February
• Israel - January
• North Macedonia - December
• Turkey - November

Quick Trips

• Arches National Park & Moab, Utah - June
• Ashley National Forest, Utah - May
• Crested Butte, Colorado - September
• Colorado Hiking - April
• Colorado Monument and Dinosaur Monument, Colorado - May
• Grand Tetons National Park, Wyoming - August
• Iowa - May and October
• Leadville and Lake Turquoise camping, Colorado - July
• Long Beach visit, California - June
• Montana camping - August
• Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming - August

Challenges

• 14er hike - Elbert
• 14er hike - Sherman
• 14er hike and FKKT - Shavano and Tabeguache
• Ultra run - Rocky Mountain Continental Divide Trail Loop

Events & other activities

• moved to downtown Denver - February
• had 4Runner stolen, along with all my camping and outdoor gear, to be found a week later totaled and trashed by drug addicts - August
• concerts: none
• races: none
• volleyball, biking, running, walking, hiking
• Denver Travel Show
• Prudence turned 3 - August

previous year reviews:

• 2019
• 2018
• 2017

Pictures

see more on Facebook Murk Travels albums

Links

MurkTravels Vimeo - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Youtube - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Facebook page - pictures, posts, and regular updates
MurkTravels Facebook photo albums
MurkTravels Instagram - my attempt at artistic travel images
MurkTravels Travel Map - all the places that I've been and the things that I've seen

Looking Back

2019: It's been another fun year, what else can I say. I continue to travel the world and experience awesome unique cultures. I also travel a bit around the US for work, family, camping, or other adventures. I continue to push myself with physical and mental challenges, as well as trying new potential hobbies and building up my skills.

This year was marked by a lot of newness. I have a new lady in my life, the lovely Sharon and her 9 year old Lucien (and Felix the cat). I got to witness a cousin get married and bring in a new family member. I met my brand new niece Cara, a newborn life from Renee and Matt Klein. I took dancing lessons, handgun safety classes, passed work certification tests, and had a first sailing based vacation. There was new tattoo work, new camping and hiking adventures, new add-ons to the 4Runner, a new home, a new pet, and new entertainment. I completed my first ski trip and successfully went down a mountain (a short green run, but didn't fall on one of the attempts, so I'll consider that a victory). Also met new co-workers, friends, and neighbors. Played some new board games, card games, and Xbox games.

I look forward to more of the same in 2020. Already have a trip planned to Israel. Hoping for others to either France, Morocco, Philippines, and around the US. I hope to continue to enjoy work, family, and life in general.

Activities

Things that happened in 2019:

Big Travels

• Japan : Tokyo - Kyoto - Osaka - Nagoya - Hakone
• Norway : Oslo and the Lofoten region (sailing)
• Sweden : Stockholm & Malmo
• Denmark : Copenhagen

Quick Trips

• Austin Texas - for a wedding
• Boston Massachusetts - for work training
• Chicago Illinois - for a concert weekend
• Colorado Sand Dunes National Park camping
• Des Moines Iowa - for family
• LA California - for Sharon's work training
• New Mexico - end of road trip to start the year

Challenges

• Leadville Trail marathon
• 14er hike - Gray's & Torrey's
• 14er hike - Blanca peak
• Intro to pistol and handgun safety classes
• Intro to Salsa, Bachata, and Zook dancing

Events & other activities

• Breckenridge retreat weekend
• Chicago Open festival : concert of Tool, System of a Down, Prodigy, Meshuggah, Gojira, and 9 other hard rock / heavy metal bands
• Denver concerts: Gojira, the Roots, Slipknot
• Denver RAW artists - support Gabby
• Denver Travel and Adventure show
• Elitch Gardens amusement parks
• Jury duty
• Movie on the Rocks (Red Rocks)
• new family: Cara and Chelsie
• volleyball leagues
• Ski trip to Eldora
• Universal Studios Hollywood amusement park
• Water World water parks
• work certification : Agile Product Owner

previous year reviews:

• 2018
• 2017

Pictures

see more on Facebook Murk Travels albums

Links

MurkTravels Vimeo - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Youtube - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Facebook page - pictures, posts, and regular updates
MurkTravels Facebook photo albums
MurkTravels Instagram - my attempt at artistic travel images
MurkTravels Travel Map - all the places that I've been and the things that I've seen

...better late than never

Looking Back

2018: What an exciting and fun packed year. It started out so refreshing as I removed some dead weight and things that were holding me back. I tried out so many new things as I start to look into what hobbies to get addicted to next: archery, mountain biking, long distance backpack camping ... I also kept up with the things that I already do a lot of: ultra races, day hikes, global trips, music, and going to lots of random events and festivals.

Plus there was adding new family members, having a fun work environment, catching up with friends, volleyball, puppy antics and so much random things. Check out the summary below and follow the links on some of them to more specifics.

Activities

Things that happened in 2018:

Big Travels

• Trip to Belize and Panama
• Trip to Colombia - Bogota, Medellin, and Cartagena

Quick Trips

• race near Charlotte, North Carolina
• wedding in Des Moines, Iowa
• work training in San Francisco, California
• road trip through Sante Fe and Roswell, New Mexico

Hiking 14ers

• Quandary
• Evans
• Bierstadt
• Longs Peak
• Other Colorado hikes

Ultraruns

• Ragnar Road and Ragnar Trail - Colorado and South Carolina
• Grand Traverse
• Cirque Series @ Arapahoe Basin

Festivals

• Hot air balloons
• Tiny homes
• Velorama bike and art
• Pug festival in Denver

Concerts

• Concert overview: A Perfect Circle, Brother Ali, Dan Auerbach, Dashboard Confessional, the Dreamers, Matt & Kim, Micky James, Reason the Citizen, the Regrettes, the Roots, Shannon and the Clams, Weathers, Welles

Life stuff

• Renting a new-old home in Denver
• Sold my home in Minnesota
• Growing puppy
• New tattoos

Looking Forward

I have a bunch of set plans already, but will also be providing you with some surprises throughout the year.

2019 Goals

Things I'm researching or planning for in 2019:

• Trip to Japan
• Trip to Canada
• More 14er hikes
• New vehicle
• New home
• New hobbies

previous year reviews:

• 2017

Links

MurkTravels Vimeo - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Youtube - videos of my trips & entertainment
MurkTravels Facebook page - pictures, posts, and regular updates
MurkTravels Facebook photo albums
MurkTravels Instagram - my attempted at artistic travel images
MurkTravels Travel Map - all the places that I've been and the things that I've seen