We headed north up to Walsenburg then West over the North La Veta Pass to Alamosa and the Great Sand Dunes National Monument. This is such a sureal sight to behold. We saw these absolutely striking purple flowers called Desert Phacelias just outside of the monument. I got some really great shots of them upclose and my favorite one with the dunes in the background was breathtaking. But unfortunately I woke up with a pounding migraine that morning only later to discover I had a severe sinus infection. I took some tylenol and motrine in hopes it would bay the pounding. Then we traveled over the pass and my ears wouldn't ever pop. I tried drinking water and chewing gum but to no avail. The remaining drive to the dunes I attempted to nap and rest hoping they would finally pop when we got to lower altitude. We entered the park and 
decided to visit their new visitor's center and check out the video after a much needed RR break. We watched the movie, took some shots out on the back observation deck, and sat and watched the specks of people climb up the dunes like little ants before we headed back to the car to drive around to the dunes entry parking area. On the way back to the car I felt nausiated and very dizzy. I slowly kept walking toward the car and felt like I was going to pass out once I was setting. I thought it might be due to the fact we only snacked for breakfast so we fixed some sandwiches and the nausia subsided a little. 
After reaching the dune entry parking area, I just didn't feel right. I was light headed and jittery and the temperatures where starting to raise above 85 outside already and it was only 10:30am. I was concerned that I was getting heat exhaustion or something. So since we only planned to stay an hour more there we decided to continue on our scenic drive around the west side. Our next stop was near Buena Vista to consider taking a short canoe or rafting tour of the Arkansas Headwaters SP. And then up to Florissant where we wanted to visit the fossil beds national monument. We made it to "Noah's Ark" but decided not to chance it since I was still feeling very ill. So we stopped for a short break to stretch and I got some photos of a small part of the river we wanted to raft down. We caught some people kiyaking down that afternoon. So we where off again heading eastward to head over to Florissant. I was starting to get so out of it I kept falling asleep. And since I'm the navigator, the pilot got turned around and we ended up in Cripple Creek and then Victor instead. Not sure how that happened, but my family picked on 
David the rest of our Colorado time saying he got us there because he wanted to play the slots or cards and win some money. If you know my hubby, he's anything but a gambler. lol So after a stop at the local post office and a Real Estate Office David got more detailed directions to get us back on track and on our way to Colorado Springs. I mostly slept from the dunes until we pulled up at my Aunt's house and I was sent straight to bed. Over the next 20 hours I was forced to drink more water then I can image and almost passed out twice in the middle of the night trying to head to the RR. The next day I requested to be taken to the clinic and be seen so we 
could find out why i was so sick. I had spiked a fever several times and my head was so stuffed up and pounding that light and sound was amplified like I was stuck in a fog horn. I was so impressed with the clinic staff though. They where very friendly and encouraging. I did have some waiting, but I only had to sign a few papers. A registrar secretary asked me a few questions and looked at my drivers license and that was it for the paperwork. I was in shock that I didn't have 9o million papers to fill out like back home. David had even called their switchboard operator to get directions and find out if they would even take me and she was so friendly and nice. She gave him easy directions and even came out to the waiting room to see if we had made it okay and offered to get us some coffee and hot tea as we waited. I'm sorry, but I've never seen anything like that happen in a texas clinic. Here they are usually so backlogged, you have to wait atleast two hours or so and the staff is almost always so busy they seem cranky. Anyway after waiting about 30 minutes, signing a few papers, getting my vitals at a nurses station they where ready to take me to an exam room. We where in the room for about 20 minutes (I fell asleep waiting). The doctor came in and took a look at my ears and nose and said "yep, you must be feeling miserable." He told us that my ustasion tubes where blocked hense the pounding pain, and I had a severe sinus infection. And I should stop putting sticks up my nose. he waited for a laugh, but I just staired at him. "You are feel bad. No laugh." So he told me what he wanted me to do. Take the antibiotics as prescribed and the vicadine for the pain and use the nasial spray twice a day to clear it all out. And also drink as much water as I can get my hands on. He didn't mention altitude sickness, but my symptoms indicated I was suffering from that as well. So we where off to get the meds and them back to my Aunts house for rest and healing time. Over the next two and a half days all I did was drink water, take meds, eat soap, sleep, and go to the RR. I felt like the undead. David was a very attentive nurse and I know my 
Aunt was barking instructions to keep him on top of things, (she works at a hospital, so she always knows what to do in sickly situations). Thursday evening rolled around and I just had to get out of that bed and head upstairs. I really hadn't even said hello to everyone yet. My folks arrived and we had a light dinner of chicken and veggies. I wasn't hungry, but was mother henned into eating anyway. I went to bed very early and to my surprise I slept through the night. I woke up on Friday with a pounding headache, but the ear pain was subsiding and I could breathe through one side of my face. By lunch I had to get out of bed and cleaned up. Now I was starting to feel human again. The family reunion was the next day and I didn't want to miss it this time. So after drinking about two gallons of water and resting/lounging around the rest of Friday I was starting to feel much better. Saturday, Day 7 was a better day. More about that day in a later post. This final photo was taken in my Aunt's greenroom of her "mother's tonge" plant that was in bloom. To catch one of these blooming is a rarity. My mom wanted this picture. The blooms remind me of honeysuckles. Day 3,4,5,&6 Sand Dunes and Arkansas River photos, traveling more mountain roads then I remember, sleeping most of the driven 355 miles, Getting lost and ending up in Cripple Creek & Victor, countless bug splats, a trip to the emergency clinic, more meds taken then I care to keep track of, and countless gallons of water drunk by all three of us.
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