Unlike my last post, I am not writing about Colorado from Colorado. I am back home, sitting on my couch in my boxer shorts. From here, the beaver ponds up on the mountain are but a very pleasant memory. I wanted to share some other highlights of our trip...
I tend to love taking a drive. Often I do this solo. I took a drive up to the Loveland Pass.
For many years this was the way you got over the mountain. It is a twisty road that climbs many thousand feet. Interstate 70 now by-passes this route via a tunnel about 2000 feet lower. It cuts right through the mountain making for a straighter and gentler grade to climb.
The road signs really do tell the truth.
The scary thing about this road is that all hazardous materials travel this road instead of going through the tunnel. I passed many tanker trucks, propane trucks, and even a radio active waste carrier. I guess if one of them crashes here the damage is more contained than out on I70.
See that beautiful white snow? Up close it is really dirty and full of grime that falls from the sky.
The lakes all look very inviting. They are about 35 degrees however. It gets so cold up here, even the fish do not survive in these lakes.
If you have a motorcycle, you might want to put the Loveland Pass on your list. It would be a blast to take a spin on.
While in Colorado we wanted to hit some hot springs. We went to Glenwood Springs to fill the need. This is a very popular spot.
I never caught what the properties of the water are.
Sulfur is the key to what ever it cures. The water smells heavily of sulfur and for days I could smell it on my skin.
The pool looks very much like a Victorian spa. I kept looking for women in their bathing costumes. Instead I saw a lot of girls in bathing suits, way too small for their abundance.
Iron Mountain frames the town of Glenwood Springs. It is a surreal shade of crimson.
A type of algae thrives in the sulfur rich waters. They mark the lanes in the lap area by removing the algae. I found this a very cool effect.
Glenwood Springs was home to Doc Holliday. I liked the sign. The crowd was straight out of somewhere else USA.
If you look really carefully, you will see some structures on the top of this mountain. This is the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park. It is the highest in elevation amusement park in the world. To get to it you take a high speed gondola up.
The roller coaster was not the scariest, fastest, or most death defying. It was however the highest one in elevation.
The worlds highest swings. They were really awesome since they swung out over a 1500 foot drop to where that first photo was taken.
Right next to our hotel was a Sante Fe Northern Burlington work yard. I was captivated by many pieces of equipment stored there. My camera was more curious than me...
Glenwood Springs has many neon signs. Overall the West still has a lot of neon. I love neon. It draws me in unlike the plastic film, back lit ones most people use today.
I wish I had more to say. I think the photos say a great deal about the majestic beauty of Colorado. I really love this state. It is running a very hard second in the place I want to spend the last half of my life.
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