Colorado
After a whirlwind trip, we are home safe and sound. Wow, I cannot believe it has been four years since I had the idea to hit the road with my girls and explore the United States. With each year we have all grown bolder and more seasoned but, at the core, we simply love being together and sharing in this journey called life. I will cherish our time together, always. Thank you for taking the journey with us through words and pictures, and a heartfelt thanks to my husband for continually indulging our wanderlust. Herewith is my final blog entry -- the Centennial State, so nicknamed as Colorado was admitted to statehood during the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence!
With four national parks, fifty-eight 14,000-feet mountain peaks (more than any other state in the US and commonly referred to as "14ers"), 8 national monuments, 2 national recreation areas, and numerous other historic sites, forests, trails, wilderness areas and wildlife refuges, Colorado is a playground for nature lovers and outdoor enthusiasts. With so much to see and do, we had to narrow our interests to an aggressive, yet manageable, itinerary, which means that the southwestern part of the state will have to await another visit. That said, we still managed to explore three national parks and one national recreation area, and visit a few cities along the way. Here are the highlights.
Colorado Springs
Colorado Springs is the state’s second largest city and, although many towns and cities in Colorado were settled by miners and ranchers, Colorado Springs’ appeal was climate and culture. As such, there are many cultural institutions, but the main draw for us was its natural landmarks — Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods!
Pikes Peak
Pikes Peak may not be the tallest 14er (in fact, it’s Colorado’s 31st highest peak), but it is the most visited mountain in North America and the second most visited mountain in the world behind Japan’s Mount Fuji, forming a magnificent backdrop for Colorado Springs. Over a half million people reach the summit every year by highway, trail or the Pikes Peak Cog Railway. Our options were plentiful, but after so much driving and so many winding, twisting, single-lane roads, I was happy to sit back and take in the amazing scenery from the train! Traveling on the world’s highest cog train, we climbed the 14,115 feet to the top of Pikes Peak Mountain, passing streams, stands of trees and bighorn sheep along the way. The view from the summit was breathtaking, even if it was 40° and we all experienced a little altitude sickness. It made me realize why we weren’t permitted to take the Maunakea Summit tour on the Big Island — at 13,796 feet above sea level, there is an increased risk of altitude problems in children under 13 years of age — and Pikes Peak is even higher! Oh well, we survived and have amazing pictures to show for our efforts, including the one below.
And, here’s a bit of trivia for you — the lyrics to "America the Beautiful" were written by Katharine Lee Bates after an awe-inspiring trip to the top of Pikes Peak in 1893. I am sure this has been a Jeopardy question at some point and would be an excellent nugget during a dinner party!
Garden of the Gods
The 1,300-acre Garden of the Gods is a giant rock garden composed of spectacular red sandstone formations sculpted by rain and wind over millions of years. Believe it or not, it was once privately owned, but it was conveyed to the city of Colorado Springs on the condition that it remain free to the public. How cool is that?! We had a great time exploring the park with Sydney as our guide, climbing on the formations and simply taking in the beauty of the place. This was a real treat for the girls and we stayed past sunset, giving us an opportunity to take in one of the more popular sites — Balanced Rock - without the crowds.
Great Sand Dunes National Park
We bid a fond farewell to Colorado Springs and headed to Great Sand Dunes National Park. Recently elevated to a national park in 2004, the park contains the highest sand dunes in North America and provides stunning views in the shadow of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. Rather than bore you with the history of how the dunes were created, I will just say that the dunes are one big sandbox of epic proportions! We rented a special sled and headed for the hills, the girls having a blast as they zipped and rolled down the hills. It was a great time, but it took us two days to remove the sand from our bodies — wow! Worth it, though.
Salida
Salida is an adventure seeker’s paradise, with whitewater rafting and world class mountain biking at the top of the list. As we had been pushing ourselves for a few days, we were happy to skip the outdoor fun and enjoy a more relaxed pace, even taking in a movie (Inside Out is cute). After refueling and recharging, we were ready to hit the road again for a visit to Curecanti National Recreation Area and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.
Curecanti National Recreation Area | Morrow Point Boat Tour
One of the best ways to see the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is to take a boat tour on Morrow Point Reservoir, which is not technically in the national park, but part of the Curecanti National Recreation Area. The Morrow Point Boat Tour experience begins with a hike down Pine Creek Trail, which descends a series of 232 stairs to the canyon floor, followed by a 3/4 mile hike alongside the Gunnison River. The National Park Service recommends visitors leave the parking lot one hour before the tour but, alas, we hit traffic during our drive and so we were forced to make the trek in 20 minutes! Kudos to my girls, as they moved quickly and without complaint and we made it to the boat with a few minutes to spare. The boat tour takes you on a scenic journey along the upper reaches of Morrow Point Reservoir, past the steep rock walls of the canyon, beautiful Chipeta Falls and the historic Curecanti Needle. We learned a lot about the formation of the canyon, with Sydney even commenting that she had covered some of the information this past year in science class. Love it when the classroom and real life come together!
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
Following the Morrow Point Boat Tour, we continued on to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. The deep, narrow canyon is the product of two million years of work by the Gunnison River and the constant forces of weathering. Other canyons in America are longer or deeper, but no other combines the depth, narrowness, sheerness and somber countenance of the Black Canyon — plunging an awe-inspiring 2,700 feet to the Gunnison River below. Here’s a visual that will give you a sense for the depth and length of the canyon — "Imagine chiseling two parallel walls of hard gneiss and schist running the length of Manhattan and standing higher than two Empire State Buildings stacked atop one another." These great facts notwithstanding, the most interesting fact to me is that we nearly had the park to ourselves! It was late-afternoon when we visited and yet we came across less than 20 cars during our exploration. A little research revealed that Black Canyon of the Gunnison is one of the least visited national parks, with only 183,045 visitors in 2014. By comparison, Rocky Mountain National Park, which we also visited, had 3,434,751 visitors during the same time period. It’s a shame, as it truly is a natural wonder!
Crested Butte
Our tour of Colorado continued with a stop in Crested Butte — an old coal mining town that sits at the top of a long, broad valley with Mt. Crested Butte as its most visible landmark. Today, it’s an extreme-skiing mecca and a major mountain-biking center, but it’s also popular in summer as the landscape is beautiful and it has tons of small-town charm. We enjoyed exploring the area and sampling the food options, but didn’t stay long enough to enjoy summer fun on the slopes. Oh well, at least we have the memory of summer on the slopes in another ski town — Park City — to fill the void.
Denver
We bid a fond farewell to Crested Butte and hit the road for Denver. Google Maps estimated it would take us a little over four hours, but I was hoping to reduce that time by taking advantage of the fact that I had yet to come across a speed trap during our entire trip. Well, my luck ran out as I was pulled over by possibly the youngest and politest state trooper ever! Personally, I was willing to play along, as I thought my New York charm would get me off with a warning. No such luck, but I had to try as it worked last year in Grand Teton National Park! In spite of this setback, we made good time to Denver and after lots of driving and moving, it was nice to spend the final leg of our journey in the Mile High City, especially since we stayed at one of my favorite boutique hotel chains, Kimpton! You can’t help but love a hotel that offers a nightly family happy hour, trendy decor, a friendly staff and great accommodations, all at a reasonable price! Denver is a fun city. Here is a photo of the girls following a lively Independence Day happy hour that included face painting!
Rocky Mountain National Park
Our fifth and final national park took us to Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado’s most popular attraction. It was a stark contrast to the amount of tourists at Black Canyon, but certainly manageable and not overly crowded, especially considering that it was a holiday weekend. The main road, Trail Ridge Road, crosses the park, forming the highest continuous highway in North America, reaching heights of 12,000 feet. Along the route, we were able to view massive peaks, rugged canyons, flower-studded meadows and thundering waterfalls, all of which combined to offer a complete look at the beauty of the Rocky Mountains. We enjoyed the drive, as it afforded multiple picture-perfect vistas and encounters with wildlife. We also hiked a few trails and were rewarded with some beautiful and peaceful lake vistas and an adorable chipmunk who seemed to have posed just for us!
Closing Thoughts
The 59 National Parks of the United States represent an extraordinary variety of pristine natural environments at the scale of a continent, and I encourage each of you to visit and support our national parks — they are truly amazing! With any luck, I am hopeful that we can visit the national parks in Alaska next year, as well as my aunt and her family in Anchorage. Ambitious, yes, but much more compelling to me than Mississippi, Oklahoma, West Virginia and Nebraska (lovely states, all, just trying to prioritize)!
Okay, that's all for The Metz Girls Road Trip 2015! Have a happy and safe rest of summer, and hope to see you soon.