I flew the one and a bit hours from Sioux Falls to Denver and met up with the daughter who had flown in from New York City.
After a very efficient organisation of a rental car, a Nissan Murano, we took the short drive to Colorado Springs and the Garden of the Gods.
This park is popular for hiking, rock climbing, biking, and horseback riding.
It attracts more than 2 million visitors a year.
The following Pleistocene Ice Age resulted in erosion and glaciation of the rock, creating the present formations.
After driving the circuit, we walked and climbed for a couple hours through this amazing landscape.
Here is my YouTube video.
Later that afternoon we found our comfortable suburban Airbnb easily.
Dinner at Shuga’s Restaurant and Bar was excellent despite a particularly grumpy server and my CC not working.
A later call to my bank in Australia established that a block had been put on it due to a suspicious transaction ie. Brookings Health System 🙄.
They promised to unblock it within the hour.
Day 2
Next morning, after a good coffee in town, we were in line at the gate at the 9am opening time for the drive up to Pikes Peak, height 4,302m (14,115ft).
The drive started off fairly easily but as we progressed the road got steeper, narrower and extremely winding.
The switchbacks had no safety railings and the drop offs were a little confronting.
It became obvious as we climbed that we were not at all height acclimatised.
At 6000ft Denver/Colorado Springs had not been a problem.
But for us above 8000ft altitude sickness became a reality.
It presented itself as a woozy head and some difficulty walking in a straight line.
Despite that, we managed to eat one of their famous donuts which were pretty yummy and walk (stagger?) the circuit of the summit in below freezing temperatures.
You can see five states from the top on a clear day and that is what we got.
Then we had to really gird our loins for a safe trip back down.
Concentration plus a low speed was the name of the game.
We were supposed to engage low gear all the way to the mid point but the Nissan’s low gear was not as low as some and we had to apply the brakes more than we should have.
At the mid point ranger station our brake temperature test was 500°F, way above the required 300°F, so we were sent to the ‘naughty’ car park for 30 minutes too let things cool down before completing the descent.
We were not the only ones there.
Then it was a long but beautiful drive to Montrose with the scenery changing dramatically each hour from expansive plains with snowy mountain backdrops to steep pine covered mountain passes and lakes and rivers surrounded by bare mesas and buttes.
Another CC refusal at a gas station along the way😡.
Another call to my bank later that evening finally sorted out the situation. Really annoying when you advise your bank of your travel plans before leaving home.
Always have a stash of cash is the lesson learnt.
Another nice suburban Airbnb in Montrose and dinner around the corner at the Horse Fly Brewing Company was excellent.
Next day would be the Black Canyon of the Gunnison River.
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