TUESDAY - When we left our campsite here at Cherry Creek State Park, outside of Denver, this morning we knew that our campsite for tonight would be at a much higher elevation.
I wasn't sure, but I suspected that our new location would set a new record for being our highest campsite to date. When we arrived and got all set up I checked the app on my phone and sure enough it's a new record, 8644'.
We are staying at Eleven Mile State Park for two nights. It's high up in the mountains outside of Colorado Springs.
They tell me it's named Eleven Mile State Park after the nearby Eleven Mile Canyon and the Eleven Mile Reservoir we can see out our back windows. They could just as easily justified the name Eleven Mile State Park because of the fact that it's 11-miles from the nearest paved road.
For 60-miles today we traveled south on I-25 with this view of the Rockies on our right.
Once we exited the Interstate we began our slow 3000' uphill climb on US-24.
Seeing the mountains straight ahead of us was pretty daunting.
The road had many turns as it snaked it's way up into the mountains.
These boulders looked unnatural, like some giant creature stacked them there.
Just 5-miles short of the turnoff to begin our 11-miles trek down the gravel road to our campsite, we scheduled a stop in the town of Florissant to visit another one of our National Monuments.
It will be our 52nd such visit to a National Monument!
FLORISSANT FOSSIL BEDS NATIONAL MONUMENT
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Inside the Visitor Center they had the obligatory gift shop, but they also had a very nice collection of fossils on display that had been found on the property.
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These fossil exhibits are among the most detailed fossils in the world.
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It's amazing to think these are 35-million years old.
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Some of these plant species don't even exist anymore.
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The other thing found here are numerous petrified Redwood stumps, some up to 14-feet wide.
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You're thinking Redwoods are only found in California, that would be true today. 35-million years ago Redwoods spanned the entire country and into Africa and Asia.
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This one is unique! It's a triple Redwood, three trees from one trunk.
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Nothing like this has been found anywhere else in the world.
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Today the trunks are strapped to keep them intact and under cover of a giant roof to protect them further from the harsh Colorado winters.
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If the straps weren't in place these stumps would just crumble to the ground.
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Looks like a storm is brewing in the direction we will be traveling.
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Time to hop into THE POD for a quick lunch and then head out before the rain starts.
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Also at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument are some historic buildings.
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This is the 1878 Hornbek Homestead which can be explored, but we were running out of time.
That storm looks to be 5-miles ahead of us and that's right where we turn for the campground.
Luckily the storm moved over to the other side of the reservoir from our campsite.
We are still getting a lot of wind, but so far no rain.
Now the rain is moving across the reservoir towards us. Get ready for a downpour!
WEDNESDAY - We've got a busy day planned for today.
We'll start our morning by going 80' underground and then after lunch ROVER will take us higher than he or we have ever been to the top of a famous 14,000'+ mountain.
Just a little teaser for what this afternoon will bring!
Sound like fun? Then read on!
We are on the 10:00AM tour, the first tour of the morning, to explore the Cave of the Winds in Manitou Springs, CO. It will be our 73rd such cave tour since hitting the road 7-1/2 years ago.
Ever wonder what happens to old broken snow skis? In Colorado they turn into colorful Adirondak Chairs of course.
CAVE OF THE WINDS
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Here we are following our tour guide into the cave through the White Tunnel.
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This cave has been giving tours since the 1890s, but not like the tour we did today.
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Nearly every cave has it's share of stalactites.
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These delicate formations on the ceiling are called helictites.
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It this room we saw a large variety of formations.
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The reason the formations on the floor look tilted is due to a mudslide thousands of years ago.
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These used to be joined as a column, so you can see how little the floor moved.
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At 8-feet this is the largest stalactite in the cave.
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Some of the passageways were tight, but I made it through unscathed.
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Here is a flow stone formation found in the cave.
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They hired a geologist to cut and polish it to show the many different layers inside.
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Outside we were shown the original entrance at the bottom of a large sinkhole.
After our tour we grabbed a quick lunch at the Canyon Rim Grill inside of the Gift Shop.
Since we had a few hours to kill before our next adventure starts we drove over to the Garden of the Gods Visitor Center and quickly signed up for a trolley tour tomorrow morning. We'll have to park ROVER and THE POD in their overflow parking lot while we do the tour, but that's OK because they have dedicated parking to accomplish just that.
At 1:00PM we have a Timed Entry Pass to drive to the top of the 14,115' summit of Pikes Peak.
PIKES PEAK SUMMIT SELF-DRIVE
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This sign hangs over the Entrance Station.
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The road started out simple enough with some gradual incline and soft curves.
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This roadside sign gave us a little chuckle.
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We were on this long straight section when Tricia spotted some movement in the woods. No it wasn't Big Foot, but it was a Big Moose.
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He was just off the road and inside the woods chowing down on a willow tree for lunch.
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We stayed for a few minutes, but then traffic began approaching us from both sides and they too stopped to watch the moose eating lunch. All thanks to Tricia's keen eye.
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That's not Pikes Peak, but it is a fairly tall mountain in front of us.
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Now we're making some progress getting up this mountain.
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I hope there aren't too many curves like this with no guardrails.
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That's a helipad for emergency evacuations on the right. I hope we won't be needed that today.
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They say there are 156 curves along this 19-mile highway. I believe them!
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We are now approaching that photo I showed you earlier.
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Yesterday and last night there was snow and ice covering the highway. It wasn't reopended until about an hour before we arrived today.
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Now we are above the treeline. Nothing but rocks from here to the top.
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We are almost there! Pikes Peak is the dark mountain in the shadow of the clouds.
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As we came around the last curve in the road the cog train tracks were in front of us.
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As luck would have it there was a train in the station when we arrived.
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With all the cloud cover there wouldn't be any of the famous long distance views today.
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When Tricia starting making snowballs I went inside the Visitor Station.
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How did that bird get way up here? A better question would be why? There's not much to eat up here.
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There it is! Pikes Peak Summit at 14,115' above sea level.
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With little warning the clouds rolled in and...
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...it began snowing up here on the peak.
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That means it's time to head back down the road before it gets closed again.
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A last farewell to Pikes Peak Summit.
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Since THE POD set a new record high this stop it's only fair that ROVER gets one too.
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RUT ROH, they're getting the snow plow ready to hit the road. Let's GO!
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Just as we were leaving another cog train was pulling into the station.
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Even 1000' below the summit we are still experiencing a little snowfall.
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Just to prove it, here are a few flakes on Tricia's fleece jacket.
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Clear blue skies in one direction and snow flurries come in from the opposite side.
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Watch your step! That's a pretty slippery slope in front of you.
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Now that we're back down to normal elevations we can see the fall colors of the aspen trees.
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All along the 19-mile long highway they have Mile Marker Signs with the elevation posted and sometimes mention the animals you might see along the route.
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This is the stretch where we saw the moose before, but lunch must have been over this time.
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Like the sign says, we are now leaving Pike National Forest...
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...and very unceremoniously we exit the Pikes Peak Highway.
Now that our trip up and down the Pikes Peak Highway is complete we noticed there was a lot of hail on the ground and a lot of water running over the streets in town.
We still have 40+ miles to drive before we reach the campground and all of a sudden when we were stopped at a red light the hail storm that the town had experienced earlier was back.
The car in front of us at the red light was covered with marble sized hail.
Even ROVER's warm hood was starting a collection of hail.
I hope that wolf is howling at someone who can put a stop to this bombardment.
When we arrived back at camp it didn't look like it had even rained here, but that didn't last long. We had barely made it into THE POD when this started happening right outside our windows.
Once it stopped hailing Tricia stepped outside and saw the leftovers from the storm.
Thirty minutes later it was as if nothing had happened, all the evidence had melted away.
Looking for our Visited States Map and Data? How about our State by State Bucket Lists or Visited Campgrounds List? If so, click on the sign below to be taken to our other website.
Inside the Visitor Center they had the obligatory gift shop, but they also had
These fossil exhibits are among the most detailed fossils in the world.
It's amazing to think these are 35-million years old.
Some of these plant species don't even exist anymore.
The other thing found here are numerous petrified Redwood stumps, some up to 14-feet wide.
You're thinking Redwoods are only found in California, that would be true today.
This one is unique! It's a triple Redwood, three trees from one trunk.
Nothing like this has been found anywhere else in the world.
Today the trunks are strapped to keep them intact and under cover of a giant roof
If the straps weren't in place these stumps would just crumble to the ground.
Looks like a storm is brewing in the direction we will be traveling.
Time to hop into THE POD for a quick lunch and then head out before the rain starts.
Also at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument are some historic buildings.
This is the 1878 Hornbek Homestead which can be explored, but we were running out of time.
Here we are following our tour guide into the cave through the White Tunnel.
This cave has been giving tours since the 1890s, but not like the tour we did today.
Nearly every cave has it's share of stalactites.
These delicate formations on the ceiling are called helictites.
It this room we saw a large variety of formations.
The reason the formations on the floor look tilted is due to a mudslide thousands of years ago.
These used to be joined as a column, so you can see how little the floor moved.
At 8-feet this is the largest stalactite in the cave.
Some of the passageways were tight, but I made it through unscathed.
Here is a flow stone formation found in the cave.
They hired a geologist to cut and polish it to show the many different layers inside.
Outside we were shown the original entrance at the bottom of a large sinkhole.
This sign hangs over the Entrance Station.
The road started out simple enough with some gradual incline and soft curves.
This roadside sign gave us a little chuckle.
We were on this long straight section when Tricia spotted some movement in the woods.
He was just off the road and inside the woods chowing down on a willow tree for lunch.
That's not Pikes Peak, but it is a fairly tall mountain in front of us.
Now we're making some progress getting up this mountain.
I hope there aren't too many curves like this with no guardrails.
That's a helipad for emergency evacuations on the right.
They say there are 156 curves along this 19-mile highway. I believe them!
We are now approaching that photo I showed you earlier.
Yesterday and last night there was snow and ice covering the highway.
Now we are above the treeline. Nothing but rocks from here to the top.
We are almost there! Pikes Peak is the dark mountain in the shadow of the clouds.
As we came around the last curve in the road the cog train tracks were in front of us.
As luck would have it there was a train in the station when we arrived.
With all the cloud cover there wouldn't be any of the famous long distance views today.
When Tricia starting making snowballs I went inside the Visitor Station.
How did that bird get way up here?
There it is! Pikes Peak Summit at 14,115' above sea level.
With little warning the clouds rolled in and...
A last farewell to Pikes Peak Summit.
Since THE POD set a new record high this stop it's only fair that ROVER gets one too.
RUT ROH, they're getting the snow plow ready to hit the road. Let's GO!
Just as we were leaving another cog train was pulling into the station.
Just to prove it, here are a few flakes on Tricia's fleece jacket.
Clear blue skies in one direction and snow flurries come in from the opposite side.
Watch your step! That's a pretty slippery slope in front of you.
Now that we're back down to normal elevations we can see the fall colors of the aspen trees.
All along the 19-mile long highway they have Mile Marker Signs with the elevation posted
This is the stretch where we saw the moose before, but lunch must have been over this time.
Like the sign says, we are now leaving Pike National Forest...
...and very unceremoniously we exit the Pikes Peak Highway.
