A Personal Amateur Photography Blog
Rising over 2000′ above the valley floor along the edge of the Uncompahgre Plateau, the Colorado National Monument provides amazing views along Rim Rock Drive.
This road clings to the edge of the cliff, often without guardrails, with precipitous drop offs all along the 24 mile drive.
It does however have numerous overlooks that provide commanding views.
Day 3 found us in the western end of Colorado, leaving the town of Cortez in the early morning light. Our primary destination was the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, but our route there took us past Telluride.
Colorado Highway 145 took us out of Cortez, and past the town of Dolores, along the Dolores River as it made it’s way up the canyon. The green hills and fields was a dramatic change from the deserts of Monument Valley, just a hundred miles or so behind us.
As we neared the summit of Lizard Head’s Pass, we went through the small town of Rico
The mountains become more dramatic the nearer we got to Telluride.
As we made the turn to go up the valley to Telluride we passed a field of deer.
Telluride is a very exclusive ski community (don’t even ask how much real estate costs in town). They have far less development than other famous ski towns in the west (Aspen, Vail, Jackson Hole), and they like it that way.
After a brief visit we continued on our way, passing more scenic valleys.
After another hour or so we reached the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, near Montrose, Colorado. It is so named because of the steep walls of the canyon prevent sunlight all but 33 minutes of the day in the steepest part.
The Painted Wall is over 2200′ of sheer cliff, the highest in Colorado. The Black Canyon of the Gunnison, while not a large park, is impressive.
Colorado is another of my favorite states. With it’s towering mountains and sunshine it is a majestic place.
Our visit starts with a 1948 Colorado map. Much like many of the western states Colorado was a very different place 70 + years ago. When this map was published there was less than 1.2 million Coloradans. Today it is nearing 6 million.
The state is filled with amazing natural wonders. The backside of the 1948 map details many of these.
Colorado however is not all mountainous. In fact the eastern 1/3, including Denver, is located on the high plains. It is most impressive where the plains reach the mountains, as in this scene where the newly completed Denver to Boulder Turnpike shows.
The turnpike was opened in 1951, just in time to make the cover of this 1953 map.
These photos from 2012 show a similar scene.
As we move into the 1960s the cover scene is Maroon Lake, near Aspen.
Founded as a mining camp for the Colorado Silver Boom, Aspen later found the real money was in snow – for skiing. Around the time this map came out Aspen was becoming a destination for the rich and famous, resulting in some of the most expensive real estate in the country. The photo below is representative of the wealth in Aspen, with a line of private jets at the airport – in the summer!
Buttermilk Mountain – where I learned to ski a lifetime ago, as part of a group trip with a bunch of people from Chicago. Nothing like being 22 years old, crashing down a mountain in the day and partying in Aspen at night. There were about 15 people in a house designed for 8, but it worked.
As you leave Aspen heading due east you cross Independence Pass. This pass is closed in the winter because of the heavy snow, but is beautiful in the summer.
Independence Pass – the treeline is very clearly in evidence here as you peak out at 12,095 feet – 3686 meters to my metric friends.
The mountain scenes continue in 1965 with Berthoud Pass. The pass is named for Edward Berthoud, the chief surveyor for the Colorado Central Railroad in the 1870s.
As with most roads through the mountains in Colorado, the routes were originally blazed by the railroads.
For 1966 and 1967 unidentified mountain scenes grace the cover.
It isn’t hard to find great mountain scenes in Colorado – this view is going up Mt Evans.
The mountain scenes continues throughout the 1960s and 1970s
All of the maps from this era featured the state symbols on the reverse side.
Colorado is known as the Centennial State, as it was admitted to the Union in 1876. The country’s bicentennial year in 1976 was more special for Colorado as the state celebrated it’s 100th anniversary.
The cover of this year’s map shows just how tough it was for those early travelers.
This view of Interstate 70 through Glenwood Canyon shows how much easier travel is today. This section of Interstate is known as an engineering marvel, it’s design took into consideration the flora and fauna, and natural surroundings, while providing a much needed transportation route through the mountains.
The late 1970s continued the mountain scenes.
Denver is featured in 1978. One of America’s great cities, Denver has a feel like no other – very young and energetic.
Union Station is a classic train station. It has been remodeled since these photos were taken in 2010.
Denver International Airport – the roof represents the mountains of Colorado.
Aspen is again featured in 1987.
For 1988 Garden of Gods is on the cover, with Pike’s Peak in the distance.
We made a stop at the Garden of the Gods in 2012…
In 2012 there were a number of very large forest fires impacting Colorado. On the afternoon we visited Garden of the Gods the first rain in weeks had just occurred, a huge thunderstorm that soaked everything. The entire state smelled of a campfire that had just been put out with water. Not only did it greatly aid in the forest fires, but it gave the wildlife a much needed drink.
Telluride is another ski town that has a number of tourists in the summer for the ranch life.
Coincidentally the next Colorado map in my collection is from 1997, and again features the area around Telluride.
Pawnee Buttes is featured in 1999. This geologic feature is not located in the mountains, rather it is located in far northeastern Colorado on the prairies.
The landscape is mostly flat, until you come across this area.
Rising out of the prairies are two 300′ high buttes.
The buttes are a result of erosion of the surrounding high plains.
Chautauqua Park in Bolder is on the 2002 cover. The Chautauqua society was an adult education movement from the late 1800s.
Boulder is home to the University of Colorado. Situated at the base of Boulder Mountain, it is a great little city with some impressive parks.
Interestingly there was a second edition map printed in 2002 featuring Lake Isabelle.
Mesa Verde National Park is the 2003 subject.
Mesa Verde is not only a national park, it is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. It has some of the best Ancestral Puebloan archaeological dwellings in the United States.
For thousands of years the area was inhabited by Paleo Indians. There are over 600 cliff dwellings in the park, including the one featured here – The Cliff Palace.
A visit in 2015 gave lots of photo ops at this amazing place.
Some people apparently can’t read….
In addition to the regular road map Colorado for a few years published an Educational Map, highlighting areas that can be used as a teaching opportunity for young people.
We had the opportunity to observe rafters on the Arkansas River during a trip on the Royal Gorge Scenic Railroad…
The Royal Gorge Bridge. Built as a tourist attraction in 1929 as the world’s highest bridge, suspended 955 feet above the river. It held this title until 2001.
It is still the highest bridge in the United States, although it is primarily a pedestrian bridge.
For much of the ‘teens’ the return to generic outdoor scenes returned.
Our last stop on this tour is Red Rocks Amphitheater. This natural bowl provides the perfect setting for concerts; numerous artists have recorded live albums here.
We had the opportunity to see the Blues Travelers here for a 4th of July concert.
Colorado – easily one of the 5 best states in the country to live, or visit.
This photography blog started out as a way to share some photos with friends, but after a number of years it has reached a milestone – posting number 1000!
To celebrate I give you my favorite 40 photos of all time. (I tried to make it less but could not)
Scottsbluff, Nebraska
Milwaukee sunrise
Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore, Michigan
Duluth, Minnesota thunderstorm
Yellowstone National Park – All Hail the Geyser Gods
Pagosa Springs, Colorado
Mendocino County, California
Cambridge, Ohio lumberjack contest
Cincinnati Renaissance Festival
Loudonville, Ohio – Native American Pow Wow
Alaska Peninsula
Columbus – Krampus
Chicago
New York City subway art
Cincinnati – Rosie the Riveter Contest
Lanai, Hawaii – Cat Sanctuary
Haleakala National Park, Hawaii
Waimea Canyon Park, Kauai, Hawaii
Columbus – Krampus V2
Washington DC – Embassy Day
Houston – Lucky Land
Amarillo, Texas – Cadillac Ranch
Cleveland – Parade the Circle
Columbus Zoo
Montreal
Olivos, Argentina
San Antonio De Areco, Argentina
Buenos Aires – Casa Rosada
Bariloche, Argentina
Buenos Aires – Retiro Train Station
Buenos Aires – Recoleta Cemetery
Los Glaciares National Park, Argentina
La Leona, Argentina
El Calafate, Argentina
Buenos Aires – Palacio Barolo
Igauzu Falls, Argentina
Over the last couple of years the cars have become frequent subjects in my photos. After 4 years of loyal service, and fantastic adventures, the Audi S5 was traded in.
This posting highlights the Audi’s trips it took us on.
First trip was to Western Ohio – and a giant fiberglass bull.
Most of the time the birthplace of Presidents are honored locales, but not for Rutherford B Hayes – his is a BP station in Delaware, Ohio.
A covered bridge in Fairfield County, Ohio – The car was not allowed to cross it, but we were.
Utopia has been found (along the Ohio River).
The settling of America – on the right is a famed S bridge of the original National Road. Overhead is US Route 40 – the main route west from the 1910s through the 1960s. A 1/2 mile to the left (not shown) is Interstate 70.
A riverboat in Cincinnati.
867 feet above the Audi the New River Gorge Bridge. They offer tours where they connect you to the beams underneath and you cross – I passed.
Polo anyone. 3 horses in the field and 340 under the hood.
After Utopia, come Paradise – in the Northern Peninsula of Michigan. I find it ironic that somewhere that gets 200 inches of snow a year is considered Paradise…
The Audi is not on a runway – it is an abandoned air force base in Michigan – with some random Jets parked around town.
Welcome to Minnesota doncha ya know.
Big Horn Canyon National Recreation Area Montana/Wyoming.
Yellowstone. That is not the radiator overheating 🙂
One of the funniest moments in our travels was the day we ran into a cattle drive on a road in Idaho – this cow spent 5 minutes licking the bugs off the front of the Audi.
We drove 9 miles out a dirt road at the Golden Spike National Historic Site (where the transcontinental railroad met in the 1800s). Wondering who was dumb enough take an Audi out this dirt road, until a Tesla pulled up.
Devils Rocks Utah
Pagosa Springs, Colorado. The hotel was filled with a Corvette Club and us.
Bonjour from Paris – Texas
We went down to the Crossroads….Clarksdale, Mississippi.
We have seen Utopia and Paradise, and now the Center of the World
The original Model T factory in Detroit. They let my German car go along with all the classic American cars on the Woodward Dream Cruise all the way through the city to the burbs where the other 100,000 cool cars were cruising.
Plymouth, Massachusetts – National Monument to the Fore Fathers.
The Marine Atlantic Ferry to Newfoundland. A 600 car ferry and a 18 hour ride!
Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland, Canada
The Audi and a large basket – but there are larger basket buildings in Ohio.
The historic Cincinnati Observatory and the Audi.
Watkins Glen Race Track. They were having club racing with little Mazdas, etc – if I had the safety equipment to go on the track I could’ve taken them – I think.
Age of Steam Roundhouse in Sugarcreek, Ohio.
The Auburn/Cord/Dusenberg Festival in Indiana. That car is sooo much cooler than mine.
The final road trip for the Audi – Downtown Chicago with the El in the background. While the Audi is gone – the adventures continue…..
Our morning in Pagosa Springs, Colorado started out with a beautiful sunny morning, perfect for the dozen hot air balloons to take flight to the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains. We spent a couple of hours running around the town and surrounding countryside for the best views.
Nearly all the balloons had come up from New Mexico, which is famous for hot air ballooning. Our best views came from a small neighborhood park with a view across a pond with the aforementioned mountains in the background.
Leaving town to the east you quickly start to ascend Wolf Creek Pass, eventually reaching the pass summit at 10,870 feet, our highest altitude of the road trip. In addition to the usual collection of impressive switchbacks, and far mountain views U.S. 160 has an impressive ‘S’ curve tunnel. Once you drop down the eastern side and arrive in Del Norte, Colorado, you have reached an extensive, perfectly flat prairie that is the San Luis Valley.
As you leave Del Norte and start across the flatland you see the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the distance, seemingly just a short distance away, but in reality they are 50 miles off. While the valley was filled with farms on this Sunday morning there was nobody out on the roads, so we were able to blast across the small country roads in rapid fashion, arriving at our destination in about 40 minutes.
The Great Sand Dunes National Park has dunes reach as high as 700 feet high, with the mountains behind them rising 3000′ and more up from the valley floor. As mentioned we could see the mountains from 50 miles away, and started seeing the white of the sand dunes from 30 miles away. The dunes were created by loose soil from nearby flat farm land carried by the wind and deposited at the foot of the mountains creating a wide tall dune with many ridges.
Finally reaching the visitor center, we once again received some excellent guidance from the rangers and set off on a walk up to the first ridge of dunes. There was a scene of young men sand boarding down the dune just beyond us, children trying to sled, and people trekking the high dunes. The dunes were so high that people at the top looked like specks on a giant wall. The sand was difficult to walk in because we sunk with each step. Without a doubt walking in sand feels 10 times harder than walking on a dirt path, the pain in my knees noticeable.
While there are options for going into the mountainous portion of the park, it is restricted to 4 wheel high clearance vehicles, so we opted to continue on our trip. About an hour south we arrived in Manassas, Colorado to see the statue of Jack Dempsey, a famous boxer, which the small town exploits to the fullest with a bronze statue and a museum of Jack Dempsey.
We quickly moved on toward New Mexico, the Land of Enchantment.
The landscape of southern Colorado and Northern New Mexico is desert, exemplified by a group of tumbleweeds barely missed our car as we drove. Travelling down the road exposed us to pastures and hills but no towns and few homes. Those that were there were ‘unique’.
Just north of Taos we stopped to experience the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge, part of the Rio Grande Del Norte National Monument, that spans over a very deep 650 foot gorge.
Since the area just off the bridge is on state land, and not in the National Park Service land, we found a number of vendors selling trinkets and jewelry. Sadly since this bridge does not have extremely high railing, it is a popular spot for people committing suicide, as a result there are telephone hotlines to suicide prevention on each of the observation points on the bridge.
We passed briefly through Taos, a ski and artist colony as we continued through the canyon to Santa Fe, stopping at our first Roadside America type place in days, the Classical Gas Museum along the way. We did not go into the museum but we did see old gas pumps and other weird items outside the building such as a pole of stacked tricycles as art.
We arrived at our hotel in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the Drury Inn, giving the dusty car over to the valet. Santa Fe is a very walkable town, so we headed off to tour the old town, taking in the sights of Spanish Puebloan style architecture and the abundance of art throughout the city. Since the early 1900s Santa Fe has been very strict with architecture laws controlling the look of all the houses, buildings and public works resulting in what is generally thought of as one of the best towns in America.
Even the bridges and underpasses are decorated with art and more bronze statues dotting gardens and nooks for everyone to enjoy.
Nearly every building and street had an artistic touch to it. Large churches, many galleries and a governor’s palace built in the 17th century when Spain controlled this area of North America were here. We walked through the town square as an artist fair was wrapping up and a Christian band played on stage.
Our dinner in Santa Fe was in a courtyard of the Palace Restaurant and Saloon on Palace Street, which specialized in Italian and Mexican cuisine. While waiting for dinner we decided to name the coolest person from each state. We thought Dean Martin was the coolest personality for Ohio trumping Paul Newman. Arnie Palmer was crowned coolest person for Pennsylvania. James Dean coolest for Indiana and so on. It was fun to find a cool famous personality for nearly every state before the arrival of dinner. After dinner we strolled the streets of town admiring the clean contemporary native style of Santa Fe.
We got cups of gelato and walked a while longer through the city on a very pleasant night taking photos. Soon after getting back to the hotel, the fire alarm sounded but soon shut off. There did not seem to be a problem or it necessary for us to leave. We enjoyed our day and looked forward to seeing more tomorrow.
Just east of Cortez, Colorado is Mesa Verde National Park.
With the brief drive, we ended up arriving before the Visitor Center opened so we drove to Park Point, the highest point at 8,572 ft in the park. From the observation tower you could see for miles to the distant mountains.
Returning to the visitor center promptly at 9 am we bought tickets at the Visitor’s Center for the 10:30 am ranger tour of the Balcony House, the only tour available that day. It is a 24 mile, 45 minute drive back to the Balcony House so we set out directly for our tour. Since we did arrive with some time to spare we spent a bit of time at the overlooks for the other houses in the cliff faces of the canyons.
Our tour took us into the pueblo cliff dwellings within the canyon. The one-hour Balcony House tour is one of the most intimate yet adventurous tours at Mesa Verde. A visit to Balcony House will challenge your fear of ladders, heights, and small spaces, and will give you the opportunity to explore the common areas of a mid-sized, 40-room dwelling.
The Balcony House tour requires visitors to descend a 100 foot staircase into the canyon; climb a 32 foot ladder; crawl through a 12 foot, 18 inches wide tunnel; and clamber up an additional 60 feet on ladders and stone steps. About 50 people hiked the path, down and climbed the two-person wooden ladder as part of the journey to get into the dwelling.
As noted we also squeezed through crevices and crawled through tunnels to get to the ruins. We learned that the ancient cliff dwellers lived on top of the mesa for 700 years then moved to the cliffs of the canyon for another 100 years. It is thought that the cliff dwellers lived in these homes nested on the cliffs to give them an advantage from their enemies. No one knows what happened to these people but many artifacts and some graves were found at Cliff Palace.
The tour guide led the group to a kiva in excellent condition that was used for socializing for the Puebloans. Some of the dwellings had multiple stories with the wood and stone materials still visibly solid. An archeology group from the 1920’s set steel supports in some of the dwellings to preserve the structures while others buildings were left untouched. We moved along a ledge of the structure and climbed a very steep ladder to stone steps cut into the cliff. A chain railing along the steps helped us pull ourselves up to the next ladder to reach the top of the mesa again. I am not fond of heights but made it through the whole tour.
We drove the loop around the mesa to view the Cliff Palace from the overlook at the opposite side of the canyon. We could see the Cliff Palace with more rooms and kivas tucked into caves and hidden along the cliff. This site is very special, it sparks a thought to how these people survived and thrived for so many years by being so resourceful.
Lunch was at the park service’s Far View Cafe, with the company of two bus loads of French tourists. Later we drove to Step House where we walked downhill to see dwellings in a shady canyon. This cliff dwelling had upper and lower rooms and a kiva. Primitive steps made by the Puebloans rose out of the far side of the canyon but were not open to the public for use since these steps were not restored and dangerous.
Our next stop was the Spruce Tree pueblo, with a downhill on a path to ruins of 115 rooms and 8 kivas. There were rooms deeper into the cliff but we did not have access to go deep inside. The ancient Puebloans farmed small patches of corn and squash. We saw three flat stones with hand sized round stones set at the front of the dwelling as the ranger explained that these stones were used to grind grain such as corn. Juniper, a native tree, along with sandstone were used to build the dwellings. It was evident that the dwellings at this site still had original juniper wood and stone held together with their mud mix. The tall two-story construction had small square windows and small square doors. Spruce Tree dwelling also had a lower level where we climbed down a narrow ladder to a round stone room. The opening from above was so small that when a person stood at the opening he blocked all light into the room below. The ceiling was about eight feet high and about 20 people could stand inside.
By late afternoon we were ready for 1 more hike, so we went back to a trail near the Balcony House Overlook at Soda Canyon. We walked the trail to the edge of the canyon to see the Balcony House from across the canyon. This view showed exactly how high up on the cliff face the dwelling that we toured was, and from afar we could see the entire dwelling from one viewpoint.
In addition we saw the ladders anchored against the cliff that we scaled down and up again. This view made the tour seem even more spectacular seeing the location of the dwelling and its height on the canyon wall, and made me glad I went on the tour before seeing this view.
We made our way off the mesa down the hill through switchbacks and a tunnel toward Durango, Colorado.
As we neared Durango a rock hit the windshield and put a crack into the lower left side. A truck with a trailer carrying an ATV was ahead of us but we did not see how anything could discharge from the truck on a paved highway. We were only passing through Durango, a ski town, to get to Pagosa Springs, Colorado.
It was about 6 pm when we arrived at the High Country Inn on the outskirts of Pagosa Springs. High Country Inn did not have our reservation so we opted to find lodging in the town of Pagosa Springs closer to restaurants. We had trouble finding a place to stay the night but ended up at the Pagosa Springs Inn. We followed a bus of elderly tourist who were hassling the desk manager about their luggage and wake up calls. Those elderly patrons caused such a fuss that the desk manager threw up his hands to say he had no more rooms to avoid dealing with them anymore. The hotel was also busy due to a Corvette convention held as part of a town festival.
As usual, I found that being polite helps, as I politely asked for a room for us and the manager obliged. Given the entire town was busy, we opted to walk next door to eat dinner at Pizza Hut.
The Spanish Valley is south of Moab, and our initial scenery leaving in the morning. As we made our way down US 191 we passed a natural bridge arch before coming to a giant rock with ‘Hole In the Rock‘ painted in 30’ letters on the side of it. Apparently it is a 5000 square foot house someone carved into this giant rock, but we were too early in the day for them to be open, so we continued on our way.
Just driving along the highway you find natural arches/bridges.
South of Blanding we reached Utah 95, a narrow state highway that runs out through the desert up and down small hills. As I turned onto this road a dirty old 4 wheel drive pickup passed me, which of course I took as a challenge to keep up with. It is 38 miles from Blanding to Natural Bridge National Park, and according to the GPS should’ve taken us 45 minutes to make the drive, but following Deliverance Boy I did it in 30 minutes.
Once we did land at the park headquarters we received instructions from the ranger on the best option for a couple of hours of time that we had. As with many parks they have a auto tour loop that we took, providing views of three natural bridges and as well as a view of Native American ruins. The trails were steep and strenuous so we skipped the longer hikes and soaked in the view from the overlook. The first natural bridge named Sipapu was large and had a lot of rock above it with trees and a river below it.
Our next stop was at the Horsecollar Ruin overlook. Here pottery was once found that dates these ruins between 1 AD and 13 AD. The ruins were well preserved but accessed was denied to them. These ruins are considered to be the best preserved ancient Puebloan ruins ,mostly due to their isolation. Horsecollar Ruin earned its name because the doorways to two structures resemble horsecollars, the site was abandoned more than 700 years ago.
We moved on to see the Kachina Bridge where the White Canyon and Armstrong Canyon meet. Kachina Bridge, known as the middle bridge which spans the canyon equally from both Owachomo and Sipapu bridges, is named for the petroglyphs of dancing figures resembling Kachina dolls. Kachina Bridge is larger than Owachomo but smaller than Sipapu. Owachomo Bridge is a natural bridge 180 feet high and spans 106 feet across thin stone and is older than any other bridge. Erosion through the years has thinned the span of the bridge. It was beautiful and we were happy to see it since it will not last forever.
Leaving Natural Bridges we continued south on Utah 261 another nondescript highway across the desert – for about 30 miles – then you come to the Moki Dugway, a dangerous road to drive made of dirt and gravel carved into the face of the cliff edge of Cedar Mesa. It consists of 3 miles of steep, unpaved, but well graded switchbacks (11% grade), which wind 1,200 feet from Cedar Mesa to the valley floor near Valley of the Gods.
Just beyond Moki Dugway we arrived in the Navajo Nation to the town of Mexican Hat, Utah, named for a rock formation just outside of town.
The village itself is small, home to fewer than 100 people, but provided a great lunch at the Olde Bridge Grille. We had a burger and vegetarian taco on Navajo bread. The Navajo bread was delicious.
Just south of Mexican Hat is the Monument Valley, a place of mammoth rocks in the desert with beautiful thin spires on the Arizona border. The rock formation resembled a city from a distance and it is also the site where Forrest Gump stopped running in the movie of the same name, which of course I needed to recreate, much to the amusement of the European tourists parked along the road.
Returning back through Mexican Hat we had gone just a few miles before we were stopped by the Sheriff’s Department while a Toyota commercial was being filmed on the road ahead.
By mid afternoon we arrrived at the Hovenweep National Monument. There are Pueblo ruins of a culture there that thrived from 1 AD to late 1200 AD. A variety of structures, including multistory towers are perched on canyon rims and balanced on boulders. We hiked the Little Run Trail to tour the ruins at Little Ruin Canyon which is made up of Square Tower, Tower Point, and Twin Towers. Towers at Hovenweep were built in a variety of shapes- D-shapes, squares, ovals and circles.
These towers had different purposes, including tool and grinding work areas, kivas (for ritual/social functions), living rooms and storage. We started at the overlook to see the stronghold house which is the upper story of a large structure with well-shaped stones. Then we climbed down the trail for a close-up view of more buildings. The Holly group is at the head of Keeley Canyon. The five buildings at the site are known for a rock art panel that has been interpreted as a summer solstice marker.
The Hackberry group was a medium sized Pueblo III village in the east fork of Bridge Canyon. The Horseshoe House is a D-shaped structure containing three rooms surrounding a possible central kiva. The architectural style suggests ceremonial or public use.
As we hiked the loop we saw Rim Rock House that had peepholes built into the walls; the purpose of these peepholes is unknown. We continued down the trail to Hovenweep House which is one of the largest structures in the community. Next we saw Hovenweep Castle in the Square Tower Group. The Cajon Group is at the head of Allen Canyon, is primarily a remains of a tower, estimated to house 80–100 people, that was constructed on a boulder that sits below the rim of the canyon
Cutthroat Castle group is in an offshoot of Hovenweep Canyon. Cutthroat Castle, the largest of the remains, is on the north side of the stream. Cutthroat is unique among the units due to the lack of a spring, the numerous kivas and the fact that much of the architecture sits below the rim.
Goodman Point group contains small and large clusters of pueblo buildings built partially underground.
Finally the Square Tower group, with the largest collection of pueblo buildings at Hovenweep. These towers still have lintels showing that these were some of the most carefully built structures in the southwest
Leaving Hovenweep we passed Palomino horses roaming freely on our drive to the Four Corners. We arrived at the entrance to the Navajo Nation being required to pay the $5 entry fee per person to enter their tribal lands to get to the Four Corners monument. Prior to the trip I had read that with modern survey techniques the actual marker is really not at the point of the four corners, the original surveyor, using 19th century tools, missed where the spot should have been by about 1800 feet.
The marker was placed in its current position and accepted by the U.S. Congress. From that time forward, the marker has been the legal divider among the four states.
We took turns standing on the spot of the Four Corners at the center where Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah meet, contorting ourselves to place a body part in each quadrant of the circle. After our Twister exercise we strolled the booths of vendors with their souvenirs that surrounded the monument. There was no food available here so we went to headed back onto the road to Cortez, Colorado, where we came upon the Sky Ute Casino on a suggestion that someone had given us. The large casino had a restaurant but it was an hour wait before we could eat so we drove on to Cortez to spend the night.
Checking into our hotel we found a nice casual restaurant called Destination Grill next door. We sat on the deck in the cool evening and enjoyed a very good dinner.
Trier, Germany – February 27, 2006 – Imperial Baths
Cleveland – December 27, 2010 – Frozen Pier on Lake Erie
Louisville – October 27, 2013 – Foggy Ohio River Bridge
Pittsburgh – June 28, 2008 – PNC Park
Cleveland – June 15, 2009 – Progressive Field
Columbus, Indiana – October 25, 2013 – Cummins Engines Corporate Office
Scottsbluff, Nebraska – July 9, 2012 – Scotts Bluff National Monument
Clermont, Kentucky – October 26, 2013 – Jim Beam Factory Tour
Marblehead, Ohio – August 09, 2014 – Sandusky Bay & Cedar Point
Cleveland – August 2, 2007 – Jacobs Field Restaurant
Arapahoe Basin, Colorado – June 20, 2010
Augusta, Georgia – April 10, 2013 – The Masters
Pittsburgh – January 28, 2012 – Bill Mazeroski Statue
Mansfield, Ohio – June 2, 2012 – Shawshank Redemption Prison Tour (Ohio Reformatory)
Fayette County, Pennsylvania – October 9, 2011 – Kentuck Knob
Pittsburgh – August 2004 – Kennywood Park
Cambridge, Massachusetts – June 22, 2012 – Charles River
Outside of Barstow, California – March 14, 2012 – Route 66
Saturday was spent travelling from Colorado Spring through Denver to Greeley. Once in Greeley we checked out the sights of the town, including an amusing pot themed sub sandwich shop called Cheba Hut.
The afternoon was spent at Centennial Village, a restored turn of the century village in Greeley.
Greeley is home to a large rodeo.
Sunday was the day of the wedding we had gone to Colorado for, but it wasn’t scheduled until late afternoon so we decided to spend the morning in nearby Rocky Mountain National Park.
The park is 415 square miles of mountains on both sides of the Continental Divide, which gives the eastern and western portions of the park a different character. The east side of the park tends to be drier. The west side of the park is wetter and more lush, with deep forests dominating
We took the Old Fall River Road up the mountain. This road earned the distinction of being the first auto route in Rocky Mountain National Park offering access to the park’s high country when it was completed in 1920.
Primarily gravel, one-way uphill and punctuated by switchbacks, it is a slower-paced, 11-mile-long uphill, leading from Horseshoe Park to Fall River Pass, 11,796 feet above sea level. There are no guard rails along this road, and the road itself is very rutted, making the trip up in the Mercedes tricky.
As we ascended through the clouds, we spotted elk and other wildlife, and the view at the Alpine Visitor’s Center at the top is spectacular.
Eventually though we had to head back down through Big Thompson Canyon to get ready for the wedding, to be held at the ‘Ellis Wedding Ranch’ in the appropriately named town of Loveland, which seems to have a free spirit attitude as well.
Ellis Wedding Ranch was an actual ranch, with a few metal barns that are used to house the receptions. The weather fortunately was nice and the wedding was held outside.
The wedding and reception went off without a hitch, and we thoroughly enjoyed the evening with the Colorado relatives.
RDZ Photography 