It's always an adventure when you fly out for a 4-night, 5-day long weekend holiday with only the first night's hotel room booked. Plus, several grumblings already made about going to places and sights outside of the original itinerary (or, what poses as one). But such is reality with the two knuckleheads I was traveling with. Ed and Lito flew out of JFK and met me at Denver airport on Thursday night, April 12th, with an already rented 4WD Toyota Highlander (so much for the Camry reserved ahead), pumped for the long weekend bro-cation.
Friday, the (April) 13th
First day started with a hearty breakfast at Four Friends Kitchen in Denver and an expectation that the next full meal will be dinner wherever the day took us.
First stop: Colorado Springs where we planned to visit Garden of the Gods and then drive up to Pikes Peak. As with anything Colorado, both places were spectacular and great for the photo enthusiast.
Unfortunately, only 13 of the 19 miles leading up to Pikes Peak summit was open due to snow and weather. Nevertheless, the drive up was still quite exhilarating, notwithstanding the 12-degree temperature drop from mile 1 to 13.
Next, we left behind the cold and snowy environs of Pikes Peak and began heading south towards the dry and desert-like landscape of the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve which couldn't stand in starker contrast to Pikes Peak. We reached the dunes at the golden hour and witnessed one of the most breathtaking sunsets in the most desolate of locations in the Colorado wilderness. Our packed day ended in Alamosa, deservedly with a fat and juicy steak dinner. Total distance driven: ~300 miles.
Saturday, April 14th
Happy Birthday to me! The day started with another hearty breakfast courtesy of the Holiday Inn Express in Alamosa. Our modified itinerary took us first through the Rio Grande National Forest where we were held up in over an hour of stopped traffic due to an overturned RV trailer that completely blocked Highway 160 just before Bayfield. Past that, it's straight to Durango and the San Juan National Forest before reaching the quaint old mining town of Silverton where we started our trek on Colorado's Million Dollar Highway (Highway 550), which, despite its spectacular and breathtaking "million dollar" views, was one of the scariest roads I've ever driven on. It was a bit of a relief when we finally reached the charming town of Ouray (the Switzerland of Colorado) which marked the end of the highway and where we stopped for burgers and fries.
We left Ouray full and refreshed for the long drive back to the Denver metro area. Heading east on Highway 50, we passed through Gunnison National Park and Forest on the way to Buena Vista via the Brown Canyon Wilderness Area, where we stopped for prime rib dinner. Then it's off on Highway 285 all the way to Denver, passing through Boulder and on to our final destination for the day, Longmont, where we planned to stay the night before heading up the next day to Estes Park and the Rocky Mountain National Park. Total distance driven: ~600 miles.
Sunday, April 15th
Have you ever looked around and gasped in wonder at the incomparable beauty around you? Yeah, Rocky Mountain National Park. RMNP is truly one of Colorado's most beautiful places in a state chock full of beautiful places. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
As has become the norm of this trip, we started the day with a breakfast of lox and bagels at Einstein Bros. Bagels just across the street from our hotel in Longmont. Then it's back on the road to Estes Park with a stop at the Stanley Hotel, famous as Jack Nicholson's favorite haunting grounds in Stanley Kubrick's The Shining.
We arrived at Rocky Mountain National Park at its eastern entrance in Fall River and was immediately enthralled with the park's natural beauty. However, the entire western half was still closed to visitors due to snow (the park's fully open only from June to October). Nevertheless, what we saw at various stops and lookouts was enough to impress upon us the majestic beauty of this amazing collage of natural wonders.
Leaving the park through its other eastern entrance at Beaver Meadow led us back down to Estes Park where we stopped for lunch before heading down to Red Rocks Park and Amphitheater, famous for its big name summer concert series. This was our last destination for the day, in fact, for the entire trip, before heading back to downtown Denver for a relaxed final dinner of Korean barbecue. Total distance driven: ~150 miles.
Monday, April 16th
We stayed at a Staybridge Hotel and Suites at Denver airport the night before our flights back home but weather in the east coast brought us considerable flight delays. Finally landing back in Columbus almost 3 hours later than scheduled, I was hit with the realization that the magical Colorado adventure was over, and that I have to be back at work early the next day. Making a quick stop for Chinese takeout, I was gifted with a heartwarming message from a fortune cookie:
