Colorado
Our July 2007 trip through southern Colorado included many stops other than Mesa Verde National Park, the subject of a separate Gallery. From John F. Kennedy Airport in New York we flew directly to Denver and drove to Colorado Springs and our first stop at Garden of the Gods, a geological wonder and Colorado Springs city park. Then we headed southwest to Alamosa to visit Great Sand Dunes National Park and to ride on the Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad through the mountains, often above 9,000 feet and down to Osier for a buffet lunch, which we shared with passengers and crew traveling in the opposite direction from Chama. Our car managed a stop at Royal Gorge, an aerial tram ride across the 1,051-foot deep gorge, a walk across the bridge and trip to the bottom in an inclined railway.
Mesa Verde and Grand Canyon of the Gunnison added two more National Parks to our list, as we drove our Durango from one to the other through the mountains, into the ghost mining town of Animas Forks and across Cinnamon Pass at 12,640 feet, on roads really fit only for ATV’s, dirt bikes and Jeep Wranglers. Our trip ended in Grand Junction with some time driving through the Colorado National Monument.
2,300 miles and 15 days later we were back in Denver for the return trip and a night in New York before returning home by train.
