8-8

Royal Gorge, Skyline Drive & Pueblo Riverwalk

We began our adventure at the Royal Gorge Visitor Center where we purchased our tickets. 

 

There is a cafe, gift shop, picnic area and restrooms at the Visitor Center. 

 

Included with the admission are unlimited rides on the aerial gondolas that glide 2,400 feet across the Royal Gorge, more than 1,000 feet above the Arkansas River.

 

For an additional fee visitors can fly through the air on the Cloudscraper By Ziprider.  At more than 1,200 feet above the Arkansas River, it is the highest zip line in America.  Monte had just decided to do the zipline when the decision was made to close the zipline and gondolas because of the high winds. 

The Royal Gorge Bridge, built in 1929, sits 956 feet above the Arkansas River.  The wind was so fierce as we walked across the bridge that I had difficulty catching my breath.  I was actually too nervous to walk near the rail and I feared my glasses were going to blow away.

 

After lunch we walked back across the bridge to the Plaza Theater where we watched a short film and then listened to a band playing oldies.

The wind had died down considerably when we made the last trip across the bridge.

 

 

 

I was able to look down and see some rafters and a train filled with passengers.

 

 

After leaving the Gorge Monte noticed a sign for Skyline Drive. 

 

 

 

It turned out that we had stumbled upon one of Colorado’s hidden gems. 

 

 

Constructed by local prison labor in 1903, Skyline Drive begins its gradual ascent halfway up the ridge, just a short three miles out of town.

 

 

There are several pullouts along the gradual ascent to the top. 

 

 The pullout at the top offers a 360-degree view of the surrounding landscape: the mountains to the north and the west, and all of Canon City to the east.

There have been numerous new dinosaur fossil finds along the ridge over the years.  In 1999, while out on a drive, a paleontology student discovered dinosaur tracks along the ridgeline.  They had been visible for years, but to the untrained eye they looked like a bunch or rocks.

Skyline Drive switches back to the north and begins its gradual descent and ending in a residential area.

As we drove through Canon City we noticed several dinosaur statues.

Instead of heading directly back to Colorado Springs we took a detour to the city of Pueblo and took a stroll along the Historic Arkansas Riverwalk.

 

 

The riverwalk, inspired by the San Antonio Riverwalk, was constructed as part of an effort to attract tourists and trade to the city.

 

 

 

 

It was extremely hot the day we visited so we rushed through and ended up eating at Angelo’s where Monte ordered calamari. 

 

 I went with Brooklyn bites, a pinwheel stuffed with mozzarella cheese and spinach.

8-7

Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs

We moved over to the Foot of the Rockies RV Park and were set up before lunchtime so we had plenty of time to explore Garden of the Gods located just a few miles away.

 

The story goes that in 1859, Rufus Cable and M.S. Beach, two surveyors were assigned to locate and layout a townsite for a boom town, soon to be called Colorado City.  They came across an awe inspiring area of sandstone formations.

M.S. Beach suggested that it would be a “capitol place for a beer garden.”  Rufus Cable exclaimed a “Beer Garden!  Why this is a fit place for the Gods to assemble.  We will call it the Garden of the Gods!”

In 1909 the garden was given to the City of Colorado Springs by the children of railroad magnate Charles Elliot Perkins honoring his wish that the park remain free for the public to enjoy.

We began our visit in the museum located in the Visitor and Nature Center. 

 

The Natural history exhibits include minerals, geology, plants and local wildlife. 

The entrance to the paved loop is located across from the Visitor Center.  There are several pull-offs and parking lots along the way leading to hiking trails.  The most popular area when we visited was Balanced Rock.

Poised above the park road, Balanced Rock defies the laws of physics as it balances on a sloped edge of sandstone. 

The boulder appears in publications around the world as one of the best examples of a balancing rock. 

 

 

 It rises 35 feet above its pedestal base and weighs about 700 tons.

We stopped for lunch at the Trading Post where we shared a Bison burger.  It was quite tasty. 

We also shared a large cup of praline ice cream. 

 

The sun was just starting to set as we completed the loop and our first day in Colorado Springs.