Colorado Springs, CO: Garden Of The Gods

Yesterday we drove from Oakley, Kansas to Colorado Springs, Colorado. All during the night in Kansas it rained like crazy. When we woke up in the am we were surrounded by water; we had our own little lake except we were located in the middle of it. A good 2-3 inches deep.

Policeman came by and said he was going to write us a ticket for not having a boating registration on our RV -- kidding, but would not have been surprised...

In any case, we carefully disconnected the electricity and water. I was a little nervous about disconnecting 50 amp electrical service while standing in water up to my ankles however I happy to report the electrical shock was not that bad and I expect my eyebrows to grow back in quickly.

All this rain occurred in a place that happily advertises they only get 16 inches of rain annually. After Monday night they only have 2 or 3 inches to go......

Stopped at a little place for breakfast and I had a Spanish omelet. OMG - best omelet I've ever eaten -- Chirozo sausage, onions, green peppers, cheddar cheese and lots of jalapeno peppers. If you ever come to our place for breakfast guess what I'll be serving...

We are camped at the base of Pikes Peak in Colorado Springs at the Garden Of The Gods RV Campground. It is central to so many of the activities here in Colorado Springs: Pikes Peak, Garden Of The Gods Park, Air Force Academy, Royal Gorge Bridge, Seven Falls, white water rafting, etc.

Our financial adviser, David C, gave us a copy of The Most Scenic Drives In America, which has ~120 great drives throughout the US. We have done a few of these routes in the past couple of months and they are great. Turns out Colorado Springs is the anchor point for a 220 mile scenic route with a ton of things to see & do. May have to stay in this area for more than our 'normal' week. Thinking about moving to another campground maybe a little farther out in the mountains, we'll see.

Garden of the Gods is one of the most scenic areas I have seen. I used to get out to Colorado Springs once/twice a month when I was working; on one trip I left the office at the end of the day and drove over to The Garden of the Gods Park. It was spectacular; the last sunlight of the day had the red rocks lit brilliantly. As soon as I saw that view I knew it was a place I had to show MLA one day.

Today was that day. We rode over on the Harley, stopping at numerous locations throughout the park. Look closely at the picture above and you'll see two rock climbers in the upper right. Park was full of people climbing rocks.

Even though the light was just OK today as the sun was blocked by clouds, it is still a very special place. It not only looks amazing, it feels amazing. It's difficult to describe with words the feeling that comes over you in this place. Magical, mystical, and religious don't fully capture the feeling; maybe the best word is sacred.

Native Americans used to describe areas like this as a place where you can communicate with your ancestors (I don't want to get all new age/crystal pyramids with you). Let's just say it's a beautiful, peaceful location in which you would like to spend more time. So we did and we will again.

Here's a picture of the Harley with Pikes Peak in the background. Arrived back at the campground and parked the Harley at twilight, just in time for a bowl of ice cream at the Wednesday Night Ice Cream Social. Life just doesn't get any better.

BTW - we have a phone line into the RV this week only; give us a call at 719/444-4693. Our cell phones have little/no coverage here. We'll be here through August 5th.

See Ya!