Day 2 ... Colorado Springs, CO

Day two of our journey proved to be much more scenic that the first leg of our trip. Driving from Abilene, KS to Denver was our intentions, but when Logan's Uncle Scotty suggested we reroute to Colorado Springs to see "The Garden of the God's", we were excited to get off of the interstate and take some back roads.

We stayed at the same hotel as a group of people who were cycling from NYC to California. Logan and I were surprised to notice that they weren't the youngest of the guests; not a single one didn't have gray hair. We were inspired by their dedication.

Once on the road, we were bombarded with rain. The radio said that parts of western Kansas got lots of hail, 60 MPH winds, and had many downed trees and power lines the night before. We said a little prayer and thanked God for keeping us safe. I hate storms... and with all of the tragedies in Oklahoma lately, a storm in the midwest is the last thing I wanted to see.

Finally, something worthy of photographing! The terrain was becoming more and more beautiful with every mile we drove. I took these shots early in the morning, in central Kansas.

 

I love this image for it's simplicity.

 

Here's our ride for the summer. This was immediately after the rain stopped. 

 

A "Wind" farm in central Kansas.

 

 



 

I slept through the rest of Kansas, and when we crossed into Colorado, you wouldn't have even known it. Much of eastern Colorado looks exactly like Kansas. And Iowa. And South Dakota. And every other plain state I've ever driven through.

 

As soon as we got into Colorado Springs, the terrain changed immediately. Gentle rolling hills transformed into a view of Pike's Peak, a 14,000 ft. giant rising in the distance.  Logan and I were getting excited.

 

We decided to drive through The Garden of the Gods once before we began to look for a place to stay. We were all excited to get out and stretch our legs. This was the most beautiful place to do it. These pictures don't do it justice. Some were snapped through the window of the car at 30 miles per hour, but they still document the memory for me just the same :-)                  

 

 

 

 



After we left the Garden of the Gods, we drove around looking for a place to eat. We found a place called Mountain Shadows, which was nothing more than a tiny old home turned into a restaurant. For 3.99 I had all you can eat biscuits and gravy (which were nothing like southern biscuits and gravy, but were still delicious) and Logan got a burger made from local beef with green chili on top. Yum.

We then found a local coffee roaster right down from the restaurant. (This was a big score for Logan.) We met the nicest guys running the place, who brewed us some of their freshly roasted coffee. If you are ever in CO Springs, you should check out "Switchback Roasters." (Even better, like them on facebook now at https://www.facebook.com/switchbackroasters) Logan racked up on lots of different whole bean coffee and a new filter for his Chem-X.  One of the men told us of a great little bed and breakfast down the road that we had to try. . .

So we did!

Old Town Guest House is the most wonderful place. I am definitely spoiled to bed and breakfasts now over hotels, and I may never want to stay in a hotel again. We were given the grand tour, which has lots of common areas, a pool table, movies you can take to your room, free drinks, a wine hour where you can meet and greet the other guests, a stocked mini fridge and bath robes for you to wear. (Yes, please!)

We spent the afternoon walking around downtown, going in little shops, chatting with locals, and relaxing. I'm beginning to think we could just stay in Colorado and forego California altogether. Alas, we must make it to our destination!

Again, stay tuned for day 3 of our journey :-)