Memorial Day Part 2

Oh we're not done yet. My last post was only half the trip. Sunday morning we woke up in Pagosa Springs to pouring rain. By the time we drove to Durango, the sun was out. We stopped at the depot for the Durango Silverton Narrow Gauge railroad. Mom, Dad, and I had ridden the train back in the fall but I at least wanted to show Kyle the depot and the museum because his father-in-law really loves trains. We continued outside of Durango up the Million Dollar Highway. Our first stop was Coal Bank Pass. There was still some snow at the top and Max had a ball rolling around in it.

We kept going up to Molas Pass at 10,190 feet. This is the spot of some of the cleanest air in America. This was a really good spot to see the vista around us. By this point Kyle and I were both exclaiming at how gorgeous it was and how hard it is to take pictures because they just don't capture the beauty.We started descending down a steep and twisty road with a tunnel and a snowshed. We stopped above Ouray at an overlook and it was beautiful but I was under the impression that Ouray was the "Little Switzerland" of America and it looked like any other town in Colorado. I thought Vail was much more "Switzy". We made a quick stop in Montrose at a Sonic because Kyle had never been there. Pretty sure he'll never go again either ;) We blasted over to the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. When we entered the park the ranger said there's a road that goes down to the riverbed. I thought that would be cool to be on the bottom of the canyon so I thought we'd check it out on the way back. However, after the first overlook, the skies opened up into a deluge. I could barely see where I was going and the wipers were on warp speed. We drove the 3 miles to the end of the scenic drive and by the time we got there the rain and lightning had stopped. That's what I love about Colorado weather. We stopped at a couple more overlooks and it was stunning. I'd only been to the North Rim but we were on the South Rim and it was just amazing how massive the canyon is. One cliff face is the tallest cliff in Colorado.

By this point it was 3pm and we still had to drive back to Denver. I saw about 5 cops out so I was really watching my speed but I did get pulled over. He told me I was doing 51 in a 45. He also said my registration receipt was expired but that was false. I got a warning. Kyle's convinced they were looking for something else and he invented an excuse to stop. We drove through Curecanti National Recreation Area and then made our way up Monarch Pass. By this point it was looking rainy again and by the time we stopped in Monarch we were in a snowstorm. We descended a few hundred feet and literally 5 minutes later it was back in the 50's and dry. At least Kyle got to see a Colorado snowstorm. We swung through South Park city just so Kyle could take a picture and plugged on towards home. We saw a rainbow in Shawnee and as we were exiting off 285 there was a vertical rainbow towards the East that was pretty cool. We ate and collapsed into bed because we were exhausted.

Monday was Kyle's last day. We slowed it down a bit and just hiked around Rocky Mountain National Park. We hiked on snow the entire way. We went to Nymph Lake, Dream Lake, and Emerald Lake. By the time we got to Emerald it was very windy and cold and we could see the clouds rolling back around. We ate a quick lunch and headed back down. Kyle apparently has the lung capacity of a Sherpa because he was barely breathing heavy while I wheezed my way up. We did some tourist shopping in Estes Park and swung by Red Rocks on the way back to Denver. We decided to go to the Fort restaurant for some Rocky Mountain Oysters (bull testicles in laymans terms). It's styled just like Bent's Old Fort and is an exact replica of a fort inside where even the servers were period clothing. We ordered from the appetizers and dessert menu because entrees started at $35. We had Rocky Mountain Oysters, Buffalo Empanadas, Duck Quesadillas and a blueberry cobbler (served in the cutest little dutch oven). It was all very good, even the balls. They even had a tepee and a pillary in the courtyard so we took some pictures because it was pretty funny. I am completely exhausted from the trip but I'm so excited Kyle finally came out here and got to see pretty much all Colorado has to offer. It was my biggest roadtrip to date and it certainly prepped me for the big one to come. It also made me very homesick to know that in a matter of months I will be back home. I'm ready for a big change.