COLORADO

Four Corners
Mesa Verde
Police Run-In
UFO Tower
Police Museum
Trail Ride
Garden of the Gods
Largest Hercules Beetle
Celestial Seasonings Tea
Morrison Ghost Tour
Coors Brewing Co.
Off-Roading

Garden of the Gods

(Colorado Springs, Colorado)

Excerpts from Beth:
As our true fans know, being a Roadchick is an exciting existence filled with diverse adventures and opportunity. After seeing the kitsch of four-corners, the prison museum and the UFO watchtower, we were ready for a dose of awe-inspiring beauty for balance.

Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs is truly a marvel. Towering red rocks mix with the green vegetation and the blue sky in a breathtaking palette.

One can wander along the paved paths, break off down a dusty trail, or move upward and climb the huge formations (disclaimer: with appropriate equipment, of course) just a few miles outside the city with no entrance fees or hassle. It's perfect for the weekend warriors who can't make the trip to the mountains.

The day was perfect, so we spent plenty of time meandering along the paths and trails and watching the climbers. In usual Roadchick fashion, we befriended a stranger about 100 feet above us. Squinting into the sun to get a better view (woo-hoo, nice legs!) we mindlessly chit-chatted about the beautiful day and scenery (and secretly plotted a good way to pass a Roadchix calling card up to him).

Of course, there's no way to escape the tourist trap atmosphere completely, and since there is no entrance fee there was the requisite enormous gift shop for us to squander our money on postcards, snow globes, silver charms and some bottled water.

All in all, our Garden of the Gods experience was the perfect way to close out the Colorado Springs portion of the trip before we headed northward to the big city.

http://gardenofgods.com/