11-14 July part 3

i know, I should have broken these up by day instead of stay...

Colorado Train Museum
Golden, CO

snow blower pushed by steam engine

here's my caboose for ya

round house

butch being all presidential on back of private car

just reminds me of the Wild, Wild West TV program

Lookout Mountain
somewhere above Golden

Golden Co from the top of Lookout Mtn

another damn mountain he made me drive up switchbacks to get to the top

to the right of the tower-Denver in the distance 

yes, we really did go in there

11-14 July Part 2

Grand Junction, CO

to

Golden/Denver, CO

 

i kind of got ahead of myself on the Rocky Mountain National Park post.  this should have been before it.

 

okay, I'm not a good rider.

which is actually pretty funny considering the trip we're on. 

but I've been really good and haven't needed to go get a "calm my ass down" pill.

until now....

we made the climb from Grand Junction to Denver over the Vail Pass, which was only outdone by the Loveland Pass.  over 11,000 feet, which we've done on this trip, but not in the motor home towing the subie.  by the time we hit the top of Vail Pass (almost 10,000 feet), we were in low gear, 4200rpms, and doing a whopping 25 mph.  and we hit the Eisenhower tunnel I breathed a sigh of relief.  then we started climbing again and we finally made it up the Loveland Pass (11,500 feet or something-I was about passed out from anxiety at that point) with the motor home cranked up so bad that we were going even slower, and pulling for all it was worth.  only afterward did he tell me that it was about then that the check engine or transmission light or something bad had come on about the time we hit the top.

 

I should have taken a pill long before we got here

ski slopes in summer

me-about to pass out at Vail Pass

the driver was fine

Yeah! we made it to the top!

what do you mean this one is higher???

trying to distract myself with a waterfall and waterwheel on side of road

top of Loveland Pass. no, not through the tunnel, we're taking you around the side of the mountain with no guard rail.

 

But then,  we had to come down. 

going up was bad enough, but plunging down the Rocky Mountain switchbacks in a motor home with my subie pushing was even worse.  that was i was wishing i had taken that damn pill earlier.

he just doesn't understand my fear, and couldn't understand why the hell i was crying. it's easy.....terror.

but we made it to Golden and after about the 3rd rum and Pepsi the pill was working, i was ok.  he just shakes his head.

 

 

 

Golden, CO

yep, happier than a camel on Wednesday

of course he found a mustang there



brewery

 butch, along with everyone else that walks by here, wants an application for this job

 

his favorite product, which he couldn't get there.

actually, he could not find it at all once we got west of the Mississippi

 



 favorite part of the tour.....tasting room!

 

 

11-14 July

Rocky Mountain National Park
Denver, CO

waterfalls which I totally can't remember the name of

see the squiggley line up the side of the mountain?  well that's the straight part of the road I drove up.

I passed a sign that said "2 miles above sea level"

we weren't at the top yet.

I really need to get back to being a flatlander.

yes, it's snow.  in July. 

we were above the tundra line.  this is part of the glacier.

 

again, still not at the top



first we saw them...

(nice racks)

and when we were done with them....

Lookout mountain

 



this reminded me of the stupid geyser kid in Yellowstone. 

 this must be his stupid water cousin

8-10 July

Colorado National Park
Grand Junction, CO

Independence Monument

every 4th of july they climb it and place an American flag on top

so sad, we were a couple of days late and missed the climb ;-)

 

side view of Independence

The Mummy

butch....going places I will never follow

(like out on a ledge over a canyon)



on the way to Denver

didn't check to see if there was a pub there with the same name

this is me going over Vail Pass.  12000 feet in the motorhome.

and then the scary part------down.



 

 

Golden, CO

on the way to the Coors brewery

 

the brewery!

butch so wanted a job in this section

 



they didn't make his favorite here

tasting room!

yeahhhh-free beer