Fun Times in Colorado Springs

We have spent 2 weeks here in Colorado Springs and have done and seen so much. First off, we are staying at a campground that is in the trees! After months in the desert, both in California and Arizona and even in New Mexico, this has been wonderful. We even have wildlife walking all around us. Check it out the bear and deer we’ve seen here.

Our first outing was to Seven Falls where we definitely got in some exercise. We climbed the stairs, all 224 of them, to the top and then hiked even higher to get in some great views of the surrounding mountains and the city of Colorado Springs below. (Good thing I worked out the day before on the stair climber at the gym. And check out Kean’s calves in the photo of him climbing up!) They even have what looks to be some great zip lining that we might try if we are ever back in this neck of the woods. The falls themselves were a little underwhelming but the entire area was beautiful.

Next on the agenda was Garden of the Gods. We did some walking around but it was mostly a nice drive through the red rocks. Like everywhere around here, the views are spectacular. We even saw some rock climbers doing their thing on some of the rocks. Fun to watch but not something that I am thinking of taking up that’s for sure. Afterward we even had time to drive around the Air Force Academy installation.

And we saved the best for last. Pikes Peak! We had been looking at it from afar for awhile so it was time to head up to the summit. It was a balmy 74 degrees when we entered the park and started the drive up. It is a 19-mile drive up to the summit which is at 14,115 feet elevation. Lots of nice scenery to look at on the way especially when my eyes were open. There is no guardrail and the drop down is quite nerve wracking. Once at the top, we layered up with the clothes we brought, and headed out for a peek. Man was it cold up there. Wind chill was in the 20’s. I couldn’t spend too much time walking around out in the wind but was able to get a good look at the surrounding Rocky Mountains. This was the highest we have been up on any mountain and it was fabulous. On the ride down, at about 10,000 feet, I got out to play in the snow. It was still cold but nothing like on the summit. This outing is a must if you ever find yourself in this neck of the woods.