VACATIONING IN COLORADO SPRINGS

We arrived at Colorado Springs on September 26 staying at Garden of the Gods Campground for about three and a half weeks. There is so much to do in this area. This is a very central location. We have posted our favorite pictures of some of the places we visited while here.







Our Campsite was only a mile from one of the entrances into Garden of the Gods. This free city park is a great place for picnics and hikes. The rock formations are surreal.


www.gardenofgods.com






PIKES PEAK


After watching Pikes Peak from our campsite, we picked a beautiful day to drive up to the top. We also caught the fall foliage in full color. The next time we ascend we thought we would try the Cog Railroad.












SEVEN FALLS
We enjoyed a day of climbing and hiking at beautiful Seven Falls in Colorado Springs. Look close at the left side of the falls to see two long flights of stairs to the top.


www.sevenfalls.com




You can see Virginia's knee is back to normal. She would have never managed 224 stairs and three miles of trails at Seven Falls a year ago.




BISHOP'S CASTLE
Jim Bishop began building this castle 43 years ago. The Castle cannot be described, you will need to see it for yourself. Visitors have full self-guided access inside and out. Climbing the shaky 160 foot tower is quite an adrenaline rush.









www.bishopcastle.org

(free admission)










MANITOU SPRINGS CLIFF DWELLINGS



CRIPPLE CREEK
Virginia hit the $20.00 Jackpot on a penny slot in the morning but wound up in jail by afternoon.




ROYAL GORGE

The bridge across Royal Gorge is the highest suspension bridge in the world. We drove our car as well as walked across it. We also rode the Incline Railroad to the bottom of the 1,053 foot deep gorge.



We enjoyed our ride across the Gorge on the Arial Tram. It is the world's longest single span aerial tram at nearly half a mile.






www.royalgorgebridge.com



SHELF ROAD DRIVING TOUR
This is one of Colorado's many well maintained gravel roads. We have driven hundreds of miles in and around the state touring on these back roads.







BIG HORN SHEEP











While in the Colorado Springs area we also visited Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, The United States Air Force Academy, U.S. Olympic Training Complex, Cave of the Winds, World Figure Skating Museum, Miramont Castle, Cheyenne Mountain Zoo, Will Rogers Memorial Tower and other miscellaneous state parks and attractions. We had fun keeping quite busy each day. We are headed South.