September 25, 2019

A chilly morning today in Gunnison, just 2°C. Luckily, we had a complimentary breakfast in the hotel and did not need to go out until the 8 a.m. departure of the bus. Today’s journey was about 290 kilometers. We were back on Highway 50 going east. The first stop was at the Monarch Pass, elevation 3,448 meters (11,312 feet), at the Continental Divide. It might be the highest place on the tour where we have stopped. Matt, our tour director, took a group picture with the Collegiate Mountains in the background, on the east side of the Continental Divide. There was a well-stocked gift store adjacent to the parking lot.

We descended the eastern side of the Continental Divide winding through the forest of pine and autumn coloured aspens covering the mountainsides. Near Salida, we turned onto Highway 285 and the Arkansas River Valley was soon in view. The Arkansas River is a tributary to the Mississippi River. We passed some logging trucks carrying at least ten-meter long logs. To pass the time, Matt played a funny video by comedian Yakof Smirnoff, called “As Long As We Both Shall Laugh”. There was lots of laughter during the video.

Bueno Vista, at an altitude of 2,428 meters, was the next stop for a half hour comfort break. In the early 1880s, U.S. Marshall Bat Masterson was hired, at a salary of $30 per week, to rid the community of outlaws. He succeeded in three weeks. Some of the oldest stone buildings were built in the 1880s; such as Town Hall 1883, beside the original First National Bank building 1885 and the original Chaffee County Court House 1883, now a museum.

We continued to Colorado Springs through the Pikes Peak National Forest and soon Pikes Peak, altitude 4,302 meters was visible. It is the highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. Colorado Springs, elevation 1,840 meters,was part of the 1803 purchase of the Louisiana Territory from the French.

Our lunch break was at the Garden of the Gods Trading Post cafeteria and store. We took a 1.3 km hike while most of the bus ordered lunch and took photos of the trail. The Garden of the Gods, a registered National Natural Landmark, is a city park which is free for all to enjoy with hiking paths and horse trails. Once the break was over, the bus took us to three locations in the Garden of the Gods to view the different, mainly red rock, formations. There were a few grey rock formations as well. The views of Pikes Peak and other surrounding mountains were great. Some of the formations had names like “Kissing Camels”, “Sentinel Rock” and “Cathedral Spire”. One of the locations allowed us to walk the trails at the base of the rock formations and admire the rock, trees, and meadow that surrounded them. We logged 1.65 km walking at this stop. The last photo opportunity was at the “Balancing Rock”. Then we drove to the Garden of the Gods Visitor Center for an overall view of the garden, plus see the museum, gift shop and café. In the museum there was a poster stating the teacher, Katharine Lee Bates, was inspired to compose America the Beautiful after a trip to Pikes Peak over 100 years ago.

The Academy Hotel was our destination for the night. The distance covered today was about 285 kilometers. The hotel was close to many restaurants, besides the one at the hotel. We chose the Cracker Barrell Old Country store’s restaurant, since a friend had recommended the restaurant. We had a tasty light meal which left enough room for Pecan bread pudding with a scoop of vanilla ice cream drizzled with caramel sauce. It was less than a 10-minute walk from the hotel. Total steps 12,214