I asked for and got a refund on our second night’s stay, and so we headed out of Aspen on a sunny morning. We ate breakfast at a little bakery on Main street, and walked around the shops, then drove up Independence Pass till the road was closed by snow.
We backtracked into town and out to see the Maroon Bells, but that road was closed as well.
So, it was back out to Glenwood Springs (where everybody was swimming in the mineral pools by the river), and up Glenwood Canyon.
A couple miles later we turned off onto Hwy 24, and wound our way up, up over Tennessee Pass (10,424) to drop into Leadville, the highest town in the US at 10,100 feet.
I have climbed many of the mountains along Hwy 24 by Leadville: Mt. of the Holy Cross, Mounts Elbert (highest in Colorado), Massive, the Collegiate Peaks... It was fun to drive slowly, looking and remembering.
We passed a large antelope herd outside of Hartsel (Sadly, soon to be in the news...) and as the sun set, Pike's Peak grew larger and larger, turning pink in the setting sun.
We descended through Woodland Park as darkness hit. When I lived here in the early 1980s, it was a little collection of cabins. We had to drive into Colorado Springs for food and gas. Now it is a full blown city, and I don't recognize it at all.
We headed down the hill, drawn on by the twinkling lights below us.
Arrived at Jeff and Missy’s in Colorado Springs about 5:30, just in time to have a great, home made chicken dinner, the best of our trip so far.