24 June 2021 – The Rockies are beautiful. From the foothills to the peaks, they offer a beautiful vision of what God has created. So much of the Rockies are untouched except by animals and human feet. Every stop I made, I kept thinking that if I just had a small cabin right there, I would need nothing else. The babbling brooks, the amazing rock formations, the numerous hiking trails and the cliffs, each was inspiring. I followed the scenic route called “The Top of the Rockies.”

My first stop today was Breckenridge. I needed to get some work done so I went looking for a cafe where I could work. As I walked, I stumbled upon an area called Breck Create, the Breckenridge Arts District. The area had a theatre, a music studio, writing studios and every type of art studio you can think of. It was a small area, not even a whole city block, but it was full of life. I was able to work in the area and watch some of the artists creating. It would be amazing to work in the area each day. But I don’t like in the Rockies.

From there I traveled through Frisco onto my next stop in Vail. Vail was gorgeous. It’s hard to describe how green everything was. I loved the architecture and the small community feeling of it. I rode the Gondola to the top and back down the mountain. During the summer when the slopes aren’t being used for skiing, people are using the slopes for extreme mountain biking. It was incredible to watch but I am not sure that I would ever try it.

I headed south through Camp Hale and Leadville, then up to my next stop at the top of Independence Pass on the Continental Divide. It was a scary drive to the top on a winding narrow road with no guard rails. I actually have a real issue with heights, so it was a high anxiety climb for me. It was gorgeous though. You could see the places on the mountains where the snow melts and leaves grooves in the rock and the grass. There was still snow in lots of places, and it was a chilly 42 degrees. But there were beautiful views of the Rockies.

Then, I headed north to Aspen. Aspen was very different from both Breckenridge, the artsy small town, and Vail, the beautiful but typical ski resort. Aspen was just a town. Many of the homes and other buildings were beautiful with wonderful wood and lots of glass. The traffic was awful, and it just didn’t do anything for me. But it was the location of my hike for the day. I chose a hike that was said to offer some of the best views of the Rockies, the Maroon Peak Trail.

The trail is categorized as hard due to the change in elevation and the fact that there is really rocky terrain. However, others who have hiked the trail have said that the “hard” parts are not continuous, so I decided to try. Well, it wasn’t too bad, but it was hard. It was over 10 miles with an almost 5,000 feet change in elevation, and the top was really rocky. There were also areas of the trail still covered with snow making it more difficult. I enjoyed the first part of the hike very much, but after I got to the top and I started heading back down, it started to pour, and it rained hard and constant until I got back to my car. My clothes were so wet that I could ring water out of them. Good thing I have no modesty because I had to change my clothes in the parking lot.

My final stop for the day was another hour up the road in Glenwood Springs. When I got there, I checked into a cute little motel that looked sort of like the Bates Motel. It is probably the cleanest, most comfortable motel or hotel I have ever stayed in. Good choice, and it’s a good thing because when I got out of the car, I could hardly move. My butt hurts so much from that hike that all I could think about was laying down and not moving until I have to. So that’s what I did. It was a beautifully wonderful day in the Rockies.