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Published: July 14th 2014
We left Moab via the
Colorado River Bridge and took the slightly longer scenic road along route 128 which was a spectacular drive following the Colorado River Gorge. For the first 13 miles we followed the river within a narrow section of the gorge, providing breathtaking views of the surrounding red sandstone cliffs rising majestically all around us. The gorge then widened as the highway proceeded past Castle and the Professor Valleys, which have been the shooting locations for many western films including Wagon Master and Rio Grande, along with numerous television commercials. A little further on and the highway passed a viewpoint for one of the grandest views in the west, the red rock spires of the Fisher Towers set against the snowy covered peaks of the La Sal Mountains.
After leaving the valley, the road continued further up the river gorge until arriving at the site of the historic
Dewey Bridge which was destroyed in April 2008 by a bush fire. The road then followed the northern bank of the river for a few more miles before exiting the Colorado River gorge completely. At this point the highway proceeded across open desert lands towards the ghost
town of Cisco which was founded as a water refilling station for steam locomotives along the main line of the Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad and a little further on the scenic route ended as we joined the main Interstate 70. Our journey then took us out of the state of Utah (for a while that is) and we headed into Colorado.
COLORADO As we crossed the state border the road sign said
‘Welcome to Colourful Colorado’, most of the states had their own slogan, we liked this one.
We followed the
Colorado River along Interstate 70 and travelled through some absolutely beautiful areas with the road meandering through valleys only just attached to steep canyon walls on both sides. Within
Glenwood Canyon the westbound traffic was high above us on a road balanced from the canyon walls with spaced pillar supports, whilst us eastbound traffic were way below, the river and the train tracks taking up what little space there was left between the narrow canyon walls.
Driving through the narrow passage, cut by the Colorado River was an adventure in itself with so many swift
rapids on the river we felt as though we were being pulled through the gorge, particularly when our eyes caught a few rafters speeding by. We continued to follow the bubbling river, the same river that we had seen flowing through the Grand Canyon in Arizona so many miles away. We travelling through several long tunnels, carved out because there was just no space for any other means of getting through these mountains.
You could see why this was one of the
most difficult roads to build, and one of the last links completed in the web of freeways that criss cross the country. Work began in 1980 and wasn't complete until 1992. Road crews had to dig three tunnels, and build 15 miles of retaining walls and 40 viaducts and bridges. And it didn't come cheap as the price tag for construction was nearly half a billion dollars. However the end result was a marvel of engineering that was really stunning to see and drive along. There were several rest areas located in the canyon and we stopped at one called
Grizzly Creek for lunch and also walked along to a trailhead and took a short
hike along the raging river.
We started to recognise names on the signboards particularly
Aspen and Vail, both winter ski resorts with the latter known for hosting the 1976 Winter Olympic Games. When people think skiing in Colorado, Vail is often the first town that comes to mind. Aspen is known for being the Rocky Mountain playground of the rich and famous. Today though skiing was off the equation, although we could still see snow on some of the downhill ski slopes but the chair lifts were all closed.
We were going to camp in the historic town of
Georgetown but we were getting tired and stopped in
Frisco instead and we were so glad that we did. We called into the visitor centre on the main street, the building was originally built with volunteer labour and served as a Town Hall and Community Centre until 1982. Events included square dances, ballroom dancing and potluck dinners (not sure what these were).
Frisco’s history began with the Ute Indians who first traveled the region now known as Summit County. The first white men to come through this area were known as ’mountain
men’ who trapped in the high mountain lakes for the thick coat of the beaver. Hit by the Depression in the 1930s the population had dropped to only 18 people but it kept going and increased to 50 residents by the mid 1940s. It continued to steadily grow but remained a sleepy town until the ski industry boom which now attracts over 3 million people a year into this area.
We continued to the edge of town arriving at
Peek One Campground near the Dillon Reservoir which was encircled by the
Swan Mountain and the dramatic Gore and Tenmile Ranges. A lovely setting and so quiet with hardly any other campers so we had the choice of many sites. Two elderly hosts arrived on a small tractor and took our monies and chatted for a while. At the campsite we choose there were several cute
Chipmunks who had dug a hole into the barbecue and they stopped to stare at us strangers invading their home - hope we do not 'roast' them tonight…..
A little later sitting by the barbecue (steak was on the menu not chipmunk), a beautiful
Ruby Throated Hummingbird whizzed passed
my ear - we were to see several of these during our time here with the male displaying his lovely crimson breast to try to attract a female - you knew they were near as you could him them buzz past.
The next day we continued our journey when suddenly Paul braked as four massive Elks charged across the road in front of our car - you have to be alert all the time on these roads! These deer were very lucky to get to the other side of the busy dual carriageway crossing both lanes. The last time a deer crossed in front of the car was when I was approaching Romsey in the UK early in the morning - the road was much quieter there … … The traffic steadily increased as we neared
Denver City and we decided not to stop so skirted around the city on various ring roads - maybe another time. The traffic soon eased as we crossed yet another state border, arriving in the town of Cheyenne.
WYOMING
We stopped at another Koa campground in
Cheyenne and found the staff really helpful. Cheyenne, the capital of
Wyoming, was named after the Cheyenne Indian people which inhabited present-day southeastern Wyoming before the white man came to the area. Everywhere its a case of ‘donning’ those cowboy boots and taking a journey back to the Wild, Wild West in this frontier city.
We visited the
Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, which housed one of the best western horse-drawn wagon collections in the States and where they host the annual rodeo. The
‘Daddy of 'em All’ rodeo has been ‘kicking up dust’ since 1897 with is the world's largest outdoor rodeo. The first Frontier Days was held as a cowboy roundup that featured bronco busting and steer roping contests as well as pony races. When the event was over, the cowboys stayed around to sort cattle and brand calves. They also roped steers, demonstrated rope tricks, and challenged each other in the activity that was a true test of a cowboy's skill, which was riding bucking broncos. Everyone liked it so much that the next year’s Frontier Days was expanded to two days and included a parade. More than 100 years later, Cheyenne Frontier Days is a 10-day festival featuring the world's best rodeo action.
That night a giant thunder storm appeared out of nowhere and the winds were really strong so we could not cook at the van but luckily were able prepare a meal in the camp kitchen. Not very enjoyable as it was really cold (the kitchen had no walls) so we ate quickly and returned to what little warmth we had in our van (tucked under the duvet in a few layers of clothes).
Our ‘Eyeball’ camper van was still attracting a lot of attention and there was always someone coming up to have a ‘chat’ with us. We had a visit from couple who seasonally hosted at the campground who originally came from Sussex but left 40 years ago to visit USA and just stayed. They were interested to hear our ‘story’ and it was nice to chat to some Brits for a change, we have not come across many on our recent travels. The couple wanted to know the history of our van and when we said we had hired it in San Francisco - they just said, ‘Oh that explains it’ … … …
In the morning the weather
had not improved and there were lots of grey clouds but we set off for our next destination,
Scotts Bluff heading out of Wyoming and into Nebraska - see you there.
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jenny
non-member comment
Hi there travellers, I do enjoy your blogs also passing them to a friend who has done most of the places you have been, including being in Williams about the same time. we often have potluck dinners, everyone takes a meal, whatever you like, main course,
You might have all of one course of not, it doesn't matter. Keep safe.x