Colorado Part One

I can still remember the moment that sparked my passion for traveling. I'd taken this last minute trip to Colorado-- my sister and I were going to drive down to Tennessee to visit my brother, but she'd had to cancel a few days out. I still had the time off of work. That, combined with a desperate need to get away from the things going on in my personal life at that time-- along with a healthy dose of Tom Petty's American Girl on my lunch break-- inspired my last minute road trip.

"After all, it was a great, big world... with lots of places to run to..." Thanks, Tom Petty.

And so it was decided. Nineteen hours through Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, and, at last, Colorado. I left after work on a Wednesday, spent the night at a sketchy Motel 6 in Indiana, and hit the road fresh the next morning. It was March, but the weather was beautiful. Slightly windy, especially through the plains in Nebraska.

Once I got past the Chicago area, everything I was seeing was new to me-- the ride flew by, punctuated by stops every four hours for gas. I'm not a stopper when it's just me. I'd much rather get myself a good soundtrack for the drive and some changing scenery, and just go. And so I did.

I entered colorful Colorado late afternoon, just before the sun started to set. I remember turning off I-80 to head towards Loveland and Estes Park as the light was beginning to fade. I could see what looked like clouds in the distance, and lamented the fact that I couldn't see any mountains yet. Until I realized that those clouds-- those were, in fact, mountains. The Rocky Mountains, very far in the distance. 

 An addictive blend of awe and adrenaline took me right to Big Thomson Canyon, the link between Loveland and Estes Park. By that time, it had grown dark, which would've been fine if not for my terrible night vision, failing GPS signal thanks to the mountains, and lack of any kind of real map. I'd been the passenger while driving through the Appalachians, but had no experience driving on or near mountains myself. Great!

I think I drove about five miles an hour the entire time. Imposing rock walls on one side and drop offs that I couldn't quite make out on the other. I had no idea where I was going, which turned out to be fine-- I was on a major through road where my only real option was to head into Estes Park, anyways. But I didn't know that then, so I just pushed forward and hoped for the best. 

Once I hit Estes Park, my GPS started working again and I found my hotel, the Rocky Mountain Park Inn. 

Taken the next day

And all of that, leads me to the next morning. I stepped out of my hotel and saw mountains. Estes Park has the unique distinction of being located IN the Rocky Mountains-- it's a great access point for those hitting up Rocky Mountain National Park, which, thanks to it being March and my first time solo traveler anxieties, I did not. I was grateful to experience a little bit of the Rockies from the comfort of Estes Park, however.

I ventured out a little further to the water, and saw my first snow caps. 

That. That did it for me. From that moment on, I was hooked-- wanting to see everything. With a couple trips back to where it first began, of course.