September 8th -- Crossing the Rockies

Well, I took the get-out-of-Moab-and-head-East option. Got up, packed up the BMW, broke camp, and was on the road at about 9:15 this morning. I discovered last night that a little southeast of Aspen there are some ghost towns that appear to be more easily accessible than the Nevada ones. The route by them leaves I-70 at Glenwood Springs, heads southeast to Aspen, then through Aspen, through some hills, then back up to I-70 at Vail. So, this route would not only get me to ghost towns, but would also drive through Aspen and Vail, which might be neat all by itself.

I figured I could do that, and then take the freeway via Denver to the Colorado Springs area, spend the night in Colorado Springs, do the Pikes Peak hill Thursday morning, then head out to Topeka. Colorado Springs is only about 550 miles from there now, so this should work out perfectly.

Soon after crossing into Colorado, I stopped at the CO Welcome Center. I've never stopped at those places before, but it was very nice. They have brochures from nearly every tourist attraction you can imagine, as well as maps, and personal assistants to help you figure out how to make the best use of your time in their state. Perfect for people like me!

The guy helping me, George, didn't seem to know about these ghost towns past Aspen. We looked at a huge wall map of the state that has ghost towns identified, and actually it looked like maybe I should just stay on I-70 past the Eisenhower tunnel and stop in a town called Idaho Springs. There, George tells me, there is a nifty gold mine tour, and the big map says there's a ghost town too (but didn't know any details, nor could he find any brochures for anything in Idaho Springs). Still, he said he's done the gold mine tour himself, and loved it. Couldn't find a brochure, but found another one for a gold mine tour in Breckenridge.

He also suggested doing something completely different, namely getting off of I-70 right there in Grand Junction (which, incidentally, is where I saw a UFO with a bunch of other people who can corroborate my story, back in '91), and taking US-50 (which is the route I'd been taking for most of this trip) to Colorado Springs. But I was worried about the mountain passes that might be on US-50. George said I didn't need to worry about it, but hey, I didn't want to get stuck somewhere truly nowhere.

So, with the plan to head to Idaho Springs, I hopped back into the RV and hit the road. Soon after, though, I decided to revert to my original plan (Aspen, ghost towns, Vail, freeway to Colorado Springs). I got off the freeway in Glenwood Springs, headed towards Aspen. After passing through town, there is a sign that says "Independence Pass OPEN! Maximum vehicle length 35'". Whoops. I'm longer than 35' without the trailer. What I didn't know is -- am I planning to go over Independence Pass? So, I pulled over and started going over the maps on the computer. Sure 'nuff, just past Aspen, fairly near these ghost towns I was planning on seeing, is the pass. And it's very curvy. It's actually comical how it looks on the computer when you zoom way in.

So much for that plan. Turned around and headed back to I-70. Now, this brochure for the ghost town in Breckenridge, I'd actually identified that as an option when I was going through the AAA software on the computer. So, I pulled off at a scenic overlook (which wasn't very scenic, so no pictures) and made some calls -- first to the gold mine, who told me I didn't need a reservation, tours leave on the hour, be there 10 minutes before (okay), and then to find a campground near Pikes Peak. Took four calls before I found one that could fit me in (not because they were full, necessarily, but because I need a long "pull-through" site, thanks to the car trailer. I can back up the trailer, but that leaves the motorhome too far from the hookups.)

As I was driving up the hill, I realized how nice it is in western Colorado. It doesn't look like the desert of pretty much everything west of there. Lots of trees, and grass, and water. And hills.

So, I headed to Breckenridge. What a great town! I've never been. The gold mine is just a couple of miles out of town (the last 3/4 of which is a dirt road). Outside the mine are two big Newfoundlands (very friendly, very big dogs) and a whole bunch of ... donkeys, I guess. They walk right up to you and nuzzle. Even the babies. And man -- were they ever dusty. Just one pat and dirt flies off!

I learned all sorts of surprising and interesting things about mining in general and about this mine in particular. Ask me about it sometime! Took lots of pictures, and then panned for gold (and found some, they estimated it at 30 to 50 cents worth. I gave it to my guide as a tip.)

I forgot to buy a refrigerator magnet.

The routing software recommended a backroad route to Colorado Springs from Breckenridge. I decided that I had plenty of time, and decided to do it. Who needs interstates? So, I'm here in a campground now at the base of Pikes Peak, and only a few miles from real civilization (Colorado Springs), but you'd never know it from the route I took. I've seen very little commercialism at all! For those who are curious, I took highway 9 south out of Breckenridge, through the 10,000 foot (altitude, they aren't that long) towns of Alma, Fairplay, then east on US-24 through Lake George and Divide, not far from Cripple Creek (which I recognize from the Creedence Clearwater Revival song). Through the Pike National Forest, and then to the campground here in Woodland Park.

This is by far the prettiest campground I've been too. Very forested, yet we're here at 8500 feet of elevation. It's pretty full, and it appears that lots of the campers here are relatively permanent. Must be a nice place. They have a picnic table outside by the office with a permanently wired phone line for modem access. I thought that was a nice touch :-) You just need to wear a jacket while you surf, I discovered.

Anyway, tomorrow morning I'll do the Pikes Peak hill, and then stop at a couple of places as I leave town (all pretty much right here). On the agenda is some cool-sounding caves at Caves of the Winds, and then there's a ghost town museum (I'm determined!) in Colorado Springs, right on the way to the highway. It's not a ghost town, but maybe it'll be enjoyable. Then, it's off to Topeka. Probably without any stops, except maybe at that World's Largest 5-legged Prairie Dog place along I-70 that's been there every year. I'm curious.

Thanks for reading!
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