We arrived in Colorado Springs KOA for a short but wonderful stay. We fortunately headed to The Garden Of The Gods on the day after we got there – Saturday, October 7th.
Garden Of The Gods – aptly named. Who but the gods could have so carefully placed those red rocks? Who else would have created a rock garden of such immense size and grandeur? The Visitor Center was overflowing with people. We had come on the Harvest Festival and Fossil Day and so had hundreds of others. As we approached, we saw long lines of cars in every direction looking for parking. This day’s festivities included a large festival in the park across the highway from the Visitor Center. It must have been a great day over there but we chose to head to Center first, immediately found a parking space, and there we stayed.
We spent some time enjoying the displays, including the special exhibits of fossils. We got a kick out of watching a baby armadillo scamper around a plastic pool filled with mulch and sprinkled with his favorite food – meal worms. We watched a movie depicting the creation of The Garden Of The Gods, which answered the question – who put those rocks there? The answer is in millions of years of activity of the Earth’s crust. The red sandstone mega monoliths now stand upright from their original horizontal position. Their placement is a result of a dynamic fault thrust. Their shapes and designs were created by the forces of wind and water. So random and strange. Earth’s artistry.
We left our car happily parked and took the trail from the Visitor Center to the center of The Garden – about a mile – but an easy trail with views of those spectacular rocks. The mountains in the far background were beautiful too – especially the highest – Pike’s Peak. We chose not to drive up to Pike’s Peak since my altitude issues would interfere with our enjoyment of it. 14,000 feet is 8,000 feet higher than the 6,000 feet that gave me a day-long migraine and a week of shortness of breath. But we took photos of this famous peak and settled for that.
Garden Of The Gods viewed from the Visitor Center
Rock Formations at Garden Of The Gods
Rock Formations at Garden of the Gods
Pike’s Peak through the trees
Pike’s Peak
Our pleasant hike around the rock formations took about two hours and we were up close and personal with some of the more iconic ones. My favorite was seen from the Visitor Center – The Kissing Camels.
The Kissing Camels
We ate a nice lunch on the Patio of the Visitor Center before our hike and then returned for ice cream cones after. The Garden Of The Gods is a city park, claiming to be rated #2 in the world. Colorado Springs proudly maintains this gem. We looked through lists of the most beautiful city parks and although we didn’t see The Garden Of The Gods listed, our personal rating is #1.
We appreciated the hospitality of the gods, who granted us bright blue skies, warm temperatures with cool breezes as we marveled at their rocks (plus the perfect parking spot).
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A Perfectly Cozy Snowy Day
We hustled out of Colorado Springs one day early (really happy that we had such a great day in the Gods’ Garden). Snow was predicted. Winter is coming! We don’t want to be driving the RV on icy roads with poor visibility. As we were packing up Saturday night, it was clear bright blue cloudless skies and temps in the high 70’s. Hard to believe in the forecasts of snow. We arrived at Trinidad State Park and serendipitously found that our reserved campsite was available one night early. The ranger told us that the camper in our site left early to avoid the snow.
The temperature was still high; the sky was still clear. Snow? Are you kidding? But by nightfall, the temps dropped 35 degrees. It snowed on and off all day Monday.
The day after the snowfall
Trinidad State Park is beautiful – high cliffs covered in fir trees with a dapple of yellow aspen trees. Our front window view took in a high oddly shaped mesa; our side views were firs. When the snow was heavily falling, the mountains disappeared. When it stopped, the snowy trees sparkled against the blue sky. Our RV was cozy and warm. Our fireplace proved to be delightful. We kept busy – Doug on the computer; me with some sewing projects. Every time we thought the flurries had stopped, they started up again. So pretty (when seen from inside!) A perfectly cozy snowy day in lovely Colorado.
Sunset at Trinidad State Park