Yesterday morning Lyle asked if I'd like to go for a drive up in the mountains. I'm always up for a drive with that man, so I immediately said yes. Then he asked if I wanted to do the "short drive" or the "long drive." Apparently he's been planning various scenic routes for just such occasions. I chose the long one... which turned out to be a 300+ mile loop! The kids chose not to go since we didn't have a particular destination in mind.
The calendar says it's spring, but we've learned you can't always go by that in the mountains. We've been turned back by snow-covered roads on early spring drives in Idaho, so we weren't sure what to expect. However, most of the mountain roads in Idaho are Forest Service roads. There are more "main highways" traversing the mountains in Colorado, even though the altitude is higher, so we didn't run into any difficulties on this trip.
It was too overcast for spectacular pictures, but we enjoyed the scenery anyway. We learned that Mount Elbert is the highest peak in the Rocky Mountains. Lyle wondered why Pikes Peak is more famous. I speculated that maybe it was the first peak the pioneers could see as they were crossing the prairie... but I don't really know.
I love mountain streams in the springtime. I would love to see this vista on a sunny day.
We stopped at several scenic overlooks and "points of interest." Unfortunately, we weren't actually able to read the signs at this pullout, with that big snow drift between the parking area and the signs, not to mention the ginormous puddle!
We enjoyed learning more about the history of mining in Colorado, and seeing some of the popular ski areas.
We are looking forward to summer when the camping and hiking areas will be accessible.
