I know – I still have to finish writing about Trip 9 to New England and I will, but time still goes on and my next planned trip is already upon me.
For the second time, I will fly into the area of my trip and rent a car rather than drive. This time, I’ll be heading to Denver and taking a loop around the state of Colorado visiting most of the state’s official park sites.
In my original plan, I visited all 13 sites in Colorado plus one in northern New Mexico. However, just a week before my scheduled departure date, as I reviewed the route I would take, I realized that in driving from Dinosaur National Monument in the northwest corner of the state down to Hovenweep National Monument in the southwest corner, I would drive right past the entrance to Arches National Park. I’d also drive past the turnoff to Canyonlands National Park. Now I had both of these parks slotted for a future trip to Utah, but it seemed stupid to drive right by them now, only to have to return in the future.
So, I dropped Dinosaur National Monument from this trip (it can easily move into another group) and added Arches and Canyonlands National Parks along with Natural Bridges National Monument, which is just south of those parks. Fortunately I was able to do this in a way that only changed one night’s accommodations. The rest of the trip remained the same.
After a late-night flight into Denver, I’ll spend the first day in Colorado not at a park, but visiting a good friend and former co-worker. It’s been 17 years since we last got together so I’m looking forward to it.
The next day, I start the loop. First up is Rocky Mountain National Park. This will be my fourth visit to this beautiful park (1979, 1995, 2006 and now). It is also the first National Park on this trip which will see me visit a total of six Parks, topping the previous number of five from Trip 5 last summer.
In addition to the aforementioned Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, I’ll also stop at Mesa Verde National Park (known for its fascinating communities built into the cliffs by the Pueblo peoples), Great Sand Dunes National Park (one huge sandbox!), and Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (a two-million year old canyon in central Colorado).
With Great Sand Dunes I get a “twofer”. It is paired with Great Sand Dunes National Preserve, a separate unit that shares all facilities with the National Park. One stop, two visits!
I’ll also stop by Curecanti National Recreation Area, located along the Gunnison River (and a few lakes it forms) prior to the river dipping into the Black Canyon mentioned above.
There are several National Monuments, some for very ancient ruins and some for natural features. Finally, two National Historic Sites – one for a trading post (Bent’s Old Fort) and one for – well, it’s name says it all: Sand Creek Massacre.
I’ll also stop at a Park Unit in waiting! Ameche National Historic Site is being developed as an official site. It is currently managed by a local organization in nearby Granada. This site is a location where thousands of American citizens were imprisoned without any due process by a Democratic-led government for the “crime” of having a Japanese ancestor. I’ll rant on this later!
I finally head back to Denver and catch a red-eye flight back to Florida (via Detroit, of course). Though there is some history in this trip, I think the scenery of Colorado (and Utah and New Mexico) will be the highlight. Thank goodness for digital cameras – I could not afford the film and development costs I expect this trip would have generated.
Steve
