Wrath of the Gods

on the third full day I spent here, I was able to spend a little bit more time doing creative things. 

Modern Market for lunch with two friends who were also visiting from my hometown of York Pa, and whom then spent much of the day with me. We drove to Aurora to see the Century 16 that was attacked, snapped a photo, and immediately fled for Colorado Springs.

My friends Shae and Caryn took me down to Co. Springs. The drive was gorgeous.

Garden of the Gods was an Ute Reservation until 1860 when pioneers came in. it was renovated by a plethora of people before becoming public domain in 1909. to this day, it is constantly added to and spans 1370 acres. Pike's pea, named after Zebulon Pike, never made it to the top of the 14,000 foot mountain. The view from the top of this mountain inspired Katharine Lee Bates to pen America the Beautiful on a 1895. Alot of the original formations that the Red Rock indians inhabited 3400 years ago still remain today. And so, I decided to meander out into the park.

And here I learned, in the Midwest, if you see a cloud, you RUN.

I then got trapped in a monster hailstorm underneath a rock in the center of the park. I eventually said screw.it and bolted towards the visitor center, getting bombarded and gashed open in the process. I made it to a parking lot, where I found a pleasant Hungarian woman and her family waiting out the storm. Out of the kindness in their heart, they gave me a ride back up to the guest center, where I hailed an Uber to reunite me with my friends.

Wherever you are, Hungarian Family, Köszönöm!

My 20 minute uber ride took me through Old Colorado City, capital pf Colorado for 5 days. people come from all over just to race there and in Pike's Peak. I came back up to my friend's apartment, changed clothes, and got ready for the rest of the evening.

I ended up having the same Uber to go to and from the next two locations. he was a very nice guy from Ethiopia who moved to Colorado about 8 years prior. my first destination was to be Columbine High School, to see the current state of affairs after the horrible massacre 20 years prior. it was easily the most sobering part of my trip to Colorado, and I'm very fortunate that I got to pay my respects to it.

The hillside by the school was extremely placid.

Dinner that night was at Casa Bonita, a beautiful addition to downtown Denver, and a definite tourist spot. They had all you could eat meat enchiladas for $16, but being vegetarian, I had to get a special order (which cost more). They had a gift shop in this Spanish Caballero-themed place, as well as an arcade and a diving show.

Holy House!

Visit Denver sometime - just avoid the hail.

Mansions and Avalanches

On the second day, I took a 4-mile walk 2 the Highland Ranch. I have recovered quite well from a day of hiking prior, so I figured that I would add more insult to injury. After a 5 minute Uber the rest of the way, I arrived.

And to think this building was once a ranch house!

The Mansion is 27,000 sq ft and was first settled in 1884 after a big move by Samuel Allen Long from a farm in Pittsburgh. called Rothersford. it was then toned and expanded upon by John Springer, a businessman from Texas. it was next owned by Waite Phillips, the same person who produced the Tulsa Oklahoma Art Museum from his old house and also established Philmont Scout ranch in New Mexico. in the 80s or so, it was purchased by Lawrence Phipps, the only man to live in the house (and he did so for 39 years). the residents was then finally purchased in 2010 in renovated, and became the beautiful space that it is to this day. after this, I got an Uber from a man who was well versed in the town's history, and who encouraged me to visit local spots. This included the Highline Canal, a feature point of dry farming and great for tubing, the residence of Richard Little, and the Welte Cheese Ranch.

The first room of the facility, and the most opulent.

I then took a ride into Littleton, where I got my next two tattoos at Think Tank South. This was followed by Lunce from Grande Bistro and two beers at Ned Kelly's Irish Pub, some walks at Bega Park, and a light rail trip into Denver. Although I wasn't in Denver long due to heading to a concert that night, I had a blast for the few minutes I was wandering town. I bought after care at Whole Foods for my tattoo and headed back into Highland's Ranch.

Oh Ireland, how I have missed ye.

On my way back to my friend's apartment, I had a great time chatting to some locals, but I made the Fatal flaw of leaving my wallet on the bus. They never found it, so I ended up canceling all of my cars and getting new ones when I return home. This was the pic fall. However, this Pitfall still landed me enough time to go to the Red Rocks Amphitheatre and see a gnarly outdoor concert.

what was really neat about Red Rocks Amphitheatre is that it is settled in a Precambrian River Valley that was dug out and turned into and Amphitheatre. There's so much culture and history here dating back literally millions of years, and I felt quite of these monks all the people who are way too Under the Influence for their own good. We didn't stay long, as tomorrow was another early day filled with canceling credit cards and talking to people about my driver's license, but it was well worth it.

It was too dark for good pictures, but this is the site model.