NATIONAL PHOTO MONTH, DAY 8
Hubby and I just returned from a relaxing mini-vacation to the Front Range of the Colorado Rockies.
In Colorado, as has been the case out here on the Plains, spring has been slow to show its face. The trees had even fewer buds than ours at home. We haven't seen this much snow on Pike's Peak in May for several years.
Here's a tidbit about Pike's Peak you may not remember from your school days: Katherine Lee Bates wrote "America the Beautiful" in 1893 after experiencing the breathtaking views from the summit of Pike's Peak.
At 14,115 feet, Pike's Peak is among Colorado's 54 "14ers"--mountains over 14,000 feet high. We've driven to the summit in summer and taken the cog railway to the top in the fall. Even in summer, visitors generally need a jacket to keep the chill off. On our October ascent, we left behind beautiful, fall-jacket weather and were greeted at the top by minus 40-degree F wind chills and icicles hanging from every structure, including the telescopic viewers. It was too cold to take photos that day.
This past Sunday, the day was cloudy and dreary, so my photos are subpar. Each is taken from a different vantage point and at a different time of day.
The first shot is taken from the top of a rock formation in Garden of the Gods. The second is taken from the northern approach to Colorado Springs on I-25. The last photo is taken from Woodland Park, up Ute Pass from Colorado Springs.
No matter how often we visit this area, I never tire of its beauty.
