We were out very early, leaving in the dark to avoid the morning rush-hour traffic on Interstate 25. It worked perfectly, making for a quick and safe drive to Pueblo, Colorado, where we stopped for breakfast at Cracker Barrel.
After breakfast, we continued south on Interstate 25 to Walsenburg, then turned west onto US 160. It's a route we've traveled many times over the years while living in Colorado, usually on our way to visit friends in South Fork.
La Veta Pass on US 160 reaches an elevation of 9,426 feet and lies just south of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains—Spanish for "Blood of Christ." This mountain range is home to three of Colorado's fifty-eight peaks over 14,000 feet, and several more Fourteeners are nearby. In almost every direction, the views are filled with towering mountains.
About sixteen miles north of US 160 is Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, a place that seems almost out of place among so many rugged peaks. The massive dunes rising from the valley floor create one of Colorado's most unusual landscapes.
Continuing west on US 160, we passed through Alamosa, Monte Vista, Del Norte, and South Fork—mostly small towns with populations ranging from around 500 to nearly 10,000. All are on or near the Rio Grande, a river where I've been fortunate enough to catch a few nice trout over the years.
A few miles west of South Fork, the road began another steady climb, eventually reaching 10,856 feet at Wolf Creek Pass. From there, it was a long 7% descent into one of the most beautiful valleys in Colorado.
The next town was Pagosa Springs, a place that doesn't bring back especially fond memories. On October 24, 2010, while returning home from a two-month road trip around the country, we struck a deer just outside of town. We eventually made it home in a rental car while our insurance company invested more than $9,000 repairing our badly damaged Honda Accord.
The rest of the drive to Farmington, New Mexico, was uneventful. Tomorrow brings a short drive to Flagstaff, Arizona, for our final overnight stop before heading home and bringing another memorable road trip to a close.
No comments:
Post a Comment