Hear That Train a Comin’

Hear That Train a Comin’

In a previous post I recommended not vacationing with your parents or parents-in-law in the same motor home!  I stand by that; what that leaves is the availability to vacation with parents and parents-in-law by any other way then in the same motor home.  Ok, so now that we have the logic out of the way we can delve into the story.

Joan Anderson

Bob Anderson

A few years ago (2008) my mother had a great idea; since they live in Colorado and we hardly ever see their home and yard in the spring and summer, why don’t we come visit and then we will go traveling in Colorado.  Not a long trip but maybe 4 days or so.  She would check into some travel destinations and we would check for hotel rooms since we had an “in” at our favorite accommodator (Marriott).   In passing amusement we considered separate vehicles, but put that aside as we were sure us driving our rental car would suffice.   We humorously refer to this trip as the Train Vacation because we were on a lot of trains (Ok, 2 trains but that can seem like a lot if you rarely take trains).  It was fun and exciting and we saw some amazing scenery and had some great laughs!  I would do it again.

Mary Anderson

David Anderson

 

 

 

 

It’s all a matter of scale

 

You can’t imagine the scale of things from any vantage point in the gorge and I was amazed at how beautiful it was as we rode along the rails.  A viewing car was part of the experience; it was a converted flatbed car with railings.  It was a Wow experience riding that car during the trip.



*The Royal Gorge (also Grand Canyon of the Arkansas) is a canyon on the Arkansas River near Cañon City, Colorado. With a width of 50 feet (15 m) at its base and a few hundred feet at its top, and a depth of 1,250 feet (380 m) in places, the 10-mile-long canyon is a narrow, steep gorge through the granite of Fremont Peak. It is one of the deepest canyons in Colorado.

The train started with a jolt and we began our adventure.  In the beginning it is like a beautiful prairie, long and short grasses, flowers and various plants.  Some old implements were strewn along the side of the track.  Remnants of buildings could be seen.  Then more rocks started to appear, then sheer cliffs rising to the beautiful blue sky.  awesome multicolored granite said to be 1.5 billion years old streams past you and blurs as it whizzes by even at sightseeing speeds.   

 

 

 

This gorge has an interesting and deep history, it has been an attraction for more than a century and this train line was installed in the mid to late 19^th century.   On this day though, in the middle of August, the weather was perfect for this trip.

The train winds parallel to the Arkansas river.  It is wild and beautiful.  As part of this grand sight's history is the  that the gorge was being cut as the mountains that surround it were being pushed skyward.  The river reportedly cuts a foot every 2500 years.  
As written above, it is a matter of scale. 

This trip was a wonderful experience and we speak of it often.  The Colorado Springs and Canon City areas are clearly my favorite spots in Colorado.  My mother is from Canon City, originally being born in Trinidad, CO.  We visited this area many times when I was growing up but I had never rode the Royal Gorge train.  I recommend visiting this sight to everyone.  Unfortunately, this was one of the areas devastated by wild fires recently so the Royal Gorge Bridge Park was very nearly  destroyed. 

*On June 12, 2013, the Royal Gorge Bridge and Park was devastated by a wildfire. While the bridge suffered only minimal damage (some wooden deck planks burned), all but four of the park's 52 buildings were destroyed.  The Incline Railway was severely damaged and the Aerial Tram was destroyed.   Park executives announced on June 13 that the bridge will be repaired and the park rebuilt, but there was no timeline for reopening the bridge and/or park.

 (* information from Wikipedia)

 

 

Wrap it up!

 

I don’t intend this blog to be a vacation blog so let me not lose you.  This trip included other wonderful sights such as the Pikes Peak Cog Rail, Red Rocks ampa-theater, Garden of the Gods and then topped off with a trip to Cripple Creek and casinos.  It was an amazing journey.  I will write more about the trip in later blogs.  We were able to get some fantastic images.  The idea I walk away with from this excerpt of this trip is that our time here on earth is short and seemingly unremarkable in the grand scheme of things.  50 years out of billions of years might mean nothing from the perspective of time.  It takes a river 25 centuries to make only a foot of headway against rock.   Every pebble though, meant progress and changed the landscape.  That is truly Life in Little Pieces. 

 

 

Thanks Mom!