In my last blog post--click here--I showed a few local places along the Colorado Front Range where we took close friends that were visiting from the east and staying with us for days before a ski trip. On another day my husband and I decided to take them to Colorado Springs to see another one of our favorite places, the Garden of the Gods Park. (See some more extensive prior posts about the park here and here.) When we approached the north entrance of the park it was unfortunately closed as road and sewer construction was going on, so we had to skip the visitor center in that area and enter the park through the southern entrance. There we almost immediately saw one of the most popular attractions: Balanced Rock. We parked in a nearby lot so we could take photos of the rock and our friends had fun posing with it, as you can see.
Balanced Rock is at 6,286 feet (1915.9 M) elevation in the park. Doesn't it look like it could topple over at any minute?
We drove on to see more...
The Garden of the Gods Park is a registered National Natural Landmark. It is full of towering sandstone rock formations against a backdrop of snow-capped Pikes Peak and brilliant blue skies. It contains 21 miles of trails and is popular for hiking, technical rock climbing, road and mountain biking, and horseback riding. It attracts more than two million visitors a year, making it the city's most visited park.
Although we did stop to walk a few short trails we mainly drove around the park on this visit it was late afternoon when we arrived and winter daylight would not be lasting much longer.
The waning sunlight made the formations glow.
That is what we love about the park as each season and time of day can bring different views and effects.
One happy surprise is seeing a herd of wild Bighorn Sheep eating in one of the fields in the park!
We spent quite a bit of time taking photos of them. Although their numbers are growing, and they are the official mammal of the state of Colorado, seeing them in person is a rarity, as they usually habitat in the wilderness at high elevations.
A view of some of the trails inside the park.
A view looking at Juniper Way Loop, looking South.
The rock formations are breathtaking...
...and so colorful!
It was a wonderful drive
More of the beautiful giant red rocks structures including a view of snow-capped Pikes Peak --America's Mountain--in the upper right of the photo collage above. Pikes Peak is a 14,115-foot (4,302.31 m) high mountain located in Pike National Forest. My husband and I have driven to the top of the mountain many times and took the Cog Railroad to the top once. There have been many renovations happening on the mountain with a new visitors center and new cog railroad track and cars--click here-- to see a visit we made with friends to see those renovations in progress last summer. The famous "Kissing Camels" formation is seen in the lower right photo in the collage above.
Before we left the Colorado Springs area we took a drive to historic Manitou Springs, located at the foot of Pike's Peak. Please click on the photo collage above to enlarge it for easier viewing.
Please click on the photo to enlarge it to read the information on the placard.
Another wildlife sighting and traffic jam made us laugh as we left Manitou Springs! A flock of Wild Turkeys was crossing the road!
They seemed to enjoy peeking at the rocks of a Sinclair Gasoline Station and the green brontosaurus sculpture did not scare them a bit!
The light was fading as we drove home...
...and we were fortunate to see a gorgeous golden sunset light up the entire Colorado Front Range!
Our friends left the next day to go skiing in Steamboat Springs, where they had a wonderful time. We hope they will return in the future for another visit with us and another ski adventure. It was so much fun to share some of our favorite places with them and we will have even more show them next time
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39 comments:
What stunning scenery! That rock does look like it could topple over.
What wonderful photos of the amazing Garden of the Gods.
Beautiful photos - I just love the first few photos of that big stone balanced on a small limb
I often wonder when those balancing boulders are going to fall...
Wow, what stunning rock formations. Stunning.
It is the best when you can share with friends...Amazing landscape and I always love the red rock as there isn't anything like that here....Michelle
Beautiful images from Garden of the Gods. I have only spent a very short time there, but I have seen some of those formations and they are awesome.
What amazing rockformations - and love the golden sunset! Wow! Looks like a fab trip! #RubyTuesdayToo
Brilliant scenery.
Thanks again, Pat for sharing these amazing photos of the wonderful few days we spent in your area, We would definitely love to see more of Colorado in the summertime!
What a fab set of photos love the one that is on the edge heheh!
Have a Gardenofgodstastic week 👍
Seems like a memorable adventure.Beautiful photos of rock formation. I like the wild turkey picture that created a traffic jam.
Another lovely day with friends! That balancing rock is so neat.
What a wonderful time you showed your friends! My goodness, your photos are stunning and really show how diverse our country is. Ending the day with that gorgeous sunset must have thrilled you all.
...a beautiful part of the country!
Such interesting rock formations. That rock does look like it could topple at any moment. I think I'd probably avoid standing under it. :)
Those rock formations are amazing especially the balancing one. Thanks for taking us on a sight seeing tour as well. you live in a wonderful part of the world.
Beautiful shots! I am familiar with this area due to a Colorado Springs blogger.
Beautiful landscapes and Balanced Rock certainly looks as though it would be unstable!
Garden of the Gods is truly stunning. I enjoyed it on our visit there last summer. Thanks for sharing the photos. #HomeMattersParty
So much to see and enjoy in your post.
The rock formations are truly breath-taking.
Happy March Wishes.
All the best Jan
Fascinating trip. Gorgeous Garden of the Gods. And I've always been curious about Manitou Springs. My long-ago boyfriend dumped me for a Pisces he met at an astrology conference and moved to Manitou Springs. I think I dodged a bullet there -- and I got to keep the friends! (Which would have been tricky if they'd stayed here!)
Oh, I have been at some hot springs on my IG - good to hear about yours! What a fabulous National park that balancing rock and photos are fun!
Have a lovely week Pat
Wren x
What a marvelous place to visit!
Beautiful scenery!
What wonderful photos! Weren't you scared that big rock would topple in the first photos?? The Bighorn Sheep look pretty amazing too.
Great pics of the Red Rocks, we were there years ago and it would bear another visit.
Pikes peack is amazing. Being able to drive all the way up!! We took the cog railway up and wow, was i dragging at the top. Before that trip I was entertaining the idea of running the race up it but I knew I wouldn't be able to make it. Plus a friend of mine did it one year and he was fine except a lightning storm came up and he said it was kind of scary watching lightning below him.
Nice post!!
Balanced rock looks amazing! Actually, the entire place looks amazing. So awesome to see the bighorn sheep. Looks like a healthy herd. They are extremely rare to see in Joshua Tree, where I like to hike.
Hello Pat,
The Garden of the Gods looks like a great place to visit. I would like to see the Balance Rock and hike on the trails. The landscapes and rock formations are beautiful. The Bighorn Sheep are cool critters. Neat sighting of the wild turkeys. I am sure your friends enjoyed the tour. Wonderful photos. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, enjoy your weekend. PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.
Your friends couldn't have had a better Colorado experience -- what wonderful tour guides you two are! Fabulous that you got to see the sheep!!! Garden of the Gods is one of at least two places in beautiful Colorado that would be a National Park in any other State!
The scenery is absolutely beautiful. The balanced rock is incredible, I've never seen it but seen it in photos. thanks for sharing your beautiful photos and have a nice weekend.
It really does amaze me that you can go for a drive and see so much! WOW! Just gorgeous rock formations and such a treat to see animals. I made Navajo Tacos last night. I made the Indian fry bread and put chili and toppings on it! I haven't made one in a long time and it was delicious! Makes me think of the West!
Wow! That is quite the 'Garden of the Gods' ~ beautiful photos ~ and fun road trip ~ Xo
Wishing you love and peace in your days,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
Greetings and Salutations! Oh happy days, I got to see your wonderful photographs again. They are over the top gorgeous.
What a beautiful landscape with these rock formations.
That rock looks like it's about to fall over.
Greetings Irma
The views are awesome! Loved all the pics.
Your photos are fabulous . I've never been to Colorado so I really enjoyed all these places and animals that I never seen. I hope to get to Colorado one day! On my list.
Hello, :=) Amazing scenery,with all those natural rock formations. The Spring water must taste wonderful. Fun photo of the turkeys crossing the road, and those lovely unexpected views of the Bighorn sheep. Magnificent images of the Garden Of the Gods, and it's easy to see why it is so named.
Pat, I was not familiar with this gem of a park, so thank you so much for sharing your stunning photos and the history of this landmark with us! CONGRATS - you are one of our Featured Friends this week at Friendship Friday at Create With Joy! :-)
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