In last week's blog post-- click here-- I showed our drive west from Loveland, Colorado, to Estes Park and into Rocky Mountain National Park along Highway 34, and the Big Thompson River Canyon route. Afterward, we returned on Highway 34 to drive east back to Loveland and then Fort Collins, where we stayed for a few days at the end of April.
As you can see, we had blue skies for part of the drive...
...but soon hit fog as we climbed in elevation.
The foggy views were beautiful and atmospheric.
We noticed two memorial plaques at a pull-off and stopped to read them. The first was a memorial to two law enforcement officers, Colorado State Patrol Sgt. W. Hugh Purdy and Estes Park Patrol Michel O. Conley. They both died trying to save lives on July 31, 1976 when more than 140 people perished during a flash flood of Big Thompson Canyon.
Ellis worked as an engineer for the Colorado Department of Transportation. had been leading the rebuilding of U.S. Highway 34 through Big Thompson Canyon after the 2013 flood disaster
“His dedication, passion, and caring grace for the people of Colorado will be profoundly missed,” the Department of Transportation said in a statement.
Video #1 shows the 2013 flood on this link.
Video #10 is about the two and a half year engineering challenge to redo US Highway 34 through the Big Thompson Canyon to prevent flooding damage in the future. It can be seen on this link.
We appreciated all the apparent improvements made to the road during our drive.
We almost passed by this outlet of the Colorado Cherry Pie Company at 1024 US-34! In fact, my husband made a U turn to return to stop at this store along the Big Thompson Canyon. How could we resist?
The displays inside of all kinds of fruit pies, fruit condiments, and gift items were delightful!
The Colorado Cherry Pie Company began in 1929 with Grandma Katherine's roadside stand, where she sold homemade pies with their delicious flaky crust. In the 1960s, the second generation opened this store in Loveland. In 2000, the third generation opened shops in Lyons and Estes Park, Colorado, adding more types of pies to the menu. In 2020, fourth-generation Lehnert’s introduced the next chapter of the family business, and a new branch called Legacy Pie Co. was born with locations in Denver.
We chose a cherry pie to take home with us.
The store clerk told us the seven hearts along the top crust were traditional.
It was the best cherry pie I've ever had! The crust was exceptional, and the cherry filling was very full, fresh, and not overly sweet. I would definitely recommend trying one of their pies--they make other flavors as well--if you visit one of their stores!
Colorado has 26 beautiful scenic and historic byways, and whenever we know of one near where we travel, we make a point to drive along them.....more on my next post.
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22 comments:
It sounds like you had an amazing time, you can almost feel the atmosphere from the mountain photos. The memorial plaques are so interesting and obviously very sad.
The cherry pie looks amazing, there's nothing better than handmade and fresh.
Hello Pat,
What a beautiful day and a gorgeous scenic drive.
I love the views of the canyon and the river.
The cherry pie looks delicious.
Take care, have a wonderful day and a happy week ahead.
That U-Turn was a great idea! What a fun little shop on your great adventure!
Wow, I love cherry pie and cannot remember the last time I had any. That looks great.
That looks amazing. I think it's been a couple of years since I had cherry pie. I need to remedy that!
Thanks for sharing at https://image-in-ing.blogspot.com/2025/05/a-few-photos-of-forrest.html
What a lovely road trip! And that pie wasn't bad either! Visiting from #MMBC
The best time for a slice of cherry pie is ..... Always!!! My favorite dessert.
As for Big Thompson, I've shared before that it has a special place in my memories. Although we came from Colorado, my husband was stationed with the USAF in Rapid City during the flood of the Big Thompson in 1976. It hit close to home in our hearts.
Thank you for this post.
That looks like such a cute store; and well worth turning around to check out!
Lovely photos of the road trip. The cherry pie looks delicious!
wow the landscapes are amazing, and that cherry pie looks so delicious! yum! Happy travels, have a great week, I am joining you at Mosaic Monday.
I remember those places ! Loving the virtual travel and as always you have shared information that I didn’t know.
I would have made a U-turn too! That sounds wonderful. It's getting to be cherry season here -- my favorite. What a beautiful drive. I love the fog so long as it's high enough it doesn't make driving a challenge. Otherwise, it adds such an interesting dimension to it all. Beautiful territory -- I've enjoyed following on your trip!
...thanks for taking me along to see all the roughed beauty. Do they mail order cherry pies?
Important to remembering! And of course we love Cherry Cake too. :))
It's raining outside, it's a holiday here and it's a pleasure to visit you - dear blog friends - in the afternoon. Happy MosaicMonday!
...thank you for your contribution to the link party, it was a pleasure to read your post.
Have a great week.
Beautiful!
That cherry pie looks delicious.
All the best Jan
Sad..I am going to go watch those videos.....Michelle
In my limited experience, those road side pie shops offer the best ones.
Worth a Thousand Words
My mouth is literally watering!
It's a good thing you turned around! That pie looks delicious and what a cute shop. Thank you for linking up and have a great weekend.
It looks like you two enjoyed the scenery with fog and without, the plaques honoring heroes, and the pies. Great memories are being made right now.
Love the scenic views and the history behind the area. That pie sounds like a must-try, especially with its long family tradition. Glad you made the U-turn for it! 🍒🥧
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