Alamosa to Montrose, the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, and Colorado National Monument

Hello from Moab, Utah!

First, for the record, all of Colorado has not been burned to cinders by wild fires.  Only part of the State has.  We stopped at a Colorado Visitor's Center specifically to verify this since we were in CO and had not seen any fires.  We were told, however, that Colorado Springs is having some fire issues so that may affect the end of the expedition since that is one of our intended stops.

We drove from Alamosa to Montrose on Monday and made a quick stop at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison.  Barb, if you are reading this, you do NOT want to come here.  The photo below should be reason enough!

 

This photo was taken looking straight down into the canyon from behind the visitor's center at the park.  It's about 2700 feet to the bottom!  We did not spend too much time at the park Monday afternoon since we wanted to check in at the KOA. 

Montrose is a pretty town with lots of things to do besides go to the National Park.  In was surprised to see that the McDonalds in town has a sign with only one Arch.  Has anyone seen on like this anywhere else? 

 

 

After gawking at the McDonalds sign we planned our itinerary for Tuesday.  Jim and I took a two mile hike called the Oak Flat Hike.  Not sure how it got the a name with the word Flat in it because it was decidedly NOT flat.  We gaped at even more deep gorges along the way but also saw some interesting flowers.  I especially liked the flowering cactus.

 

 

After our joint hike, Jim took another 2 mile hike and I drove the scenic drive along the rim of the canyon.  The photo below is typical.

 

 

Wednesday we played golf at The Bridges with some folks we know from Florida.  It's a beautiful course with some amazing views as seen in the following two shots.

 

 

After my excitement over seeing my first Yellow Headed Blackbird in Alamosa, it was amusing to see that the golf course seems to have hundreds of them.  We saw at least one on almost every hole.

 

Our golf companions also took us on a scenic drive of one area most tourists will not see without a guide.  The photos below were taken on Owl Creek Pass.  Note the snow under the trees in the first one.  The second is a photo of the aforementioned Owl Creek.




 

Our guides also pointed out the field where a famous gun fight scene in the movie True Grit was filmed.  Jim really liked that movie so he was quite impressed. 

 

Wednesday (today) we drove from Montrose to Moab via the Colorado National Monument.  This is an amazing drive to make.  It's 22 miles long and the scenery is incredible as seen below.

 

It's difficult to select only a couple of pictures to represent the whole drive so I've added one more.

 

This still does not do it justice but it will have to suffice for now. 

 

So, tomorrow we are going to see Canyonlands National Park after my Hot Air Balloon ride in the morning.  I have to be there at 5:30 AM since dawn is best for photos.  One thing I will say about Moab - it is very hot here.  Supposedly it was 101 degrees for a high today.  Tomorrow should be a more reasonable 97.  Thankfully, there is no humidity.

 

So, until later, have a great day!

 

Mattie and Jim