Miles Driven: 670
States: Colorado
Colorado Stole My Heart
We stopped on the side of the road so many times to snap pictures of Colorado’s beauty. It reminds me SO much of Washington 🤩
The Maroon Bells
Only 12 miles southwest of Aspen, in the Elk Mountains, is Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak. These are better known as the Maroon Bells.
Located in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness of White River National Forest.
Maroon Lake occupies a basin that was sculpted by Ice-Age glaciers and later dammed by landslide debris from the steep slopes above the valley floor.
Labeled the most famous scenes in Colorado, the “most-photographed spot in Colorado”, and one of Colorado’s premier scenic overlooks. You can see why this state and specifically this area stole my heart. It’s easily one of my favorite places on my road trip!
Maroon Lake sits at 9,610 feet in elevation and both peaks are over 14,000 feet in elevation.
No wonder it’s called Aspen, Maroon Lake is surrounded by hundreds of thousands of Aspen trees.
Keep your eyes wide open, we saw so much wildlife here! Unfortunately, it was either too far away or I wasn’t quick enough, so no pictures! We saw a bunny in the field, a yellow-bellied marmot, a deer, and a bird that flew right into the windshield. Okay, that part was not fun, it was terribly sad but unavoidable.
Yelping My Way Across the United States: Eddyline Brewery & Pub
Colorado State Highway 82, Independence Pass, is an exceedingly high mountain pass sitting at over 12,000 feet elevation between Aspen and Twin Lakes. Coming into Aspen from the west and not wanting to backtrack in route to Colorado Springs, this two-lane pass was our only option out.
I’m not terrified of heights, but I’m not sure I could have sat in the passenger seat on this stretch of the highway. Steep drop-offs, substantial inclines, and declines on 180° turns while the road interchanged between one and two lanes made this the most challenging drive the entire trip. Fortunately, although my aunt is scared of heights, she remained calm and quiet. The worst passenger is one who verbally or physically expresses their anxieties, mostly by use of the oh-shit handle and backseat driving.
Due to traffic traveling at a measly 10mph most of this stretch I hadn’t anticipated locating a restaurant for dinner before arriving in Colorado Springs. As soon as we came upon cell service and the next town, I’m sure you already guessed what I did…Yelp!
Raspberry IPA and Gin and Raspberry IPA cocktail!
Browns Canyon Pizza; BBQ sauce, roasted chicken, red onions, cheddar-jack cheese, and fresh cilantro!
