Here's a big surprise...I love visiting places that I have never been and revisiting places that I love. So as we were heading into the Pike National Forest on Route 285 we passed this place. I had to stop and get a picture. On this remote mountain road it took a few miles to find a place to make a U turn. But there was no way I wasn't going to get a picture of a Coney Island Boardwalk hot dog stand in the mountains of Colorado. Too bad it was closed for the season.
We stopped along the road to take pictures of the fall colors and this river. But a quick Google Map search seems to identify this as Willow Creek.
It's pretty wide to be a creek but I guess flowing water down a mountain changes the classification compared to flat areas like the Midwest.
But even on a cloudy gray day, the fall colors were popping.
Fall turned into winter just a few miles up the road.
But now we have fall colors, livestock and snow covered pine trees.
We definitely would have eaten lunch here but it was also closed.
I took a lot of pictures here because I loved the colors.
A great mix of giant trees with snow covering the trees up the mountain and fog beginning to roll down the mountain.
Then the fog really moved in and I loved the mix of two seasons and changing weather...
...plus I figured our drive was about to get a bit treacherous so I kept enjoying this beautiful scenery.
I'm a geek about taking pictures of the signs for all the parks we visit.
Of course I had to stop here. They had a nice bookstore/gift shop which is rare for a National Forest.
The sky wasn't looking to good. Actually dark storm clouds look much better in photos than a flat gray sky. Since I still have a long drive through mountains ahead of me, my sky reference is about the drive not the photo.
We decided to take a short drive out of our way to visit South Park. We ate lunch here at the Platte River Saloon.
While Chrissy & Kennedy were shopping, I walked around taking pictures.
I did buy some South Park buttons here. I had to support a store that has Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo welcoming you into the store.
Most of the stores were closed.
The town's bulletin board.
It's a very small town for a fraternal organization.
The first snow of the season has closed the outdoor seating for this place.
This town must have really loved this donkey. Here's the story behind this grave marker.
The Middle Fork of the South Platte River.
Our next stop was the Collegiate Peaks Overlook.
We walked around this little park to stretch our legs and take pictures.
Just like everywhere else on this trip, the scenery was amazing. I might be swayed by the mountains since I am a flat lander. But I truly believe photos look better with mountains in the background.
The Rocky Mountains seem so impressive because they rise above such flat lands.
We continued down Rt 285 to Route 50 which took us west to Gunnison.
We passed through San Isabel and Gunnison National Forests along the way.
I believe this is the abandoned Madonna Mine near Monarch on Route 50.
They mined lead, zinc and silver here according to a quick Google search.
We would have definitely eaten here but it was also closed.
So we ended up at a fantastic little place. We spent a wonderful day outdoors and ended it with a tasty dinner seated at the bar in Blackstock Bistro. I can see why people call Colorado "God's Country".
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