The Trip – Part 5: The snow drives us indoors and we reach Colorado National Monument
The snow continued to fall as we left Rocky Mountain National Park. We decided to head south to reach I-70 where we hoped the snow might let up and travel might be a bit safer. Unfortunately, the snow did not let up and I-70 not only took us west, but it also took us back up to a higher elevation near Loveland Pass. Kathy was scouring the maps and our campground guides trying to find some place where we might be able to safely camp for the night. As the afternoon waned it soon became obvious that we were either going to have to try to set up camp in the middle of a snow storm or we were going to have to find a motel. We opted for the latter.
I can’t remember where we finally stopped or even the name of the motel, but it was mid-October and we were going to spend our first night indoors since we left home on August 29. I do remember a very long hot shower, eating in the motel restaurant (we did not have peanut butter and jelly sandwiches), and sleeping in a warm comfortable bed. You’d think that after experiencing the comforts of civilization again we’d be hesitant to return to life in a tent, but, you’d be wrong. Our trip was a real adventure and we were ready to continue.
The next morning we continued heading west on I-70. As we headed down the west side of the mountains the landscape changed dramatically from alpine to desert. We were getting our first view of the slick rock and canyon country that would dominate our surroundings for the next month or so as we ventured into the Colorado Plateau.
Since we needed to buy groceries and thought it might be nice to do laundry, we decided to make a short day of driving and camp in Colorado National Monument, which is only about 15 miles from Grand Junction, Colorado. The road into the Monument snakes up from the Grand Valley into the neighboring cliffs and mesas. For a place that I had never heard of, I was very impressed with the scenery.
Not many people were staying in the park so it was easy to find a nice campsite. Despite the fact that it was mid-October, the weather each day was bright and sunny, obviously a bonus of having crossed the Continental Divide.
Our stay was quiet and uneventful. We made a trip to town and we spent a few days hiking in the park and then we were ready to head into Utah.