Today was our last day in the west so we tried to make the most of it.  We got up early and headed south to Colorado Springs and took the cog train up the side of Pikes Peak.  This was our highest altitude of the trip at 14,114 feet.  That lets us officially join the 14-teeners club – those who have ascended a peak of 14,000 feet or more.  I think the hardcore 14-teeners would like us to have climbed without the help of a cog train, but for our purposes – we’re gonna count it.

These shots are from the trip up and on the peak where it was only about 38 degrees as compared to over 80 degrees where we started.

Our destination – Pike’s Peak

This is the inspiration point for the song "America The Beautiful"

We made it !!

I found a place to stand that was 14,114 feet above sea level

On top

This cog train is just like ours and is just one switch back higher than us

After Pikes Peak we went to the Garden of the Gods where red rocks stick up out of the ground.  We didn’t hike too much but we did get to climb some of the rocks.

Some of the red rocks

Super girl holding up a huge rock

Super girl holding up a huge rock

On top of  a rock

After Garden of the Gods we went to the Flying W Ranch for a Chuck Wagon dinner.  Before we ate we toured the grounds and the girls got to go for a train ride and do some shopping.

I wanted this shot inside a teepee but it took some convincing…

Just waiting on the show to start

The Cowboy Band

(for the camera geeks – this is from my D300 at 3200 ISO, 1/125, and f 2.8 and looks pretty good except some blownout highlights from the amazing lighting system)

After we ate our Chuck Wagon dinner of chicken, beans, biscuits, applesauce, and lemonade we enjoyed a really good western cowboy band.  The band had some amazing players including a 5 time grand champion fiddle player and the three time Colorado flat pick champion.  They were not only good singers and musicians but they were pretty funny too!

Tomorrow we have a long drive to Kansas City.  We’ll make a stop in Seibert Colorado where I expect to be treated like roalty or at least be named mayor for a while .