MikeSandy.net

After about two hours worth of delays at JFK due to the remnants of Hurricane Ivan pounding New York with rain, I arrived in Denver much later than expected. Just like on Seinfeld, my rental car reservation didn't actually reserve my full size car, so I had to choose between a Pontiac Sunfire coupe and a Mitsubishi Lancer sedan. I chose the Mitsubish Lancer, which was a poor choice because it is a horrible car with a weak engine.

After stopping in Boulder to pick up supplies and eat some lunch, I began my drive along the Peak to Peak Highway. Shortly after starting out on the highway, I realized that the Lancer wouldn't cut it, so I turned around in Nederland to return to Boulder so I could call Enterprise Rent-A-Car on my cell phone. Unfortunately, they had no cars, so I told them I would call back tomorrow to see if I could switch cars.

I managed to get to Estes Park via the Peak to Peak Highway regardless of the car. The views along that route were spectacular and I could really feel the altitude.

I spent the night at the All Budget Inn, which was located right next to the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park. It was a really nice motel despite the name.

I planned on waking up, climbing Lily Mountain and driving Trail Ridge Road through Rocky Mountain National Park, but instead I decided to drive back to Denver to switch my rental car.

I was able to switch to a gray Nissan Altima, which they said had a V6, but it didn't. No worries though, because the Altima 4-cylinder is definitely respectable.

After lunch in Boulder, I made it all the way back to Estes Park via US Route 36, and then drove Trail Ridge Road through Rocky Mountain National Park. The road climbs its way through the national park, and up to about 12,100 feet. At the Alpine Visitor's Center at 11,796 feet, I could really feel the altitude when I walked to the building from the car. Unfortunately, poor weather moved in as I drove through the park.

After the visitor's center, the road crosses the Continental Divide at Milner Pass, and descends to the very scenic Grand Lake.

I continued on to Winter Park, which was empty and boring.

I was glad to get out of Winter Park because it was boring. The weather was still bad, and I couldn't see any of the scenery as I drove through Winter Park and over Berthoud Pass.

I drove through I-70's Eisenhower tunnel, which passes right under Loveland Ski Area on my way to Breckenridge.

Surprisingly, it was warm and sunny in Breckenridge. It took me some time to find the Marriott Mountain Valley Lodge, but I'm glad I did because my room was awesome. It was a studio with a full kitchen and an awesome view of the entire Breckenridge ski area. During the ski season, it's probably a $300 a night room, but it cost me only $68 a night. I liked it so much that I cancelled a night at the more expensive Leadville Super 8 Motel, and extended my stay in Breckenridge by one night.

After I settled in, I walked around the town, ate dinner and just hung out.

I woke up early and it was snowing. I did absolutely nothing the entire day because there really wasn't anything to do because of the weather. It snowed even more later in the day, so I ordered a pizza and watched National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

Thankfully, it was sunny today, but still cold. I drove for an hour to Leadville. Leadville is a horrible, run-down, boring place. I added it as a stop only because it's right next to Mount Elbert, which I planned to hike this day, but couldn't due to the weather.

Instead, I drove to Aspen via Independence Pass. The drive was amazing as it climbed to the pass at 12,095 feet.

In Aspen, I ate at McDonald's (classy!) and just walked around town. The place was pretty empty, just like Winter Park and Breckenridge. This time of year is an odd time to visit because it's after the summer visitors have left and right before the ski season. So, what's left are some locals, very few visitors and lots of construction.

I drove back to Leadville in the afternoon, drove around the area a little more, prepared my pack to hike Mount Elbert tomorrow and then just hung out in my room.

It snowed a lot more overnight, which ruined my chances of climbing Mount Elbert. So, I cleaned the three inches of snow off my rental car and drove to Colorado Springs.

They wouldn't let me check into my room at the Drury Inn in Colorado Springs, so I ate brekfast next door at Denny's and headed to Pikes Peak to drive to the top.

Unfortunately, only 15 of the highway's 19 miles were open. When we arrived at the 15th mile, however, the Pikes Peak crew decided to open up a little more of the highway. In the end, they let us drive all the way to the top. The weather was perfectly clear and the views were spectacular atop the 14,110 foot peak.

After driving through the Garden of the Gods Park, which has a bunch of weird sandstone formations, I headed to Denver to meet up with my friend, Tom.

After I checked into my hotel room near Denver International Airport, Tom and I headed to Boulder to hang out on the Pearl Street Mall. We ate lunch at the Old Chicago Bar and Grill and then had a few beers at BJ's micro-brewery.

We met up with Chris, who lives in Boulder, and headed to Denver for the Rockies vs. Cardinals game at Coors Field. Unfortunately, by the time we got into the stadium it was already the sixth inning. Regardless, the stadium is cool and we saw Albert Pujols and Todd Helton hit homers.

After the game, we drove back to Boulder to hang out on Pearl Street again and then I drove back to the Ramada in Denver.

I woke up early so I had time to argue with Enterprise Rent-A-Car about my rate, which was $100 more on my contract than on my reservation. Surprisingly, they gave me the lower rate without a hassle, so I saved over $100.

After returning the car, I took a shuttle to the airport, ate some breakfast in the huge airport terminal and flew back to Rochester without delay.