Colorado


	July 4, 2005: Independence Day at Pikes Peak, Colorado




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	I headed east to Colorado Springs this past weekend to spend the 4th of July holiday with some friends in the beauty of the Rocky Mountains. Bud and I decided there was no more patriotic place to spend the day than at the summit of Pikes Peak, where Katherine Lee Bates penned “America the Beautiful” in 1893. Here are some pictures of our trip up the world-famous Pikes Peak Highway...


The entrance to the park	On the lookout for Bigfoot	Our first glimpse of the Peak	The view of the Peak’s north side from one of the many reservoirs	A mountain lake

Reaching Timberline	At the Timberline	Bud watches an approaching thunderstorm	An alpine meadow	Alpine meadow

At the bottomless pit	Looking into the bottomless pit	The road becomes dirt	A lone skier celebrates the day on the slopes	Nearing the switchbacks that lead to the summit

Traffic on the switchbacks	The summit is in sight	Some visitors ride the cog railway to the top	The view north	The rocky summit of Pikes Peak

View of Colorado Springs to the east	Catching my breath...there’s very little air up there!	The view west	“America the Beautiful”	Bud on the summit