Lawrence to Denver

Today was another interstate slog...roughly 600 miles, entirely on I70.  KC did a great job of driving and the F150 (with "magic fingers" massage seats going full blast) was a fantastic way to make the trip.  Traffic was light all day and the weather start out hot and humid in Lawrence...temps edging to the mid 90's.  It was interesting to watch the altitude increase from 700' to over 5000' as we traversed Kansas and approached Denver.  In addition, the wind blew upwards of 25mph, temperatures moderated, the humidity dropped and the cloud coverage built.  From the hotel parking lot as we looked west towards the mountains, we could see a small rain shower the rolling towards us.  It is clear, Toto, that we are not in Georgia.

We nearly finished our book-on-DVD "Dead Wake" by Erik Larson which tells the story of the sinking of the Lusitania off the coast of Ireland in 1915...an act which finally drew the US into WWI.  It is a heartbreaking story that chronicles how a monstrous U boat captain sent a torpedo with 300 pounds of TNT into the side of the 800 foot ship, blowing a hole the size of a house in the great ship killing over 1000 innocents in the process.

Tomorrow KC and I will drop the trailer and bikes at a prearranged storage area in Denver and get ready for Lucy and Ethel (our wives) to fly to Denver on Tuesday.  We'll pick them up around noon and then head into the mountains for Ouray, CO...an old mining town blessed with natural hot springs.  KC tells me they have wooden hot tubs in which to soak.  After two nights in Ouray, we'll head to Telluride and then Aspen.  The weather reports for Ouray, Telluride and Aspen are calling for lows in the 40's, highs around 70 and ZERO chance for rain.  Is this awesome or what?

Next Sunday we will drop the girls back at the Denver airport and then the motorcycle trip can begin.  Can't freaking wait!!

KC wants to buy a Spot Messenger tomorrow, so we'll swing by an REI store and pick one up.  I'm sure I'll find something I need.

During dinner at Ruby Tuesdays, I watch storm clouds building in the west over the Rockies.  As sunset approached, the light on the clouds was fantastic and I planned to photograph it as soon as I returned to my room.  Unfortunately, my timing was off and by the time I could get my camera and wait out a brief shower, the best of the light was gone.  Lesson learned, take the camera with me.  Damn...it was really a spectacular sunset.

As I stood behind the hotel watching the remnants of the light rapidly fading, I struck up a conversation with a guy named Eric who was visiting from London.  Eric, who was shooting the same scene I had tried to shoot, had just spent three days riding a rented Indian motorcycle in the Colorado Rockies and told me about his trip.  He gushed about the riding and the scenery.  He was clearly jazzed he was about the Rockies and their awesome beauty. 

That makes two of us Eric.