Today's schedule:
1. Breakfast at Lois' Place
2. Post Office to mail book I sold on Amazon.com
3. Fill the gas tank
4. Show Lynn where Salvation Army store is located
5. Start to pack for the Ice
Ok, numbers 1-4 went exactly as planned. No hitches.
However...we started to drive around Grand Junction,
looking at areas of town we hadn't seen before. We
found ourselves in the tiny town of Whitewater, just
south of Grand Junction and pulled out onto the highway.
Only it wasn't the highway going back the very short
distance to Grand Junction. It was the much longer
highway toward the even smaller town of Gateway on
the Unaweep-Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway.
Colorado has 24 Scenic and Historic Byways located
around the state and several of them are near Grand
Junction. Of course, since the trip was a spur of the
moment occasion, I didn't have my camera along (duh)
so you'll have to take my word for it that it's an
amazingly beautiful drive. We drove through hours
of stark sandstone canyons, river-carved valleys and
fantastic vistas. Lots of history too, as we saw remnants
of old mines and even the remnants of a whole town
that was dedicated to mining Uranium (some of which
was used in the Manhattan Project in World War II).
Even better, it was the first big test for our new little
car and it performed like a champ! Just over 35 mpg
and we didn't even use a half tank of gas! If you're
coming to Colorado, this is definitely an off the
beaten path roadtrip that is worth your time!
For more information, visit the official website for
Unaweep-Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway
http://www.utbw.org/
3 comments:
My grandfather worked at Uravan. Once they gave him an assignment handling something so dangerous that they actually gave him a mask to wear. He was too impatient to wear the mask, so in a few hour's work, he inhaled particles of whatever it was into his lungs which incapacitated him for 6 months. Another interesting road is the one from La Sal, Utah to Bedrock, then down to Naturita.
How can you forget the camera?!?! Naughty, naughty!! Loved going that way to Grand Jct when I was a kid. Dad used to stop so we could see the Hanging Flume. Good memories!!! Did you and Lyn find the new Goodwill store? Don't want to miss that one!!
in three months, you'll be glad you spent your afternoons driving through winding canyons instead of packing. even if you do find yourself without underwear, socks, or a toothbrush. that's what the store's for.
Post a Comment