USA 2024 4th – 25th September 21 nights - Mileage 2,272
Our inspiration for this trip came when we watched a train travel series on television here in the UK hosted by retired UK Member of Parliament Michael Portillo.
The focus of the episode was a Gog Railway ride to the top of Pikes Peak, elevation 14,115 feet (photo above)
This is where Katherine Lee Bates; (1859-1929) was inspired to write the words to “America The Beautiful”, and what a stunning view from the top.
Day 1
Denver, Colorado
The Brown Palace Hotel
Hotel fab architecture, 1892. Famous guests like Clinton, Yeltsin, Beatles. Churchill cigar bar. Featured on Scientific American cover 189? Re use of steel in construction.
Day 2
Denver
1 day enough in Denver, little history/interesting buildings. Quiet, restaurants and bars scattered around, no clear centre. LODO – some older buildings mixed with new, not sensitively redeveloped. Enjoyed State Capitol building tour, wonderful architecture, very interesting. Strolled through park, convention centre – saw statue of the dancers, the blue bear. Then Larimer Square, Union Station and Wynkoop Brewery for dinner.
Day 3
Colorado Springs
Hyatt Palace Hotel
Pick car up at airport after dreadful hassle over credit card (long story).
I25 to Colorado Springs. Afternoon in Old Colorado City, again not redeveloped very sympathetically. Older buildings, lots of nice shops, galleries etc. Rather New Age with crystals, candles etc. Dinner in Pizzeria Rustica
Day 4
Colorado Springs
Pikes Peak 14000’ Railway booked for 9.20 (arrive and park from 8.50 $20)
Amazing views did not disappoint. Saw marmots and deer.
Manitou Springs - Victorian, large historic district. Very busy, unable to park.
Visited Garden of the Gods – fab. Visitor centre very good, great views of Pikes Peak, huge sandstone formations, free to drive round.
Day 5
Colorado Springs
Sorted card out thanks to Stacy on reception! Visited Manitou Springs, very nice. Classier than Old Colorado City but similar shops etc. One of largest National Historic Districts, 1850s. Still several fountains for mineral water with warnings re high manganese content.
Scenic H24 to Woodland Park, great view of Pikes Peak. Western style row of historic buildings. Finished at Garden of the Gods again to drink in the view. Saw hummingbird.
Day 6
Golden, Colorado
Courtyard Hotel Denver West
Lookout mountain, spectacular views and hairpins. Buffalo Bill’s grave didn’t go in museum. Saw nuthatches.
Golden – some historic buildings, again not very sympathetically done. Centre 1 block.
Day 7
Golden
Idaho Springs + Georgetown (8,500’) Victorian elegance (G), 1860s mining towns, Mt Evans scenic byway
Idaho Springs lovely. Traffic free street with Victorian buildings. Very quiet.
Georgetown beautiful, many Victorian houses, very quiet. Hamill House not open. Georgetown loop railroad fab. Steam train, great views, Serviced 5 mines. Cornish miners came over, found silver, gold and lead.
Day 8
Estes Park, Colorado
Best Western Plus Silver Saddle Hotel
H34 to Grand Lake entrance of Rocky Mountain NP (about 2 hours) Need timed entry pass for Trail Ridge Road (H34), an amazing 50 miles. Stunning views, hairpins, sheer drops. Continental Divide. Alpine visitor Centre at top – walked up to viewpoint at 12,500 ft, 360 views. Saw mule deer, chipmunks, male elk as entering Estes Park
Robot waiter at pizza restaurant (very good).
Day 9
Estes Park
Strolled round Estes Lake. Bear Lake Road timed entry booked for 12 noon. Easy walk round Bear Lake. Saw Stellar’s Jays, ranger had beaver and wolf pelts to stroke. Walked round Nymph Lake, good path, up 275 ft, surprisingly not too out of breath! Sprague Lake pretty. Saw 2 elk in the water, just missed out on seeing a moose. Turkeys on road, mule deer.
Day 10
Guernsey, WY
Cobblestone Inn
Estes Park to Guernsey via Cheyenne. H34E spectacular rocky canyons then grasslands of Wyoming. Amazing, an ocean of grass, like being at sea, least populated state.
Saw bison farm. Fort Laramie very interesting. Restored buildings. Indian treaties signed here but not ratified, so gold rush in sacred Black Hills sparked Indian wars.
Guernsey seriously one-horse town, few places to eat BUT drove to oldest bar in Wyoming at Hartville, great steaks, beautiful bar carved in Germany and shipped over in 1860s.
Day 11
Rapid City, S Dakota
Best Western Ramkota Hotel (awful position on a junction)
Search for a better hotel here.
Visited Oregon Trail ruts in Guernsey – deeply carved into rocks. Several trails of pioneers travelling west in the area. Drove across Wyoming to S Dakota, grass to every horizon, few cars, few settlements, some farms. Could imagine wagon trains trundling west. Drove past Crazy Horse statue under construction – only face completed.
Mount Rushmore VERY impressive.
Black Hills named because they look dark from across the plains due to Ponderosa Pines.
Day 12
Rapid City
Drove to Deadwood. Good to visit somewhere famous, many historic figures have been here (Calamity Jane, Wild Bill Hickock got shot in a bar here, both buried in town).
‘Stage’ not running today, no gunfight either. Celebrity Hotel had loads of movie memorabilia. Loads of casinos now, very tacky, not sympathetically developed.
Laundry day.
Day 13
Sheridan, WY
Best Western Sheridan Centre Hotel
I90 to Sheridan. Glimpse of Devil’s Tower from I90. Saw several herds of deer.
Stopped at Sundance, Crook County. Sundance statue, very interesting museum.
Buffalo interesting little place. Occidental Hotel 1880, beautiful, historic, Hemingway, T Roosevelt, Butch Cassidy, Calamity Jane, Hoover, many more have stayed here
Day 14
Cody, WY
Holiday Inn
Sheridan to Cody. H14 across Bighorn mountains. Amazing canyon scenery, Shell waterfall, labels showing rock strata, view back over plains fabulous. Plains again to Cody, strange red rock formations.
Day 15
Yellowstone NP, WY
Grant Village in South of park, somewhere more central might have been better to do the 2 loops.
West Yellowstone, Montana hotels will be better.
53 miles to E entrance Yellowstone (scenic H14)
Pahaska Teepee for coffee – interesting place.
Fabulous scenic road to East entrance of Yellowstone (Roosevelt said most scenic 50 miles in US). Chilly and wet, snow on top and ice.
Bear lodge basic, no Wi-Fi, small room.
Dinner at Old Faithful Inn. VERY busy, amazing building, largest wooden structure in the world(?). Old Faithful erupted as we arrived.
Yellowstone 2 loops (total 175 miles)
Day 16
Yellowstone Loop 1 (south)
Old Faithful area – amazing views of various geysers and pools from boardwalk. Surreal landscape, steam, boiling pools, many geysers. Old Faithful erupted on time.
Fountain Paint Pots at Lower Geyser Basin, weird, boiling mud bubbling.
Bison jam (Bison in the road), elk
Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, upper and lower falls.
Day 17
Yellowstone Loop 2 (north)
Midway geyser basin, wonderful primeval scenery, Excelsior geyser.
Grand Prismatic Spring – stunning colours. Lots of steam due to cold weather. Would have had better view of whole spring from overlook trail (next time!?).
Upper loop – wow, the west as you imagine it, mountains, rivers, grassland, herds of bison.
Day 18
Jackson, WY
Snow King Resort
Room with view of Grand Teton
Drove South to Jackson.
Fab views of Tetons., autumn colours just starting.
Scenic road to Jenny Lake, wonderful views of the mountains
Day 19
Jackson
Moose Wilson Rd to Teton Village
Aerial tram to top of Rendezvous Mountain. Amazing views. Skywalk, top of the world trail and another short walk. Fabulous fluffy waffles – altitude does this apparently.
Drove to Mormon Row on Antelope Flats – Moose habitat but sadly none to be seen, early morning probably better.
Remains of Mormon settlement – beautiful restored barns in valley with backdrop of Tetons.
Walk around Jackson square – “Tripper trap”, expensive.
Day 20
Salt Lake City, Utah
Holiday Inn Express
Drive to Salt Lake City, drop car off. Beautiful road most of the way.
H34 scenic byway, various trails to west in the area, one close to Waytan. One of last places in US to get piped water etc.
Soda Springs, diner for coffee. Geyser here capped because it was affecting old Faithful, now goes off every hour.
Day 21
Salt Lake City
Small, modern city. Few older buildings remain – plaques saying something used to stand on this spot but was demolished for redevelopment.
Only interesting thing we found was Temple Square. Temple undergoing major restoration maybe for another 2 years. Tabernacle interesting, lovely free organ recital. Beautiful gardens. Conference centre tour – huge, beautiful modern building. Got insight into Mormon religion and humanitarian work. Creek City shopping centre, beautiful fountains, coffee. Genealogy centre very interesting. Volunteers really helpful in tracing family trees.
