Royal Gorge Senic train Canyon City, CO

We took a train ride on the Royal Gorge Railroad. OMG! The views are nothing short of spectacular in the same fashion as the Grand Canyon. I suggest you take the early train as the later ones can get extremely crowded. Also, it can get pretty hot after the morning and even the floor of the open-air observation car gets hot because it is metal. This is a nice train ride through the Royal Gorge of the Arkansas River. The ride is 2 hours in total and you can see Royal Gorge Bridge 1000 feet above. The ride is also a one way trip so if you missed something in the beginning you can catch it on the way back. The conductor just moves from the front to the back of the train once you make it to the end of the track. They have multiple events throughout the year on the train to take part in. I think the murder mystery train ride sounds fun.

The views from the coach cars are limited to side views of the Arkansas River and walls of the gorge. If you want the best views you probably would want the Vista cars so you could also see the bridge above and possibly animal life. The dome car is the most expensive, the coach class is the least (but the windows are large).We loved the train ride and service. Don't worry too much about your seat assignment. You probably won't be spending much time in it, if any since you can stand in the open on the observation flat car.  Everybody has access to the open-air car to take those cool pictures, but it gets real cozy there as a result. Our car's host suffered from a malfunctioning microphone, so we did not hear the info about the scenery. So we spent most the time on the flat car, while our in-laws stayed in the coach area for the seating.  The menu items are a little spendy, but we were getting hungry on the way back to station so we decided to order burgers. They were ok and didn't have a table to eat from in the coach area. Served in a Styrofoam box. Next time I would probably eat lunch before the train. We also ordered a few drinks and they were good.

Have you done the Royal Gorge train? What was your favorite part?

Four Corners Monument (Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah)

An interesting roadside attraction to visit if you find yourself driving through Southwestern Colorado, Northwestern New Mexico, Southeastern Utah, or Northeastern Arizona is Four Corners Monument, a sight to behold, as it is the only place in the country where 4 states intersect. When visiting the Four Corners monument, you will have the opportunity to stand in all 4 states at the same time. Although there is not much to actually do in the area besides photographing the monument and browsing through Native American crafts, it’s one of those unique things to do just to say that you did it.

You can stand in each state separately or in the middle of the marker, which is the technical spot where all 4 states meet. During your visit, you are bound to see people doing all sorts of crazy poses to get their hands and feet within all 4 states at the same time (back handstands, down on their hands and knees, etc.). One of the best photos is a group of 4 each standing in a different state or a couple each planting their feet in 2 different states. Regardless, while standing in line waiting your turn, it is quite entertaining to watch the creative ways everyone is taking their photos. The line is long too we ended up waiting 45 minutes and in the desert make sure to bring an umbrella help get you out of the sun. Sign posted also says limit of 3 photos only to keep the line moving faster so think of those poses while in line.

While I wouldn’t recommend going out of your way to visit Four  Corners, it’s a cool thing to say you’ve done. I'm always saying I wish I could be in more than one place at once and since seeing "A Walk to Remember" when Landon takes Jamie to the state line, I thought it was the sweetest thing ever! I've wanted to go and say I've been in four places at once!!

Tips

*Fill up your tank well ahead of reaching the monument as there are no gas stations around and the next is at least a 30 minute drive. Also use the restroom at this time if needed.

*Bring with a water bottle and snacks. Driving in this desolate area of the country, restaurants are few and far between.

*Be aware that the National Parks Pass is not valid at this attraction.

*Bring with a camera in order to take your photograph by the monument.


*Bring sunscreen and an umbrella.

*Bring with plenty of cash if you plan on buying Native American crafts. Prices can add up quickly and most vendors do not accept credit/debit cards.

Address, Pricing, and Hours

Location: 597 NM-597, Teec Nos Pos, NM 86514

Pricing: $5 per person they say cash not accepted on the website but we paid with VISA, I think it speeds the line up to pay cash so that's why they prefer it.

Hours: Friday of Memorial Weekend – Sept. 15: 8:00am – 8:00pm
September 16 – October 31: 8:00am – 6:00pm
November 01- March 31: 8:00am – 5:00pm
April 1 – May – Thursday before Memorial Weekend: 8:00am – 7:00pm

*Park is closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, & New Year’s

Zapata Falls, CO

Zapata Falls it's about 12 miles from the sand dunes.  Make sure if you make the trek up there you have a vehicle with four wheel drive, the road up is about 3-4 miles dirt road. Very rocky and a lot of the cars we saw going up kept bottoming out. Once we got to the top we did the half mile hike to the falls since we still wanted to see the sand dunes before heading home.

The hike in is a gradual uphill hike took us half a hour to get to the top and down. Be prepared to get wet once you get to the top you have to cross the river and the water is ice cold! Few times I didn't know if I was going to make it but continued on and once we got to the cave entrance and saw the waterfall.

I was so thankful that I continued on. It was the coolest waterfall I have ever seen. Once you enter the cave you see the little falls and than when you go back alittle further you see the bigger falls. I wish I would have brought my go pro to climb further up into the bigger falls, I didn't trust going in with my iPhone.  I think coming back in the winter would be really pretty to see the waterfall frozen and the river may be froze over so you might not have to get wet to see it.

At the top they also had a campground we had no idea was up there and the sites seemed pretty nice and had nice views. Once you get in though on that road you may not want to leave again, just in case you forget the eggs and have to run into town.

Has anyone else been to Zapata Falls? What did you think?

Steamboat Springs, CO KOA camping

The KOA is next to the highway we didn't hear anyone in our area mention anything about highway noise from US40. We stayed for the weekend in a deluxe campsite. Some of the other sites are closer together, they only allow one tent per site for 6 people, but we really enjoyed site 135 since it was alittle bigger. It was second to the last campsite along the river and was the only site that had an opening into the river. Not that you really wanted to go into the water, way too cold still from the snow run off. Also, running faster than I've seen in the past, but still nice to be able to walk over and rinse your hands off.

Since I was last at this campground they have made a few changes. Bathrooms have been totally redone. Grounds, pool and overall facilities are excellent. They have mini golf for the kids nothing fancy but something for them to do. In front of our site they had a horse shoe pit and a big open space, we brought corn hole to play with friends and plenty of room to do that.

We saw a lot of people come by fishing and paddle boarding, braver than we are!  Steamboat is a gem of a mountain town. Off the hook hiking, kayaking, skiing and mountain biking.

Fish Creek falls short hike in from the park entrance. Small fee to enter $5 per vehicle, but worth it.

Has anyone else gone camping up in Steamboat? Where do you like to stay? Any must see hikes or events we should see?

The Stanley Hotel, Estes Park CO

Stanley Hotel

I'm sure if you've seen the movie The Shining you are aware of the famous Stanley Hotel. The hotel is located in Estes Park, CO which is a beautiful, fun little town to visit. Our tour started with the history of Estes Park and the hotel and then we went through the hotel. We're told of several encounters in a few of the rooms and things that are seen in the hallways. After the tour we captured a few unexplainable pictures so based off what we saw I would saw the Stanley Hotel is haunted but recommend you experience it for yourself.

This picture theirs something to the left but I can't make out what it is.

This lady wasn't on our tour so I thought it was a neat she showed up.

If you've had any experiences please leave your comments I'd love to read them. ;)