Independence Pass

Independence Pass, Colorado Rockies

We decided on scenic route 82d across the mountains to Colorado Springs, and discovered along the way that it's known as Independence Pass. As we climbed steadily into the Rockies, the road got narrower and the precipice seemed steeper around every hairpin turn. Bob said it was the scariest road he had ever driven, and I (who often proclaim loudly that I love heights) began to feel a trifle queasy by the time we reached the Continental Divide.

Continental Divide

The drive seemed to go on forever. I opened the window so that I could take pictures with my head hanging out of the window, like a crazy dog. Our highest altitude was over 11,000 feet -- not the 14,000+ feet of Pike's Peak, of course, but plenty high.



Twin Lakes, Colorado

We stopped for gas in Buena Vista, where a young deer ran across the highway to a city park, and continued toward Colorado Springs. We turned north on I25 right away and eventually (thanks to the GPS) made our way to Hwy 76 and, eventually, I80. The GPS guided us beautifully past the Denver airport, on I225, through the heavy noon traffic.
We left the Rockies behind and were soon heading toward Nebraska. I knew we were almost home when I looked out the window of our freshly redecorated room at the Hampton Inn in North Platte and saw golden farmland.

North Platte, Nebraska

On the Road

I haven't much thought about Jack Kerouac or On the Road for nearly half a century, and even when I was reading the book, I didn't really get it, maybe because I hadn't spent much time on the road. Not that I'm a roadie in the Kerouac sense, but snippets of quotes have been zapping their way into my consciousness.

My recall of the quotes was so inadequate that I looked them up:

Our battered suitcases were piled on the sidewalk again; we had longer ways to go. But no matter, the road is life. Bob noted the other day that our luggage didn't look much like that of other people checking into hotels: paper bags (snacks and beverages); a cooler; my St. Mary's, Ontario, shopping bag (one of my favorites in the collection); Bob's old motorcycle overnight gym bag; my camera and computer bags. Our swimsuits and underwear for the next day spill over the sides of wherever we happened to shove them. Other hotel guests travelled with matching luggage and garment bags. But no matter, we were having a wonderful time on the road of life.

Where we going, man? I don't know but we gotta go.  Some mornings, like today, we head out without a clear understanding of the day's destination. I thought we were going to Colorado Springs for a visit and maybe overnight in the Manitou Springs area. Bob was thinking of Colorado Springs as a via point as we began the trip home. Since I'm the navigator, I should have asked the question earlier on in the journey, before we were pretty much committed to taking Hwy 24 all the way, before turning north. Oh well, we did go a little out of our way but ...

... the world is rich with possibility and we had a great day.

Time Zone Confusion

I'm a poor sleeper and I move better from west to east: it's easier for me to "lose" an hour of sleep than the reverse. I like to make sure I change the time on my devices, so that pictures and posts are properly time-stamped. I've lost control on this trip.

I was OK until we reached Arizona. I did change the time when we crossed the border, but something seemed to be askew, especially as we moved through the Hopi and Navajo reservations. The answer: Arizona is in the mountain time zone doesn't observe daylight time, so in summer the time is the same as Pacific time. I should have realized this when Windows had me select "Arizona" rather than "Pacific" time, but the realization came on me slowly as I saw several references to time as we crossed Arizona.

The Hopi go along with the rest of the state, but the Navajo do not, since the Navajo nation spans several states. So what time was it in the Navajo nation in Arizona? I have no idea: I gave up a few days ago, as my cameras went out of sync and my mind couldn't deal with moving between time zones and exceptions.

Here's an explanation, written by someone who really knows.