Today I tried to make it up to Breckenridge. I wanted to see the aspens before they lost their golden flame hue of autumn. Leaf peeping is real here in Colorado. It was supposed to be an hour and a half drive and I headed out late morning. Everything was great until past Georgetown but then I hit traffic.
After an hour in traffic, I really needed a bathroom. Staying hydrated for the altitude took its toll. I got up to 9115 feet and finally came to an exit for Bakerville, which I thought would be a town with some sort of place with a restroom. Unfortunately, it wasn’t and I ended up heading back towards Silver Plume, which was a mostly abandoned mountain town with dirt roads. Thankfully, there was a dispensary there with a public restroom. Yay!
I had a decision to make after my bathroom break: drive another hour out west and hope the drive home would be free of traffic or head back down to home. It was an easy choice to make. I sped down the mountains to a lower altitude and a cute little mountain town I’m familiar with.
Idaho Springs is pretty small, like many of the mountain towns in the Front Range. However, it has some cute stores and a few local restaurants. Since it was after 1 and I hadn’t eaten a bite all day, I decided to get some lunch before descending another 2000 feet to home.
So, my day wasn’t quite what I expected but I still saw some gorgeous foliage and enjoyed a bit of what my beautiful state has to offer. However, my problems with going to higher altitudes are serious. Despite lots of water, and I mean lots and lots of water, my head is still killing me 7 hours later. Some people don’t get altitude sickness…for me, it’s a given. Oh well, worth it.
I know, this doesn’t offer any particular insights but that’s the point of the daily lines. Just write. Some of it will not be profound but hey, the pictures are pretty.