Running the Roads July 20-22

Bright and early (OK, it was closer to 9:30AM) we left Dodge City  on Tuesday and headed west with the idea of getting to Limon, CO by nightfall (OK, 3:30PM, but we are retired, we don’t have to travel all day!).  Rolled through some really pretty countryside and got a photo of the grain silos.  They co-op the grain out here rather than have individual silos on individual farms.  Kansas is not flat as a pancake.  That is a myth. “The western two-thirds of the state, lying in the great central plain of the United States, has a generally flat or undulating surface, while the eastern third has many hills and forests. The land gradually rises from east to west; its altitude ranges from 684 ft (208 m) along the Verdigris River at Coffeyville in Montgomery County, to 4,039 ft (1,231 m) at Mount Sunflower, one half mile from the Colorado border, in Wallace County. It is a popular belief that Kansas is the flattest state in the nation.” That little bit is from Wikipedia.  My brother-in-law sent it to me when I mentioned that I had thought of KS as a flat state.  Anyway, as we rolled west we saw the terrain change.  It’s nothing like WV but still is striking.  It was greener than the last time we were through the area.  Guess they’ve had more rain, or maybe we are further south than our last trip through KS.  We did arrive at Limon at a KOA…no RR, but close to the Interstate.  Caught up on laundry and got a good night’s sleep. Off again and heading northwest.  I can only imagine the “Aha!” moment early settlers felt coming over the rise east of Denver on what is now I-70 and glimpsing the Rocky Mountain Range.  Air pollution and haze makes that moment a matter of history.  Counted several incoming and outgoing from the Denver Airport.  We got on a toll road that links I-70 and I-25 that had no toll booths.  They will, they are in the progress of being built.  I imagine that we will get a bill in the mail because there were cameras at intervals along the way.  My brother-in-law in Texas got a bill for $3.00(if I remember correctly)after he had been on a toll road last winter that had no booth to collect.  The traffic sure moved well without the stops, but I wonder about collections.  We shall see.  By Ft.Collins the air was clear enough to see the mountains.  They remind me of the paint-by-number kits that my parents used to do…buts of color splotches designed to create depth, but failed.  The nonvegetated areas look pinkish or skin-tone, but the horizon lacked depth.  Arrived at Laramie, WY mid afternoon Wednesday and drove downtown to get a feel of the area…and to get milk and bread.  Cool tonight….only in the low 70s.  Needed to toss another blanket on the bed.  Sightseeing tomorrow, so maybe a few pix.