Will back up to yesterday afternoon to paint a picture. Western Kansas and Eastern Colorado were very flat. For miles to the north and south there were either fields that had been harvested or grazing land with cattle roaming. There were small groves of barren trees here and there. When the sun set it looked like it was unreachable, it was so far away. There was always a gusty wind. We were so glad to be able to witness such a wonderful sight.
This morning we woke to heavy overcast and strong wind and 36 degrees. We were on the road a little after 7. It started raining very soon after we left and it began pouring soon after. The temperature was between 31 and 34. We were not able to see very far off the road and the windshield wipers were going steady. No beautiful view.
We had checked web cams and weather for a route that took us through Colorado Springs and Salida and a route that kept us on I70 through Denver. We had to drive to Limon (which was about 70 miles from Burlington) before making the decision as to which way to go. We got to Limon and chose I70.
We had only gone about 5 miles and it started snowing. By 10 miles the road was covered and it was still snowing and it was 30 degrees. The speed limit on this section of road is 75 mpr. There was a fair amount of traffic and most of it was doing about 55. Then we caught up to a snow plow and followed it - going about 40 - for about 10 miles. It then turned off. Traffic then began going about 55. It had quit snowing and the pavement was snowy. The roads continued to get better; with less snow and just wet. A number of big trucks passed us and momentarily blinded us with the spray from the road.
By the time we got to Denver it was raining and 31. Denver traffic was fairly heavy and it took over 30 minutes to drive through. Then it was beautiful mountains everywhere. We were a little nervous as the speed signs (which are changed according to the road conditions) said 65 was a safe speed but the temperature was only 24. We drove slower for awhile but noticed that there was spray coming from the cars passing us. The weather became clearer and clearer until the roads were dry. We had about 2 hours of normal driving. Even though the roads were great for driving, the scenery was undiscribable. Words like majesty, awesome, beautiful and gorgeous can be used, words aren't enough. Once we cleared the mountains we drove through a deep canyon with the Colorado River and a railroad line. The interstate actually was in two layers. West traffic was on top and east traffic on the bottom. Very interesting.
Just after leaving Denver we noticed several popping sounds. It confused us for a while but finally figured out that the quick rise in altitude had caused some of our snack bags to burst. We had a large bag of chips and after the popping stopped, we picked it up. Chips went everywhere. We had picked it up from the top but the bottom had burst. Will see when we get home if anything we had packed in the back burst.
Arrived in Grand Junction just before 2pm. Washed the car and checked into the room.
Side note: Burlington is only 13 miles inside the Colorado BORDER from Kansas. Grand Junction CO is about 30 miles from the Utah border.
CHALLENGE: So, you all know how Karen likes numbers and challenges. Here is one for all you blog readers. As of today, November 22, the rental car has 8476 miles. We will be going from here to Salt Lake City to Oakley CA to home. How many miles do you think will be on the car when we pull into the driveway at home? Text your number to Karen. She will post the number of miles and winner when we get home.
