Colorado

After a really long drive we got until Abilene, Kansas on Saturday. The next day we arrived in Denver in the late afternoon. We got one of the last rooms in one of the hotels there. Since the Democratic National Convention started on Monday, almost every hotel and motel was packed. We decided to go downtown the same day. We got to see the Capitol, a lot of nice parks, the famous 16th street and a lot of cops. The reason for such a high security level was of course the DNC. We tried to get as close as we could to the Pepsi Convention Center but at some point we couldn't get through the gates. So we got to know the Denver nightlife a little bit and we thought Denver is really one of the most interesting cities in the US.

The next day we went up to the Red Rocks to see the Amphitheater. What an awesome view! I have actually been there before but it was definitely worth a second visit. Every great artist has performed there. Just have a look at the Hall of Fame.

The second part of this day was designated to shopping. We went to one of the biggest shopping malls in the state of Colorado and didn't really find a way out. We went shopping for about 7 hours! In the end we just wanted a bed because we were actually exhausted from all that shopping. We still wanted to get at least a little westwards so we drove as far as we could and ended up in Dillon.

For today our plans were clear: we wanted to go rafting in the Rockies. So we called a rafting place and reserved a boat for 1 o'clock. Unfortunately we didn't make it there on time because of unpredictable road works. We got to Canon City around 1:30 (after we drove by the place without seeing the huge sign the first time and rather believed our gps that led us right in the middle of nowhere). Even though this may sound kind of weird but we were actually better of running late. That way they gave us a more or less private trip with just the guide and the two of us. Usually you have a guide and 6 people together in the boat. So we really enjoyed the great scenery of the Arkansas River and even had to fight with the rapids a little bit. We really had a great time and could recommend rafting in the Rockies to everyone! Rafting makes you so happy, that you don't even mind buying expensive pictures after it ;-).

So we are on the road again and plan to arrive in Grand Junction around 11. Tomorrow we want to see the arches at the Arches National Park. In about two days we plan to visit Monument Valley and walk on the skywalk at the Grand Canyon.

(our route so far)

Colorado