2010-07-09
We got up early to go to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. We took a guided tour past the dorms and the Cadet Chapel. Unfortunately, the noon meal formation, which Tony had been really looking forward to, wasn't happening that day due to an awards ceremony or something of the like. Some parents must have been visiting sons and daughters at the Academy, because several middle-aged women were holding banners that read "Write your mother" or something similar. The platoon leader must have noticed, because the Dooleys (freshmen cadets) chanted in unison, as if they had been ordered, "I miss my mommy" as they walked by the banners. When we went to Arnold Hall (the Academy's equivalent of a student union), Tony got to reminisce over Godfathers' pizza before we left for Garden of the Gods.
The Garden of the Gods was an incredibly beautiful example of natural phenomena. Evan climbed onto a boulder beside balanced rock. Then, Evan climbed onto a lower ledge of balanced rock. Then, Evan climbed onto a very high ledge opposite the road from balanced rock. After Evan had gotten his fix, we left the Garden of the Gods for Pike's Peak. This was the first time we left the Garden of the Gods that day.
On the way to Pike's Peak, we heard a "ding" and concluded that one of the phones must have been acting up. We soon forgot about the mysterious ding; we were distracted by 10 mph tourist traffic on the only road to Pike's Peak, which ran through Manitou Springs, a touristy city of gift shops and expensive restaurants, but lacking gas stations entirely. By the time we got to the ticket booth at the bottom of Pike's Peak (it's privately run, so visitors need to buy tickets to climb the mountain), we realized that we only had an eighth of a tank of gas left - the mental lightbulbs that went off could have lit a small office - that ding an hour ago must have been the car telling us to get gas. We were still frustrated from traffic, and anxious to climb the peak, so we decided that an eighth of a tank was plenty. The base of the mountain is at an elevation of 7,000 ft, and the peak is at 14,100 ft., but by the time we hit an elevation of 9,000, the gas tank read below empty, and the idiot light had already given up. At about 13,800 ft., we decided that if we went any further, we definitely wouldn't have enough gas to make it down the mountain, past Manitou Springs, and into a gas station. We got out to take pictures, and Evan climbed to the top of the local peak. It looked like rainclouds were coming in, but to our surprise, it started snowing lightly.
Then we got back in the car for the real thrill. The trip down the hill required careful planning and vehicle operation; we were low on gas, so we had to coast, but the mountain is so steep that even a car that isn't coasting is likely to overheat the brakes, which would put a very bad ending to our vacation. The only option was to switch to the lowest gear, allowing the engine to slow the car, rather than the brakes. At 11,800 ft. was a mandatory brake check. The park ranger said that cars whose brakes are over 300 degrees are required to stop at the rest stop for 30 minutes. Our brakes were at 499 degrees. We did our time at the rest stop, and hung out with the other burnt-rubber scented vehicles. Our descent continued, and we left the park without any indication from the engine that it was about to sputter and die, so we drove onward. We started back through Manitou Springs per request of the GPS, and were soon at a dead stop, so we U-turned back onto the highway hoping for better speeds at the next exit, which we were granted. We pulled into the gas station safely, and placed bets on just how empty the tank was. The owners manual claimed that the tank holds 16.5 gallons, and when the pump stopped, the meter only read 14.5!
We started heading back north to our hotel the same way we had come down, but Tony suggested that we take an alternate route named Rampart Range, which originates inside the Garden of the Gods. We passed Garden of the Gods to get dinner, and then headed back to the entrance of Rampart Range Road. The road was an off-road path, occasionally washboard style, and occasionally two lanes, but never with a guard rail. After an hour and a half, we hadn't gone downhill once. After three hours, we were arguably lost, but still following the GPS, and a mere 30 minutes later, our faith was rewarded as we stumbled upon familiar territory - Manitou Springs! We were back on the same freeway we had taken between Manitou Springs and Pike's Peak, so we were right back where we had originally started. We then started heading north from Pike's Peak for the second time that day, and passed Garden of the Gods for the fourth time that day. Needless to say, we were thankful to get back to the hotel that night.
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