Colorado

Do a trip report here....go to another city and want to relate it to what KC is doing right or could do better? Give us a summary in here.
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Roanoker
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Re: Colorado 2010

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All the pictures for this week were taken in Ouray, Colorado.

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Re: Colorado 2010

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We're walking around Ouray late in the day.
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Miniature Pinschers.
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A carriage company. I pasted the portrait-oriented picture within the top right part of itself and then cut away part of it to soften the edges.
And I added a larger piece of the road. Hey, nobody pays me for this.
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And here are some carriages. I used the entire picture and then added the top part of the picture at actual, larger size behind it to add foliage
to the top inch and a quarter. I feather-cut the top of the main picture to avoid a hard, straight edge. I like the result.
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The reflective paint on those signs certainly works.
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The town part of this picture was very dark, almost black. So I lightened it and got rid of a few power lines in the process.
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The town's government thought passers-by should know that this is a hummingbird zone.
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So I guess a "Beware of Cougar" sign would be relevant here. Or maybe a sign warning you not to hit the brick wall. I shamelessly left the
hard edge. Getting lazy, I guess.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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A feeble attempt to show flowers. The original picture wasn't very good.
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And a few more.
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Local saloon.
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Night light. With a funky, faded close-up of the greenery behind.
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And a cantina.
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It is the next day, 10/1/10, and we say good-bye to Ouray.
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Moving on.
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Oh, yeah. It's October.
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I do love these trees.
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More trees.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Nice fall colors.
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Could not choose one over another, so you get all of them.
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This is the Dolores River. We pretty much followed it on this day.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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We're driving along the Dolores River.
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Nice buttes along the way.
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Caught son maneuvering to get a shot.
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I like the "dots" as much as the flowers.
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Road atlas cover. (Not really.)
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We had retained leftovers from our visit to a Mexican restaurant the night before, so we picked up bananas and Coke and looked for a
place to eat our makeshift lunch. We found what appeared to be a deserted, very nice resort in Gateway, complete with a picnic table,
park, and great view.
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I can't believe nobody else was at this beautiful place! And nobody chased us off. I took this picture from our sheltered picnic table.
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Wonderful views as we ate.
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Fortune was with us on that day!
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Re: Colorado 2010

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I am curious as to where you were headed driving along the Delores River? Eventually, those roads head toward Utah and Moab. You've said that you don't really follow the routes but it would be difficult getting to the Lower Delores River (those pictures are definitely not from the Upper Delores area) from Ouray without going through Telluride and over Lizard Head Pass or alternately along San Miguel Canyon downstream from Telluride - either way, you've left the San Juan Mountains far behind as evidenced by your photos. You mentioned you went through Silverton - was that before or after the Delores River drive. I've spent a lot of time in this area, just trying to picture your route in my head.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Highlander wrote:I am curious as to where you were headed driving along the Delores River? Eventually, those roads head toward Utah and Moab. You've said that you don't really follow the routes but it would be difficult getting to the Lower Delores River (those pictures are definitely not from the Upper Delores area) from Ouray without going through Telluride and over Lizard Head Pass or alternately along San Miguel Canyon downstream from Telluride - either way, you've left the San Juan Mountains far behind as evidenced by your photos. You mentioned you went through Silverton - was that before or after the Delores River drive. I've spent a lot of time in this area, just trying to picture your route in my head.
I asked my son about this. Here is what he said:
[------------
We reached Ouray via Gunnison and Montrose.

The next day, we left Ouray to the north and took a left on 62 at Ridgeway. We continued on a route along 62, 145, and 142, more or less following the San Miguel and Dolores Rivers along the way. At Gateway, the highway angled back to the northeast, passing through the fascinating, abandoned Unaweep Canyon (which was a complete surprise) on our way to Grand Junction. We then took I-70 into Utah.

Our visit to Silverton, via Durango, was much later in the trip.
--------------]

And here are some of my notes taken during the trip. In the above photos, we are on 10/1/10.
[------------------------
The trip started on 9/28/10 and ended on 10/8/10. My son came up with the itinerary, focusing on rock things because he likes geology. Here is a rundown on each day:

9/28/10. Drove to Colorado Springs.

9/29/10. Drove west via Canon City and Highway 50 West through Colorado. Saw Blue Mesa Lake and dramatic pinnacles. Drove to Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Learned that I can get a lifetime National Parks pass for $10 because I am old. Drove to Montrose.

9/30/10. Went back to Black Canyon and got a lifetime pass to all National Parks for $10. Anyone with me can get in free. Drove to Ouray, CO. Walked around the town, which is surrounded by giant mountains. Charming town.

10/1/10. Drove through canyon along Dolores River. Stopped at a very nice resort in Gateway, found a picnic table with a great view, and ate the rest of our Mexican food from last night. Tried to find a room in Moab, but none was available because of a bike event. Stayed in Green River, UT.

10/2/10. Drove to Arches National Park. Drove to Moab for a place to stay.

10/3/10. Drove to Arches again. Went to Devil’s Garden. Saw the Landscape Arch. Drove through Castle Valley. Drove back to Moab.

10/4/10. Drove to Canyonlands. Weather was fun. Took pictures of distant rainstorms and then got caught in one. Son’s camera threw craps, so he used mine. Drove back to Moab.

10/5/10. Spent most of the morning washing clothes. Drove through Canyonlands National Park. Saw Newspaper Rock and Dutch Shoe Arch. Drove to Cortez, Colorado. Had dinner at a micro brewery.

10/6/10. Left Cortez and drove through Mesa Verde National Park. Drove to Durango, Colorado and bought tickets for the Durango/Silverton train trip tomorrow.

10/7/10. Rode the train from Durango to Sliverton. Took a lot of pictures.

10/8/10. Left Durango and drove to Albuquerque. Stopped in Guymon, OK on the way back to Kansas City.
---------------]
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Sounds like our trip last summer, only we did things in a somewhat different order.

I've had the Moab all-hotels-sold-out experience before - twice. Ended up in Green River once and on another camped out high in the La Sals on a very cold night in April.

Not many people would purposely visit Unaweep Canyon! that's pretty cool you went there.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Highlander wrote:Sounds like our trip last summer, only we did things in a somewhat different order.
I've had the Moab all-hotels-sold-out experience before - twice. Ended up in Green River once and on another camped out high in the La Sals on a very cold night in April.
Many years before this trip, we tried to stay in Moab, but there were no vacancies. Somehow, we ran into the mayor of Moab, and he invited us to stay at his house! And he served breakfast!
Not many people would purposely visit Unaweep Canyon! that's pretty cool you went there.
Here's what my son said about that.

[-----------------
I didn't know about the canyon until the highway took us into it. After awhile, something didn't seem quite right. Eventually, I clued in that there was no river or stream in the valley. It was just a long, massive gorge with a broad pasture in the middle. I figured it was the former route of the Gunnison River before the uplift of the Uncompahgre Plateau.
----------------]
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Continuing with views taken during lunch stop at the Dolores River Inn park grounds. Flowers, too!
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Horse made out of metal.
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Here's how I figured out where we were.
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We're done with lunch, and I am snapping pictures from the car.
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You can see sand dunes in the distance.
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Here, too.
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Water of any kind is always welcome.
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We have arrived at the dunes!
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Re: Colorado 2010

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It is the end of day on 10/1/10, and we are driving by big sand dunes.
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Caught some town amidst the dunes.
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The dunes are getting bolder.
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It is the next day, 10/2/10, and we are entering Arches National Park.
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Much to see.
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We'll see one or two of these.
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I like sun flares.
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Time to stop and look around.
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Caught a photographer doing the same thing I'm doing, but with better equipment. Incidentally, the background is actually the bush in the
foreground with a "notebook" filter applied. It was a surprise, and I like it.
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To get the right perspective, notice the tiny people on the "Park Avenue Trail." (Or so the sign said.)
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Nice pictures of Arches. Great place but oh so crowded any more. We went to Delicate Arch at sunrise - not a great time for lighting but were practically alone for a good hour there. On the way down a couple of hours later, I suspect we saw close to 500 people heading up.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Highlander wrote:Nice pictures of Arches. Great place but oh so crowded any more. We went to Delicate Arch at sunrise - not a great time for lighting but were practically alone for a good hour there. On the way down a couple of hours later, I suspect we saw close to 500 people heading up.
Thank you, Highlander. I've got a bunch of pictures of that arch. As I recall, it nearly killed me to walk to the thing.

Incidentally, you had commented that the "sand dunes" I had mentioned were not really sand dunes, and you explained what they were. I chided my son in that he had not corrected my erroneous assessment. When I came back here to see what you had said so I could correct my comments made earlier in an email, that paragraph was gone! And I don't have a copy. My son is not available right now, so I tried to find on the Internet what that "sand dune" terrain really was, but I couldn't find it. Maybe I did find it, but I'm too geology challenged to realize it. I found something about "ancient sand dunes," but I'm not sure those words applied to what we're talking about.

Anyway, could you repost what you said. I would like to know, and thanks!
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Re: Colorado 2010

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I forgot to mention that my research on Unaweep Canyon did turn up mention of a bike race in that area. Find it at http://www.visitgrandjunction.com/cms/d ... e_race.php. I would imagine that that bicycle enthusiasts on this forum would find it interesting.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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double post. We need a delete button!
Last edited by Highlander on Sun Aug 26, 2012 10:14 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Roanoker wrote:
Highlander wrote:Nice pictures of Arches. Great place but oh so crowded any more. We went to Delicate Arch at sunrise - not a great time for lighting but were practically alone for a good hour there. On the way down a couple of hours later, I suspect we saw close to 500 people heading up.
Thank you, Highlander. I've got a bunch of pictures of that arch. As I recall, it nearly killed me to walk to the thing.

Incidentally, you had commented that the "sand dunes" I had mentioned were not really sand dunes, and you explained what they were. I chided my son in that he had not corrected my erroneous assessment. When I came back here to see what you had said so I could correct my comments made earlier in an email, that paragraph was gone! And I don't have a copy. My son is not available right now, so I tried to find on the Internet what that "sand dune" terrain really was, but I couldn't find it. Maybe I did find it, but I'm too geology challenged to realize it. I found something about "ancient sand dunes," but I'm not sure those words applied to what we're talking about.

Anyway, could you repost what you said. I would like to know, and thanks!
Ha. Sorry. Didn't want to appear nitpicky. The "dunes" are actually outcrops of the Mancos Shale. It's a Cretaceous formation deposited in quasi deep water out in front of a large Cretaceous delta. Many of the large valleys in that area are there because the Mancos easily erodes leaving extensive topographical lows (e.g., I-70 south of the book cliffs). The weathering profile can make it look dune-like in appearance but genetically they are not related.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Highlander wrote:
Roanoker wrote:
Highlander wrote:Nice pictures of Arches. Great place but oh so crowded any more. We went to Delicate Arch at sunrise - not a great time for lighting but were practically alone for a good hour there. On the way down a couple of hours later, I suspect we saw close to 500 people heading up.
Thank you, Highlander. I've got a bunch of pictures of that arch. As I recall, it nearly killed me to walk to the thing.

Incidentally, you had commented that the "sand dunes" I had mentioned were not really sand dunes, and you explained what they were. I chided my son in that he had not corrected my erroneous assessment. When I came back here to see what you had said so I could correct my comments made earlier in an email, that paragraph was gone! And I don't have a copy. My son is not available right now, so I tried to find on the Internet what that "sand dune" terrain really was, but I couldn't find it. Maybe I did find it, but I'm too geology challenged to realize it. I found something about "ancient sand dunes," but I'm not sure those words applied to what we're talking about.

Anyway, could you repost what you said. I would like to know, and thanks!
Ha. Sorry. Didn't want to appear nitpicky. The "dunes" are actually outcrops of the Mancos Shale. It's a Cretaceous formation deposited in quasi deep water out in front of a large Cretaceous delta. Many of the large valleys in that area are there because the Mancos easily erodes leaving extensive topographical lows (e.g., I-70 south of the book cliffs). The weathering profile can make it look dune-like in appearance but genetically they are not related.
Thank you, Highlander. Always please identify what you see in my pictures. We can count on you for the truth. I can only speak to what I think I see, such as the man on the moon or marbles on Mars. We'll see more of such nonsense as we continue with this week's offerings. :)

My son and I are roaming around Arches National Park. Notice the tiny people in this first one.
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I usually don't like to include pictures of signs, but this one seems appropriate.
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Many of the rock structures we saw reminded me of giant, human hands, reaching up out of the ground. (Compare my picture below with the
sign above.)
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You should always get a shot of the rental car that brung ya.
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Like ink blots, rock formations look like something to everyone. To me, this is a family of people, going to an elegant party.
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To get a feel for scale, notice my tiny son near the bottom, slightly to the left of center.
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Another big hand. This picture was actually a portrait shot. I flanked it with larger portions of its left side on both sides.
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Don't you appreciate teensy flowers?
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Here is a big ship.
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And a butte silhouette.
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Caught my son taking a picture.
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Where will this road take us?
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Highlander wrote:
Roanoker wrote:
Highlander wrote:Nice pictures of Arches. Great place but oh so crowded any more. We went to Delicate Arch at sunrise - not a great time for lighting but were practically alone for a good hour there. On the way down a couple of hours later, I suspect we saw close to 500 people heading up.
Thank you, Highlander. I've got a bunch of pictures of that arch. As I recall, it nearly killed me to walk to the thing.

Incidentally, you had commented that the "sand dunes" I had mentioned were not really sand dunes, and you explained what they were. I chided my son in that he had not corrected my erroneous assessment. When I came back here to see what you had said so I could correct my comments made earlier in an email, that paragraph was gone! And I don't have a copy. My son is not available right now, so I tried to find on the Internet what that "sand dune" terrain really was, but I couldn't find it. Maybe I did find it, but I'm too geology challenged to realize it. I found something about "ancient sand dunes," but I'm not sure those words applied to what we're talking about.

Anyway, could you repost what you said. I would like to know, and thanks!
Ha. Sorry. Didn't want to appear nitpicky. The "dunes" are actually outcrops of the Mancos Shale. It's a Cretaceous formation deposited in quasi deep water out in front of a large Cretaceous delta. Many of the large valleys in that area are there because the Mancos easily erodes leaving extensive topographical lows (e.g., I-70 south of the book cliffs). The weathering profile can make it look dune-like in appearance but genetically they are not related.
Thank you, Highlander. Always please identify what you see in my pictures. We can count on you for the truth. I can only speak to what I think I see, such as the man on the moon or marbles on Mars. We'll see more of such nonsense as we continue with this week's offerings. :)

My son and I are roaming around Arches National Park. Notice the tiny people in this first one.
Image

I usually don't like to include pictures of signs, but this one seems appropriate.
Image

Many of the rock structures we saw reminded me of giant, human hands, reaching up out of the ground. (Compare my picture below with the
sign above.)
Image

You should always get a shot of the rental car that brung ya.
Image

Like ink blots, rock formations look like something to everyone. To me, this is a family of people, going to an elegant party.
Image

To get a feel for scale, notice my tiny son near the bottom, slightly to the left of center.
Image

Another big hand. This picture was actually a portrait shot. I flanked it with larger portions of its left side on both sides.
Image

Don't you appreciate teensy flowers?
Image

Here is a big ship.
Image

And a butte silhouette.
Image

Caught my son taking a picture.
Image

Where will this road take us?
Image
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Re: Colorado 2010

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There is a path to this formation, so it must be something to see.
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Standing up to the sun.
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I was not one of the many people who climbed this thing.
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It almost looks like a creatively built building, complete with windows on the middle floor.
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Is the rock formation grabbing the sun?
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My son appears to be paying homage.
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I do like lens flares.
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Is that Superman, getting ready to leap the formation in a single bound? No. It's just my son.
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Another shot of my son, about to be overtaken by a mob of hikers.
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I know. It's a weird picture within itself. Notice all the climbers. You won't find me there.
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I just noticed that the sun appears to be shining on a regal statue.
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Notice the people who have made it as close to the top as they dare. Getting on top of the "doorknob" might be a bit tricky.
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Re: Colorado 2010

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Still struggling to get over my obsession with this formation. Again, notice the people climbing this thing. Their obsession is greater than mine.
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This "rock" is a lot bigger than it looks.
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This guy appears to be skiing, but he's just watching his step as he descends.
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A whole valley of rocks.
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Moving on. More rocks to view.
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Still on the road.
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Pullouts usually mean you can get good pictures if you stop. So we did.
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We are about to see what the park department describes as "windows." I don't think Microsoft has anything to do with it.
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Oh. "Windows" are big holes in rock.
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I wonder if this tree thing ever had leaves.
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See all the people looking in the window.
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Rock wall.
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