This morning, we enjoyed a large hot breakfast provided by the hotel. After breakfast, we checked out of the hotel, loaded up the car, and headed back to the 16th street mall to pick up some last souvenirs of the trip. When we were done shopping, we jumped in the car and drove to Red Rocks park 15 miles west of the city.
The original plan was to take a look at the famous amphitheater, which is beautifully surrounded by naturally occurring red stones, and is also acoustically perfect. Since there was a concert this evening, the amphitheater was closing to the public minutes after we arrived, so we hurried up to the amphitheater, got a quick picture of the stage, and then headed to the park’s trading post.
We decided not to hike the Red Rocks trail, since it was over 90 degrees outside and we were already hot from running to the amphitheater.
From Red Rocks, we drove to Dinosaur Ridge, a hill that has many dinosaur fossils exposed along a winding road. Unfortunately, the road was closed and we didn’t have time to walk up the road, so we didn’t get to see much of the ridge.
To see a little more of the city, we drove to the airport on the east side of the city by going through the city center instead of taking the interstate around the city. We got to see several of Denver’s neighborhoods and took a mid-afternoon snack break at a local burger and frozen custard chain. Today’s flavors were strawberries and cream and vanilla. Both were excellent in the 90+ degree heat of the afternoon.
Now, we’re waiting for our flight in the Denver airport. We’re hoping that our flight is on time, since it leaves at 6:40pm mountain time and lands at 11:50 eastern time. I don’t have internet access in the airport, so this update will actually go out once we’re on the ground and back to the house.