4:00 AM MT—Woke up later. Yes! I must be getting used to the new time zone, plus it was such a big day yesterday. Being up in the mountain air and altitude is tiring when you aren’t used to it. Today we will be traveling to Grand Junction and visiting the Colorado National Monument.
On the bus, we have assigned seats that change daily. Yesterday I was driver’s-side middle. Based on the pattern Maria layed out, I suspect that today I will be driver’s-side rear.
6:50 AM MT—Just got back from breakfast, and they have come and picked up my suitcase. The driver, Richard, and Maria takes care of moving everything to the bus when we move hotels. I just have to take care of my carry-on.
At breakfast, two of my travel mates and I, Bill and Denise from New Jersey, discussed the trip so far. We are in agreement that this is a good group and everyone is nice. They have done several tours like this and they mentioned that some groups aren’t so great. Bill also mentioned that on past trips the busses were bigger with bigger seats and real cupholders. But overall, things are going well.
Having said that, I mentioned that I knew there would be a lot of time on the bus, but didn’t expect this much. Bill and Denise agreed. This is a lot. Today, for instance, we have a very aggressive schedule. By the end of the day we will have travelled almost two-thirds of the way across the state.
8:00 AM MT—We are off to start our drive. At the end of the day, we will have travelled over 300 miles. After leaving Denver, we head out of town on I-70 West. This is the only east-west major highway in the state. As for my seat, I was half right: driver’s side, but closer to the front.
After telling us about the day, Maria starts playing a CD with songs about Colorado. The only one I recognize is John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High”.
9:09 AM MT—We stop for 30 minutes in the little town of Georgetown, nestled in a valley along the highway. It is a great little town.
9:49 AM MT—Taking the Eisenhower Tunnel, we cross under the Continental Divide.
2:31 PM MT—After stopping for lunch in Glenwood Springs, we arrive at the Colorado National Monument. But it is not a thing, it is a place. “Monument” in this case is the same as a National Park, except it is put in place by the president. Congress approves National Parks. We have many photo stops.
5:08 PM MT—Checked into the Doubletree Grand Junction (by way of picking up my key from Maria), our home for the next two nights. We don’t have to take our bags to the rooms. They have people for that. Tonight is our second group dinner.
6:30 PM MT—Dinner is at The Rockslide Brewery and Restaurant in Downtown Grand Junction. We had our own menu to choose from. The fish and chips were very good.
8:40 PM MT—Finally done for the day. Tomorrow is the Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. We leave at 7:30. In the meantime, I’ve got to get to bed.
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