I haven't seen Nick since he left Washington state in 2008 - so we had a lot of catching up to do! It was Saturday night and we loaded up in Erica's car for a night on the town. Downtown Colorado Springs is a happening place on the weekends and every where we visited had live music for the crowds to enjoy. The drinks were priced high but with the elevation you don't need much for an effect. We went to several bars and ended the night at a popular new country bar (think coyote ugly) - waiting in line to get in. Drinking, swapping stories, and dancing throughout the night until last call.
It's safe to say I was a bit dehydrated when I woke up the next day. Erica was cooking eggs benedict, bacon, and potatoes with peppers for Nick and I - and I couldn't imagine a better way to start our day!
After breakfast we headed out to hike the incline. The incline gains 2,011 feet, topping out at 8,585 feet - going straight up like a stairway to heaven lacking a single switchback. It takes approximately 2,696 steps to get to the top. In comparison, the Empire State Building gains 1,224 feet and has 1,860 steps to the observatory on the 102nd floor. On a normal day it would be challenging - but as I had yet to get acclimated to the lack of oxygen due to the altitude - and we had spent the night before drinking - I was paying the price and it took just over an hour to the top. (Some local fitness freaks jog up in less than 20 minutes)
After getting our exercise in for the day we drove over to the Garden of the Gods. We passed tons of people jogging, riding bikes, and rock climbing on our way to balancing rock. It looked like it might fall over so I decided to help out and hold it up for a while... Garden of the Gods is a undeniably gorgeous area - and believe it or not it was privately owned before being donated to the state.
I've been here for a few days now - and it's time to go see my old room mate Levi in Loveland, CO.
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