August 7th:
August 8th: This stop was specifically made for August and Ocean. Here in Cheyenne Wyoming is housed the Union Pacific's Challenger 3985, one of the few remaining operating steam engines in the U.S. August has a video showing off 3985's steam excursions and the roundhouse where Union Pacific workers volunteered their time to restore 3985 to working order in 1981. You can imagine our disappointment when upon arrival at the Depot Museum we just missed the Challenger! It had been on display during Frontier Days and was only their during the weekdays. It wasn't even on site! We were planning on a 3985 excursion...we felt so deflated. Thankfully, we were more bummed than August & Ocean. We bought them t-shirts and that seemed to be a good stoke. August has a 3985 Challenger shirt and Ocean has the 844 Big Boy shirt. We learned a huge lesson in researching destination points; one with Mount Rushmore during Sturgis and here with the Challenger's schedule.
We sorta drowned our sorrows in some ripe peaches and playing at Holiday Park where one of the De-commissioned Big Boy Steamies rests. No. 4004, touted as the world's largest steam engine is on display inside a fenced off area. The boys, drenched in sunshine enjoyed the park's playground and we enjoyed not being in the car.
From there we set off for Colorado. The main event, Pike's Peak - 14, 411 feet tall! Having once lived just outside Denver in Aurora, I was excited to "be back". We made our way as far as the Pike's Peak Cog Railway station in Manitou Springs, but never made it to the mountain. On approach to the railway station, as we climbed in altitude Brian had a gnarly headache and didn't feel so good. I too had an annoying headache and it hurt to breathe through my nostrils because the air was so dry. Besides being crazy expensive, once again we FAILED to research the train schedule. We failed to calculate how long it would take to do such a thing...about three hours. So due to all the above - we faced yet another disappointment to the day. Cheyenne and Pike's Peak were not part of the direct route to our new home. No, they were vacation destinations that we totally dorked it on. We did however manage to drive through the Garden of the gods, which was strikingly beautiful. Makes you want to put on a harness, rock shoes and sling a rope over your shoulder...
A nice ending to this day was our finding a Pudge Bros. Pizza, eating the pizza and bread sticks in our hotel room while Brian caught up with an old friend who lived nearby.
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We sorta drowned our sorrows in some ripe peaches and playing at Holiday Park where one of the De-commissioned Big Boy Steamies rests. No. 4004, touted as the world's largest steam engine is on display inside a fenced off area. The boys, drenched in sunshine enjoyed the park's playground and we enjoyed not being in the car.
From there we set off for Colorado. The main event, Pike's Peak - 14, 411 feet tall! Having once lived just outside Denver in Aurora, I was excited to "be back". We made our way as far as the Pike's Peak Cog Railway station in Manitou Springs, but never made it to the mountain. On approach to the railway station, as we climbed in altitude Brian had a gnarly headache and didn't feel so good. I too had an annoying headache and it hurt to breathe through my nostrils because the air was so dry. Besides being crazy expensive, once again we FAILED to research the train schedule. We failed to calculate how long it would take to do such a thing...about three hours. So due to all the above - we faced yet another disappointment to the day. Cheyenne and Pike's Peak were not part of the direct route to our new home. No, they were vacation destinations that we totally dorked it on. We did however manage to drive through the Garden of the gods, which was strikingly beautiful. Makes you want to put on a harness, rock shoes and sling a rope over your shoulder...
A nice ending to this day was our finding a Pudge Bros. Pizza, eating the pizza and bread sticks in our hotel room while Brian caught up with an old friend who lived nearby.
View Larger Map
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Thank you for sharing...