Day 2

After a breakfast of breakfast taco’s we set out for our second long day of driving. The route took us from Amarillo to Colorado Springs. The first part of the drive through the Texas panhandle was mind numbing. Miles and miles of irrigated crop fields lay out as far as the eye could see. After crossing the border or New Mexico, the terrain began to change. It began to look more like the foothills of the Rockies. There is a small national park called Capulin volcano national monument along the route. I figured this would be a good place to stop for lunch. It is a long dormant volcano which still looks like a volcano and offers some nice views and some hiking. We made sandwiches and unhitched the trailer. The winding road to the summit did not allow trailers. We got the kids a junior ranger workbook and began a short hike followed by lunch. At national parks kids can complete a small workbook of things to find in the park. It is a scavenger hunt of sorts and after it is completed they are given a small junior ranger badge. They enjoy it, so we make an effort to do this at every national park. We finished up and hitched up and continued on our way. After several more hours of driving we arrived at our campsite in Manitou Springs Colorado. It was a small family owned place, close to town with a creek running through it. We were lucky as our campsite backed right up to the water. There is something about the sound of a babbling brook that relaxes the senses. We made a quick spaghetti dinner and ate next to the brook and enjoyed the weather. The hot Texas weather had given way to 76 degree evenings. Another RV pulled into the spot next to ours with a couple of children Grant and Alex’s age. The folks were extremely friendly and the kids played together for a bit. We then took a quick drive to see Garden of the Gods. This is a park just outside Colorado Springs that consists of these really spectacular formations of red rock. When the evening light hits it is breathtaking. We took a quick hike there and then drove into town to see the shops. They had a large arcade with many vintage games so we took the children in to play. They had fun but quickly tired. In Manitou springs they have several natural spring fountains scattered about where you can drink natural spring water. It has a unique taste, almost like carbonated water with a twist. We filled up a couple of water bottles and went home and put the very tired children to sleep.