Road trip from Phoenix to Mount Rushmore – Day 2

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This is the second article in a series of 7 called Road trip from Phoenix to Mount Rushmore. Check out the introduction to this series in “Day 1, Rim Country Arizona; New Mexico; Pagosa Springs, Colorado.”

After starting the day in Pagosa Springs with a cup of coffee from Root House, which we discussed in Day 1, we loaded the truck and hit US-160 to Colorado Springs. Only four and a half hours of driving time meant ample time for stops, so we were ready to explore after getting 8 hours out of the way on the first day.

Stop #1: South Fork

Our first stop came up less than an hour in, in the small town of South Fork. There, we stopped in at Dollar General for a few essentials, and checked out Doc’s Outdoor Sports. I’m not a hunter, but I did check out the camping goods.

My daughter came into the store with me and insisted on a photo with a taxidermy bear. I don’t think she knew it was a real bear. And she certainly didn’t know what the flag it was holding was about… It was holding a “thin blue line” flag, and the store contained some other conservative flags and items as well. This was one of many visualizations of the diversity of political views that can be found in Colorado.

Other than the photo op with the bear, I as a hunter didn’t see much worthwhile, and the cashier didn’t seem particularly welcoming, so I probably wouldn’t return.

With that, we got back on the road and hit our first planned stop for gas a few minutes east in Del Norte.

At this time, we realized we would not make it to Colorado Springs around noon as planned, due to a late start, and began looking for lunch options.

Stop #2: Food and Coffee in Del Norte

While still in Del Norte, we found Colorado Grille and Tap House and stopped there for lunch. Maggie really enjoyed her salad, and it looked full of fresh ingredients. The burger I got (disclaimer, it wasn’t the local beef or bison version) was pretty decent, and the bacon was great – but the burger patty itself seemed like it might have been frozen. The queso we ordered was also pretty average.

I also poked my head in Rio Grande Bicycle Repair, which was a nice little bike shop with a small garden on the side of the building.

Before heading out, we stopped by Up Top Cafe for after-lunch coffee. This coffee shop, the bicycle shop, the lunch spot, and numerous other little cafes were all within a one-minute walk of where we parked.

The coffee at Up Top Cafe looked really good from the photos, but I’d say the coffee was pretty standard small coffee shop quality – not the best and not the worst. There were also a few pastries for sale, and a small clothing boutique near the back.

The vibe and space in the shop, though, would have made me a regular if I lived there – there were plants and art everywhere, and tons of space to spread out and work for a few hours or meet up with friends.

By the time we were ready to go, I had already plotted a few more stops up the road. So we got back in the truck and continued up US-160 to Monte Vista.

Stop #3: Alamosa Railyard

But before we got there, an old railyard in Alamosa caught my eye. We stopped briefly and I snagged some shots of the trains, and we continued on our way.

Stop #3: Monte Vista Co-Op and Ranch Stores

Once in Monte Vista, I went into Monte Vista Co-Op to look around and was surprised to see such good deals on brands like Wrangler. I picked up a couple pairs of my favorite jeans, the Wrangler 13MWZ. I also looked through the clearance rack at some Wrangler jackets that were more than 50% off, remembered I lived in the desert, and left with just the jeans. We also stopped at Big R, which is one of several similar regional chains we encountered on our trip.

Stop #4: Great Sand Dunes National Park and a Random Rest Stop

From Monte Vista, we continued east for about 30 or 40 minutes and saw the turn for Great Sand Dunes National Park. We decided to go check it out, and it was only about 15 miles off the route.

What we didn’t know until we saw the crowded parking lots filled with people in swimsuits, was that Great Sand Dunes features a small lake and a beach. Unfortunately, being from Phoenix, we are not used to beaches and tend not to think about hot surfaces when we are other places that are only 80 degrees. We took our pup to the beach with us, only to discover from her immediate cries that the sand was too hot for her paws.

We quickly got her back to the truck, where she and I got some water and waited in the air conditioning until my wife and daughter were done playing. We also checked out the incredible views for a few minutes – we took in the same view on the way to and from the Park from our route. If it was just Maggie and I, we could easily have spent all day there hiking and exploring!

As a helpful tip, you can easily take in (and photograph) the dunes and the mountains from CO-150, if all you want to do is just look, instead of entering the park. There are several pullouts, or entrances to mostly unused ranch roads that you can stop at.

Sand Dunes was also our first National Park of the trip, and we planned to visit at least two more for sure where the America the Beautiful annual pass is accepted, so we bought one there. The America the Beautiful pass is highly recommended if you plan to go to at least 3 parks where it is accepted – the rest you visit over the next year are free!

Once we got back to US-160, we continued east, stopped at a random viewpoint, and then hopped on the I-25 to Colorado Springs.

It might sound a little silly, but the random viewpoint we stopped at seemed almost otherwordly with the long green grass in the open field surrounded by mountains and with clouds forming overhead. It almost felt like I was on a Star Wars planet or something.

Anyway, once on the interstate we had to keep an eye out for rain, and it may have rained a little – it rained off and on for. Significant part of this trip, so I don’t quite remember, but I do remember that the skies were dark and there was plenty of wind. We avoided the rain for the most part.

Final Day 2 Stop: Colorado Springs

Once we arrived in Colorado Springs, we got everything unloaded at our Airbnb and didn’t do a whole lot after that. It was late enough in the day that we were pretty much just ready to crash, and we knew we had a short drive the next day (Day 3) to Cheyenne that would give us plenty of time to explore Colorado Springs before we left.

Things to do in Colorado Springs

While we did have some time to spend in Colorado Springs before hitting the road again, we didn’t necessarily have all day. So we visited Garden of the Gods, which is a neat city park that was free to enter. There’s not much to do there outside of enjoying the scenery and hiking, but it’s certainly worth a stop even if you don’t plan to hike. Also, “Garden” is a misnomer – there was no garden, only cool rock formations.

I also checked out the Colorado Scheels while we were there, to see how it differs from ours in Arizona. I found that it carries almost identical items, with the focus on the fan gear sections of course being Colorado teams.

We also wanted to check out Prospect Lake, Black Forest Regional Park, and a slew of downtown shops and cafes before we left, but opted to spend that time on the road instead.

Places to Eat in Colorado Springs

We grabbed breakfast and coffee in Colorado Springs, with stops at:

• Dad’s Donuts, which may be the best I’ve ever eaten, and I do not say that lightly. If you are a donut connoisseur, you have to try this place if you are in Colorado Springs. They are croissant donuts, and the staff explained how they are made and all the work that goes into them, which was pretty neat.
• Omelets Etc, which was a decent option for real breakfast food
• Loyal Coffee, which had amazing coffee – it was the best we’d had to this point on our trip. They also had baked goods, and it looked like they might also have breakfast food items as well. The shop itself was also pretty cool, but it was really busy so it was loud. There was also plenty of outdoor seating, too.

Summary

The trek from Pagosa Springs to Colorado Springs was pretty easy; the whole thing can be done by heading east on US-160 until you get to I-25, at which point, you hop on and go north. It’s also not a super-long drive, at only 4.5 hours. And despite the seemingly boring drive, there was a fair amount to do and see along the way with a bit of research beforehand. We checked out Great Sand Dunes, some shops, grabbed a bite to eat and some coffee, and it was a good day.

Next: Road trip from Phoenix to Mount Rushmore Day 3 – Colorado Springs, Denver, and Cheyenne