My business happily took me near Garden of the Gods today, January 1, 2014. It was a beautiful day, so I decided to stop by an take some pictures.
Garden of the Gods is a lot bigger (1334 acres) than these pictures make it seem, though most of the most prominent red sandstone cliffs are pictured here.
Garden of the Gods is a National Landmark, and has been so since 1971. Most of it was owned in the 1800s by two men, Charles Perkins and General William Palmer (founder of Colorado Springs). They donated the land to Colorado Springs, which has since added surrounding parcels to its holdings.
It's fun to walk around Garden of the Gods, and not simply because of the scenic natural formations. Folks walk their dogs there, tourists roam, and you hear different voices and accents. There are the occasional rock climbers (permits required) and little kids. It's a fun, touristy area, which sort of takes you out of Colorado for a few minutes and places you in a zone where all sorts of folks are walking around enjoying nature's wonders.
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| Pikes Peak, from northern Colorado Springs |
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| It is a dry, parched climate, with plenty of cactus underfoot |
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| This is the "Balanced Rock," probably the most famous spot in the park |
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| Some dear I saw on the way home |
