Breckenridge and East out of Colorado

 As we continued east from Arches and Canyonlands National Parks, Breckenridge, Colorado was our first overnight stop.  Ted had been here on business before and thoroughly enjoyed the area.  The town was originally named Breckinridge, after the then Vice-President of the United States, in hopes that the flattery would result in chartering a post office.  It worked.  It was renamed by simply changing an i to an e when Breckinridge became a proslavery democratic presidential candidate  in the very convoluted election of 1860 and accepted a commission as a Brigadier General for the Confederacy.

 Breckenridge became wealthy due to placer (panning) and hard rock gold discoveries.  Of course, most of the gold it mines now comes from the pockets of tourists.

 Snow poles are nothing new in ski resort country, but look at how high this fire hydrant is set above ground level.  The tip of this snow pole is an easy ten feet above ground.  There were snow poles on every sewer hook-up, too.  The golf course next to  this park is where Ted had his last corporate golf outing, all one hole of it before the lightening started.

 This the Barney Ford House, just off of downtown Breckenridge.  It is now a museum and has a huge yard.  Barney Ford was the son of a Virginia slave.  He escaped via the underground railroad to become a prominent businessman, civic leader, and mine owner with interests throughout much of Colorado.

 Breckenridge has a vital arts community.  The Fuqua Livery Stable has been repurposed into an arts and artisan's workshop.  The beginning metalsmithing program currently running had Ted drooling.    

 Several sculptures, such as these two pack donkeys adorn the downtown area.

 One of the great things about being able to travel during the off season is easy access to restaurants and other shops.  We were the only customers at this restaurant, the "Fiesta Jalisco".  Penny's shrimp salad tasted as good as it looks.

 As we continued east out of the front range we passed by cute small towns such as Silverthorne, Colorado, the most populous city in Summit County, Colorado.

 We traveled through Denver and

onto the flatlands toward Kansas.  All through this leg of the trip, we found miles of Interstate 80 completely removed and in the process of being repaved.  This was seldom much of an issue for us since we were usually one of the slower vehicles out there, but we felt sorry for the travelers who were on any kind of a schedule.