Once back on the trail, I had to pick up the pace in order to make it back to Glenwood Springs in time to turn in the bike before closing time at 5:00. Along the way, an American flag way up on the canyon wall caught my eye (slightly up and left of center). I looked at it from several angles along the path and concluded that it would have been a difficult climb to get up there. Later back at the bike shop, a worker there said that a group of climbers scaled the canyon wall just before they shipped off to the first Gulf War. Every year since, members of the group have revisited the site to put up a new flag.
There were a number of rest areas along the route, with water, vending machines and rest rooms available. No cell phone reception, though, so you'd better have change for the pay phones in case of emergency.
At points the highway and a rail line cut through solid rock only to emerge on the other side further down the canyon. Note how the tunnel tubes on the highway extend out a bit to offer additional protection against falling rocks. You will see there is no such shield over the railway tunnel entrance, probably because the trains are going so slowly that it is unlikely that any falling boulders would pose a threat.
Back in Glenwood springs with about 15 minutes to spare, I turned in the bike at the shop in the historic Hotel Colorado. Frequent visitors, both famous and infamous included President William Howard Taft, Doc Holliday, Diamond Jack Alterie, and the unsinkable Molly Brown. There could be a lot of skeletons in those closets.
Just about a block south of the hotel is an attraction which once was Glenwood Springs' claim to fame, the hot springs. With the opening of the canyon, the hot springs have been eclipsed somewhat as a reason to visit the area. Warm, mineral rich waters beckon health enthusiasts year 'round. Eleven bucks gets you in for the entire day.
Finally on my return to Denver, I stopped briefly in Vail to observe the changing colors of the aspen trees, a real feast for the eyes.
So marked the perfect ending for an incredible three days in Colorado.
Even though I was only going to be in Glenwood Springs for three days, I was confident that I would be able to stay in touch. After all, I did bring my cell phone with me and I had booked a hotel that provided a wireless Internet connection for my laptop, which I dutifully dragged along. My cell phone had four bars for practically the entire drive. Yet when I made a stop in a rest area in Glenwood Canyon, I had no signal. That didn’t concern me as I figured the canyon walls prevented any signal from getting through. But you can imagine my surprise when I reached Glenwood Springs itself and could not catch a signal anywhere in town (no Sprint service anyway). And to make matters even worse, the hotel experienced some kind of wireless router problem and so there was no Internet connection at all. Maybe that was all for the better, because I had come here for the sights and not for the connectivity. We all need to get off the grid now and then.