Instead we decided to spent some quality time with a new friend of mine, Nebraska. In the end the change was for the best as we got to see some amazing stuff and still ended up in Denver on time.
Before we left Lincoln we rolled back into Downtown because I'd noticed a pretty cool building the day before, but we couldn't really see it that well because of the storm. Turns out it was the state capitol building.
After that we were off on our way west into the panhandle. Dad and I both agree, it's kinda fat to be a panhandle, but that's what they call it. The sky was still a little dreary, but there was hope on the horizon and we kept good thoughts that it was going to all push east or just dissipate.
I don't think there is a flatter or straighter road in existence than I-80 between Lincoln and the Platte River. It became rather redundant but we made good time. We reached Ogallala just about lunch time and headed northwest.
Our first point of interest was Chimney Rock. If you've ever played the Oregon Trail then you've heard of Chimney Rock. It was a major landmark along the wagon route west. We were about 10 miles away when we first spotted it (after miss identifying it a couple of times). As we got closer it was without a doubt our destination.
They had a little visitors center there, not much to speak of really. Surprisingly it's listed as a National Historic Site but it's not managed by the NPS. The Nebraska Historical Society was running the show, so it wasn't as decked out as I thought it would be but they had some interesting stuff and the rock itself was still worthwhile to see.
Our next stop wasn't too far away, about 20 miles, Scott's Bluff National Monument. This was amazing. We could already see it shortly after leaving Chimney and as we got closer I started to realize how massive this thing really was.
The little museum there wasn't much to speak of either, but the museum wasn't even really needed in my opinion. The land was the real spectacle. So we headed up the bluff on this little road. Dad wasn't entirely thrilled about the steep cliff off the side of the road, but he soldiered Atlas up to the top. The view up there went on forever. We started down a little trail to a vista. Dad turned back a little early, but I went all the way out and it was well worth it.
In the end I thought Nebraska was top notch. Well not so much the middle, but either side was exciting in my experience. But alas our time in the cornhusker state had to come to an end. We traveled south into Wyoming for a short while. I'd never been to Wyoming. In fact a good friend of mine once rationalized a theory that Wyoming doesn't really exist and it made a lot of sense. If his theory is correct we weren't really in Wyoming but instead a combination of Nebraska and Colorado. They had a sign though.
Real or not, it's a strange place. I think the weirdest thing I saw in our short time was a giant religious statue in this square of sorts overlooking an RV park.
Its kind of irrelevant in the scheme of things because we weren't there for more than 30 minutes, the shortest time we'll spend in any state (well they may have spent less time in WV on the way out), before we hit Colorado.
I didn't expect much from Colorado at this point (the good stuff would be tomorrow) and there really isn't much to say about it. The nice thing was that you could tell the landscape was changing and there were peaks visible on the horizon, something I'd not seen since leaving Seattle.
In Denver we stayed with some old friend of my Dad's that he hadn't seen in years. I can't begin to tell you how hospitable they were, but I will say we had steak and shrimp for dinner. Delicious. After we ate I decided to run into downtown since I wouldn't get another chance and it seemed like they were going to chat the night away.
Before I left 16th Street Mall was briefly mentioned but I didn't think much of it. I just hit I-25 again and decided to see where it led me. Funny thing is, somehow I ended up on the 16th Street Mall.
Probably the best place I could've been because the place was hopping. The whole street is closed to wheeled vehicles with a few exceptions and littered with shops, restaurants and bars. If I hadn't had been driving I'm sure I'd have gotten myself into trouble. But with the keys in my pocket I kept a clear head and just walked about a mile down and back up. I saw the capitol building and the mint along with various street performance, squares, etc. The bummer is that my camera didn't work so well at night and most of them turned out too blurry to even bother posting. Here's one of the more decent shots.
Oh yeah, then I went back and went to sleep. But you probably could have guessed that.
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