As part of our birthday weekend celebration, we took a Jeep tour of Royal Gorge and surrounding areas with Colorado Jeep Tours. The jeep we rode in is on the left in this picture.
An older guy was our guide and driver.
Heading through Cañon City.
Across the Arkansas River.
Into one of the older cemeteries in town.
Lots of graves of Civil War veterans from both sides of the conflict.
The prisoner plots. People who died in the prisons around Cañon City and didn’t have family collect their bodies ended up here.
Looking north toward the hogsback where Skyline Drive is located.
Heading out on a dirt road. No need for 4×4 on this road.
Fossil formation at the side of the road.
An interesting rock formation.
A little sun from the other side of the mountains.
Pretty wildflowers along the road.
Crossing over Plum Creek.
Heading out over an expanse of grassland and scrub trees.
Heading into the burn scar near Royal Gorge.
This is usually the entrance/exit to the Royal Gorge Bridge on the south side of the Arkansas River. No traffic is on this road because the park is still officially closed.
A few structures survived the fire. The huge swing out over the canyon still works.
First view of the Royal Gorge Bridge. Only a few wooden planks had to be replaced.
Heading across the bridge. The lighter-colored planks were replaced after the fire.
Each state has a place on the bridge. I think they probably normally have flags as well but since the park is still mostly shut down, not everything is back to normal yet.
The Arkansas River and the railroad line deep in the canyon.
Someone having fun on the big swing.
At the midpoint on the bridge.
Almost to the other side.
Massive cables heading into the rock.
Some of the burned-out structures and the new visitor center being built.
Heading up a road that actually needed high clearance.
A peak at Royal Gorge.
The bridge in the distance.
Our 4×4 parked at the top of the little viewing area that the Jeep tour company maintains.
The river waaaaaay down in the canyon bottom.
Getting ready to load up in the Jeep again.
Heading back down the rough road.