Yesterday, Larry and I took one of our little exploratory drives through our beautiful state to go visit one of our Castles, the Miramont Castle, in Manitou Springs, not far from Colorado Springs. Manitou/Colorado Springs is about 1 1/2 hours south of us. It was a pretty drive and a beautiful day. We do this quite often. We like to explore our beautiful state and see it through the eyes of a tourist. We always see something new and exciting and learn so much.
On the way to Miramont Castle, we stopped at one of my favorite spots, Garden of the Gods, located in Colorado Springs. To me, Garden of the Gods is a very spiritual, magical place. Garden of the Gods, for those of you who have never been, is a gorgeous natural display of all the beautiful red rock creations that a are millions of years old.
You can easily drive all throughout the park, or there are plenty of hiking trails all around that will lead you in any direction you wish to go. There are plenty of people who like to climb the rocks too, though that is definitely NOT us. It was a beautiful day, but VERY, VERY HOT, so driving around and seeing everything from the comfort of our car was perfectly OK for us.










After a drive through the garden, we stopped at a little nearby park for a picnic lunch that we packed before leaving home.

There was a young squirrel that kept us entertained while we enjoyed our lunch. I first spotted him across the street. Then he ran over and started playing around the tree we were dining under.






These were just bonus benefits of our day trip. Next stop, Miramont Castle.

It’s fun to be a tourist in your own backyard. You can discover things in your own backyard or state or hometown that you never knew about before. Larry and I do this all the time. Make the most of everything, even things that are close by. You’ll be amazed at all there is to see and to learn.
Have a great day and make everyday great. Stay safe and stay well. ‘Til next time.
Thank you, Jeanne, for the wonderfully interesting post, the photographic tour of the state that has so many amazing tourist attractions, among them, the most spectacular Garden Of The Gods! Your pictures are out of this world spectacular! Thank you!
Joanna
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Thank you Joanna. We are very lucky to live in such a beautiful and diverse state. Tomorrow I will post about the Miramont Castle. I think you’ll enjoy that one a lot too. π
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Thatβs crazy! My son and I were just there two weeks ago! Isnβt it such an incredible place? I love your squirrel pictures.
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Thank you. So are you a Coloradan too? Or were you just visiting? If visiting, we have so many beautiful things to see. π
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We were visiting on our way to Cimarron, NM to backpack at Philmont. We did some sightseeing around Colorado Springs to acclimate to the elevation before our hikes!
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You know how to have fun Jeanne. I never heard of either of your shared Colorado recreations. Your images are a heavenly and a treat. I feel that I journeyed with you. β€οΈ
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AWWWW!!!!! Thank you. That’s the plan. I will write about the Miramont Castle tomorrow. π
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I look forward to reading. Castle are exciting most having lots of history but I wouldnβt live in one. I have a wild imagination.
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This castle is full of history, for sure. π
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GreAt pics-love the squirrel! π
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Thank you. He was full of personality. π
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Fabulous scenery! That squirrelβs no fool, he was hoping for some tasty tidbits
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We are very lucky to live in such a beautiful and diverse states. There is so much to see here, and so much of it is pretty close to home too.
I thought the little squirrel was pretty cute too. π
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People travel for miles forgetting to visit whatβs on their doorstep
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This is so very true. π
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Garden of the gods do looks beautiful! Thatβs something that I want to go and see! The incline is the fun but hard cause of many stair steps till you get to the top! Iβll have to stay and check it out for a day! That will be worth a trip! ππ
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You go Girl! π
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Fantastic place and fantastic photos.
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Thank you. I just absolutely love Garden of the Gods. It is magical to me. π
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You are most welcome. It is a fantastic place. want to go there.
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Come on out and we will take you there. π
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One of these days, G-d willing.
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I’ll have the wine ready. π π π
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π·π»Cheers!
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We loved in Colorado for 7 years and visited the place that was quite amazing
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That it is. π
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