After a traumatic day four, I started contemplating how many days it would take to stumble back to South Carolina. I didn't expect very good news from the car dealer and I was scared to think what they were going to charge me to work on my crippled Neon. When I reached the Dodge dealer, they told me they were completely backed up from the holiday and that it would be late afternoon before they could even look at my car!

Catholic Church (toward Lyons, CO)

I was disheartened, but thought it through and decided to ask if there was a car rental location near by. Steve, the service guy, told me they could give me a ride over to Enterprise.

When I arrived there, they set me up with a Pontiac Sunfire and by 8 am I was back on the road. California was now out of the question, in fact, if the prognosis was bad - I would probably be on my way home on Thursday.

The plan was to see as much of Colorado as I could in two days and to keep my reservation in Monticello, Utah.

Another angle (Estes Park, CO)

My first stop was a return trip to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park. On the way I took a different route which toured me past some beautiful scenery, including a little church on a lake. I was not the only one taking pictures at the time. A fellow traveler had stopped to admire the stone structure as well.

The approach to Estes Park from a different direction still afforded the same stunning view from high atop a mountain. But, the angle seemed better suited for photographs. It's hard imagine how incredible this must all look in the fall.

Forest Canyon Overlook (Rocky Mt Ntl Pk, CO)

The drive through the park was beautiful and dramatic. At one point you see all green valleys below the mountains - next you are up with the snow covered peaks.

Everything was going great until I reached Forest Canyon. Surrounded by snow and over 11,000 feet up, I decided to run down an incline through three feet of snow to get a closer look at the canyon. As you see by the picture, I made it. But silly me, I decided to get back up the hill quickly because of the snow. By the time I reached my car I was gasping for air. Soon, I began to feel light-headed. All this time I am still driving up the mountain.

Outside the Taco Bell (Fraser, CO)

You see, the highest point of continuous road in the United States was still ahead of me (some 12,100 feet). By the time I reached the summit and started my decent to the Alpine Visitors Center, I needed a break.

At the center I found a bench and sat down to recover my senses. After about 15 minutes, I began talking to the Park Ranger. He told be that all the rangers were required to know CPR and were EMT certified. He also informed me that the hill next to the center was known as "Heartattack Ridge" because of the thin air and pressure on the body.

Sir Edmund, I have total respect for you now!

The Summit (Avon, CO)

On my decent through the park I made many stop-offs for scenery (too many to include here). Once I reached Grandby I was getting hungry and decided to find a place to get some food.

Just north of Winter Park, in a little town called Fraser, I found a KFC/Taco Bell combo and went in for a chicken lunch. Seemed only appropriate after my bought with cardiac arrest, nod, nod, wink, wink. As I looked around, I noticed a stunning mountain off to the west and made my best attempt to get a photograph that would do it justice.

An odd ridge (New Castle, CO)

After passing the Winter Park ski area, I drove through Berthoud Pass - a drive not for the squeamish. The hairpin curves go on endlessly.

When I joined up with I-70, I discovered that it is one of the most beautiful stretches of interstate highway I have ever seen. Usually I avoid interstates when it comes to scenery, but I found many photo opportunities along the way. I will include some pictures on day seven as I returned from Utah by the same route.

From Enterprise, to Vail to Glenwood Springs and New Castle, the drive is stunning.

Towering rock faces (Castle Valley, UT)

Just past Vail, I stopped at a parking area to take a picture of an area called "The Summit". There was a patch of dirt between the lake and the freeway and little funnel clouds of dirt swirled above the land, creating an interesting picture.

Meanwhile, I called the Dodge dealership to check on my car. The news was good, the thermostat had gone bad and I needed a radiator flush (work I was anticipating anyway). I told them I would pick the car up in a day and a half, when I returned to Denver.

More rock faces (Highway 128, UT)

Next, I drove through the engineering marvel that is Glenwood Springs. The highway twists and turns through Glenwood Canyon along with the Colorado River. At some points the eastbound lanes disappear under the westbound lanes as they burrow through mountains.

The next area of interest is New Castle, Colorado. Here you begin to see mountain ridges to the south that are wavy patches of green. Soon these green patches turn to earthtone beiges and then rock.

By the time you reach Grand Junction, you feel you have stepped into the old west. Rock formations surround you, including one pale, domed mountain that fills the skyline from a distance.

I love Castle Valley! (More Highway 128, UT)

Once you pass Grand Junction, it is very flat, and very desolate. If you are scared of traveling by yourself, this is probably not the place to go. In fact, making sure you have some rations and plenty of gasoline is a good idea. When I exited off of I-70 to go to Arches National Park, the exit says "No Services - 48 miles". There is nothing off of that exit.

But what I found a few miles past the open cattle range was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen. Just north of the town of Castle Valley, Utah there are incredible red rock formations that jet out of the earth and up 1,000 feet or more. Soon you begin driving through a canyon cut by the Colorado River and the mixture of stone, sunset and rushing river was more than I can describe. Many times I stopped the car just to gaze.

Just inside the park (Arches Ntl Park, UT)

As the sun began to set, I realized I was not going to get through Arches National Park. But I wasn't disappointed, the drive through the canyon more than made up for it!

> Day six