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Well, here it is: the final (and most disappointing) chapter of our tale.... Not Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park Probably the biggest single thing that attracted us to Denver isn't actually in Denver, but a 2.5 hour drive west of Denver. So important to the trip was it, that we planned to go on Day 1, with the possibility of Day 2 being dedicated to it as well. However, shortly before our arrival in Denver, mudslides took out I-70--the one direct connection between Denver and Glenwood Springs. This left 2 possibilities: a 4.5 hour winding southern route, or an almost 8 hour winding northern route. We opted for the southern route, since it was theoretically shorter. But after 6 hours of driving, detour after detour, roads that were closed when we got to them and directed us somewhere else (that was also inevitable closed) and still being told that we were 4.5 hours away from the park, with no clear way to get there, we crawled back to Denver with our tails between our legs. Which then left us having wasted most of Day 1, and no guarantee that the supposedly 8-hour northern route would treat us any better. Best case scenario: 16 more hours of driving, likely sacrificing an additional day's worth of planned activities whether we succeeded or failed. So, we shuffled what we could forward and tried to save a day for the end of the trip, just in case they were able to clear I-70 before we had to head home. (Spoiler: they didn't.) This update therefore will not be Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, but rather all the other things we did in and around Denver that didn't merit their own update. So wash that rotten orange juice taste out of your mouth with some minty toothpaste and put your random-oddventuring veil on, because here we go! The Eisenhower Johnson Memorial Tunnel, which is easily accessible while wasting your time trying to get to Glenwood Springs. Not that it was all bad. The Denver Museum of Nature & Science Kicking rocks. A temporary mirror maze--which was not much to write home about, but still cool that it was there, even if it was part of an exhibit celebrating the golden ratio, which is kind of science related, in that the ratio can be expressed with math, but which is otherwise pretty questionable in terms of claims made about it. Anyway...yay, a mirror maze! A view of City Park and the smoke-choked Denver skyline from the museum's super-secret not-that-secret outdoor viewing deck. Village Inn! Maybe you have these near you. We did when we lived in Orlando, but haven't for a while now, and really miss them because we're weird. One of our hotel's four elevators. The others depicted a ski lift, the cockpit of a jumbo jet, and a spaceship. But I think I know my audience well enough to confidently go with this one. Our hotel's 13th floor. The Curtis Denver, if you're curious. The good news is that our hotel had a view of an amusement park. The bad news is that it was Elitch Gardens. (I used that joke on Instagram, but I'm just going to assume that you've forgotten it by now, even if you do follow me there.) Colorodeos really love their flag. Coloridiots? Coloradicals? Ice cream was had. The first permanent structure in Denver was a saloon. They are a hardy people. Sakura House (not too far from Coors Field) was unassuming and kind of hard to find, but amazing. Denver Botanic Garden just missed getting its own update, but I figured y'all only wanted to look at so many pictures of flowers. Flower photo. If you wanted more of this, just keep scrolling back up to here every once in a while. This Dale Chihuly glass work is entitled "Colorado." I mean, not to brag or anything, but Seattle has an entire museum-type attraction dedicated to his work and we're weirdly competitive about it. I really enjoy Brutalist architecture. I've phrased that in such a way so that if someone tells me this is actually an example of some other type of architecture I can say, "Yeah, I know. I wish it *were* brutalism because then I would like it." I don't like to lose. [*takes bite of apple*] Really enjoyed this art exhibit by Yoshitomo Saito. The Denver Botanic Gardens also had an exhibit of Salvador Dalí. But I'm pretty sure these things change with the seasons, so they might not be there when you visit. But hey that's life you know? Change. We didn't get to experience as much of Casa Bonita as we wanted, since they were mostly closed except for a small gift shop and occasional tours. But this place is fascinating. Between when this photo was taken and when it was posted, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have bought the place with the promise to "change nothing and improve everything." But since we couldn't eat at Casa Bonita, we hit up Culver's again! We've never actually lived close to one of these, but we wish we did. Adventure Golf & Raceway has three 18-hole courses, one of which is really nice and two of which are good but obviously older. They also have go karts, a ropes course, and a maze. We did the maze, which we paid for but seemed to be run on the honor system, and perhaps unsurprisingly had some maintenance issues. If you miss, it sprays water. But kind of late. Like, when the next player is about to putt. So that's fun. Garden of the Gods It's like a bite-sized national park. Inside the visitor's center. It won't take you all day, but well worth checking out. Back on our mini golf BS. This one is called Colorado Journey and might be run by the city...? Each hole is themed to a local landmark. So kind of like Urban Putt, but more traditional. Do not look directly at the sun. No, wait, it's fine. Blucifer surveys his sulfuric kingdom. Thus endeth the disappointment. Though obviously that was mostly a just framing device. We always have fun on vacation. Even to Hell on Earth

here are some pics of the progress today.

Your amazing Photo TR reminds me of a very depressing article I read that talked all about how travel was going to prove more and more difficult due to global warming. Basically, screwed up weather and bigger meteorological disasters are going to screw over air travel and making plans and anything outdoors in our lifetime. So yeah, get ready for more disappointment I guess!!? Thanks for taking us along!

I mean typically dry park rides are a lot more expensive than water slides. For the cost of a brand-new major thrill ride, you can get a decent-sized slide complex that could offer a few different experiences for guests to try. Plus I would guess that the water park is more popular amongst locals given that previous ownership found it more viable to keep the water park side open and close the dry side. You also have to take into account that they almost had to start from scratch with the dry side since the only ride left was Rampage and a couple kiddie rides. Plus looking at the timeline, it isn’t the worse expansion for a small, family-owned park. In 2014, they opened a handful of kiddie rides, they reopened Rampage in 2015, two kiddie rides in 2016, three family rides in 2018, another family ride in 2019. Now it looks like there is a large addition for 2022. They are expanding their dry park more than half Cedar Fair parks.

That would be correct. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Grizzly

It blows so we're flying to Orlando later...

The time: February 2020. My family was planning a vacation to Orlando for December 2020. And then shit hit the fan in a nuclear way. And as it turns out, I had Covid during the time we had planned to go. Anyways, the trip was rescheduled for December 2021. I had scheduled off 9 work days. The flight out is Friday morning. Today was supposed to be my last day of work for 2 weeks. I'm telling my coworkers on the other shift that I'll see them the week of Christmas. Hell, I even posted in the TPR Facebook group a question about the trip today. Two hours after posting that, shit gets fucked 19 ways from Sunday when my brother announced that he has been diagnosed with Covid. Less than 48 hours before the trip, everything gets cancelled. The trip, my PTO, my hopes and dreams. I'm gonna scare a couple coworkers when I show up tomorrow for work. It's not often that I can relate to characters from Kevin Smith films, but for the next two weeks, I am going to understand Dante from Clerks more than any other character from any other film.