Red Rock Scrambling in Garden of the Gods (Colorado Springs, CO)
If you missed my previous posts about this Denver trip, go here to read them first.
We’re rounding out the blog posts about my trip to Colorado last spring with my first visit to Garden of the Gods. The park was originally privately owned and upon the death of Charles Elliot Perkins in 1909, much of his land was donated to the city of Colorado Springs to establish this free public park. There are several notable rock formations here, as well as layered sedimentary rock that has been upheaved into striking spines by the mountain-building forces that shaped the Rockies.
The park has 21 miles of trails, and we took a combination of them that led us both outside of the main paved area of the park and into the heart of it. As you can see below, the park is the perfect place to see many of the diverse topographical elements of Colorado altogether: the desert scrub, limestone, iconic red sandstone, and the snow-capped Rocky Mountains in the background.
The first of the famous rock formations that we stopped at was the Siamese Twins. Through the window in the rocks, you can see Pikes Peak.
It was certainly a hot day, and I regretted wearing a long-sleeved shirt. There was very little shade here, and I would recommend bringing plenty of water, despite how deceptively short the hike might be.
The globular shapes of the sandstone, carved by glacial forces, leave this park looking almost alien or other-worldly. It is certainly unique, and I could see why, as we walked through the paved central portion of the park, there were so many visitors. Here is where you can view the Praying Hands rock formation, which can be seen in the last picture in the gallery below.
This was a gorgeous and unique park that I would suggest visiting if you’re in the area. While it isn’t a difficult hike by any means, the striking rock formations make it well worth a stop. I would, however, recommend going on a weekday (ideally early in the morning) to avoid the throngs of visitors.
Thanks for reading!