Garden of the Gods

From the farm it was a modest drive to the Garden of the Gods, a landmark I'd often heard about but never seen. Jan took me up there before dawn one morning so that I could photograph the sunrise as it painted the red rocks. While I was waiting, I photographed some yucca blossoms growing on the overlook where we'd parked.

I was pretty well chilled by the time the sun rose, but the glorious colors soon took my mind off my discomfort.

When the morning sun hits it, that red rock is really red! It looks red hot, in fact.

Once the glow had subsided a bit, we drove around to the other side of the rocks, where there are hiking trails. The line of titanic spines and spires marching off into the distance was even more impressive when seen this way.

One spire points skyward like an accusing finger:

And of course there's the Balanced Rock, which looks as if it belongs in Arizona.

That night we were treated to a spectacular sunset... a side effect of the fires.