Manitou Springs and Pikes Peak

On Friday, October 3rd, we checked out of our hotel in Colorado Springs and headed to Garden of the Gods in the morning. Our next hotel was in Manitou Springs, just west of Colorado Springs. We also had tickets to go to the top of Pikes Peak that day on the Cog Railway.

We walked around town and found so many cute shops and a hippie vibe.

The Miramont Castle Museum, which we just drove by instead of touring. 

The Local First Grocer pictured above was such a cute grocery store! On the top right is the Penny Arcade, which kept Craig entertained for a while! The bottom photos are taken at the Manitou Springs library--a tiny library with gems like the Seed Library and various cat cutouts with QR codes (genius).

By about 1 p.m., we were getting pretty hungry for lunch. We liked the menu at the Heart of Jerusalem cafe looked delicious. We ordered a falafel plate and shared it. I also treated myself to some amazing baklava.

We arrived at the Cog Railway depot around 2 p.m., a half hour before our 2:30 departure time, as instructed.

We settled in our seats, across from another couple, and were treated to views like these. 

We read that it's best to sit on the four seat side of the train (the left), but we got stuck with the right side. So, I took pictures of the better views the best I could.

Once at the top, we could see Colorado Springs below. See Garden of the Gods and Red Rock Canyon Park?

It was 12 degrees with 25 mph winds at the top! Eek! We're from Wisconsin and tough, but I was not quite ready for winter temps yet.

Luckily, there was a spot to warm up inside. My fingers were freezing at that point.

Craig wanted to get our money's worth and walk around outside some more. He even braved going to the edge of the top--I just couldn't do it, even though I am not that fearful of heights.

After a couple of hours on the train back down to Manitou Springs, we finally were able to check into our historic hotel, The Cliff House. I was glad to stay in a historic place like this that was built in 1873, even though it was a bit pricier than our other hotels on the trip.

Our room was cozy and nice.

Even Teddy Roosevelt and Thomas Edison stayed at the Cliff House!

Another busy and adventurous day in Colorado that we'll never forget!