One of my mottos is "Rise above it all." In the real world this can be unattainable. However in the Rocky Mountain world it is attainable to "Rise above it all." Way up on Berthoud Pass in the Rocky Mountains, I rose above it all.
Standing up on Berthold Pass is a natural high that the late John Denver said it best in his smash hit 1970s song "Rocky Mountain High. " For the next paragraph, I will turn this review over to the late John Denver, where his lyrics describe my natural Colorado high on Berthold Pass.
"But the Colorado rocky mountain high
I've seen it rainin' fire in the sky
The shadow from the starlight is softer than a lullabye
Rocky mountain high (Colorado)
He climbed cathedral mountains, he saw silver clouds below
He saw everything as far as you can see
And they say that he got crazy once and he tried to touch the sun"
If you are thinking of spending time up in the Colorado Rockies including Berthoud Pass, I highly recommend downloading this song. It is the ultimate audio Rocky Mountain souvenir. With this tune playing in my mind, I will continue the review.
Unlike the late John Denver, I only spent a few minutes up on Berthoud Pass. It was a few minutes that added a year to my life.
I am just awed by Berthoud Pass. At an elevation of 11,307 feet above sea level it is the junction of US Route 40 and the Continental Divide of the America's.
US 40 is a major part of the Berthoud Pass experience. It is a 2,285 mile road that connects Silver Summit, Utah from the west to Atlantic City, New Jersey to the east. Along its lengthy run it passes the Colorado State Capital Building in Denver. What I find interesting is that it takes nearly 3,000 miles for westbound US 40 to reach a mile high elevation at the Colorado State Capital Building in Denver where in only around a 100 additional miles it climbs another mile to Berthoud Pass. Being the road geek that I am, I also appreciate US 40's historical significance as part of the historic National Road in the eastern United States. In the Rocky Mountains, a few miles northwest of Interstate 70 in Empire, US 40 is the mother of all roads when it climbs the strenuous switchbacks up the Continental Divide reaching 11,307 feet above sea level. As US 40 ascends the steep switchbacks, it leaves motorists with no room for error. Driving off the 6% grades would be a fatal mistake. For the record the Chief Surveyor of the Colorado Central Railroad, Edward L. Berthoud the man this pass is named after, considered the topography too dangerous to build a Railroad. At times I thought it was too dangerous for a motor vehicle. However, driving up (westbound) or down (eastbound) Berthoud Pass is anything but a mistake. The majestic vistas of the alpine and pine forested Rocky Mountains capped by the occasional ice is a drive on an asphalt stairway to heaven.
In the Rockies, the Continental Divide of the America's is heaven. It is another major part of the Berthoud Pass experience. If US 40 is a major east to west road traversing America, the Continental Divide of the America's is the major chains of mountains traversing the Americas. It starts at Bering Strait by the North Pole then ends at the Strait of Magelium by the South Pole. It's significant role in nature is separating the Atlantic and Pacific watersheds. Where US 40 is a driver's highway, the Continental Divide is a hiker's highway. After US 40 climbs the steep switchbacks, it rewards people with a paved parking lot featuring a trailhead to the Continental Divide Trail. I'd spend some time here. The pictures I took show an elevation that is so high up in the stratosphere, that the landscape is tundra. If only I could of had ample time to spend hiking above it all on the connecting Continental Divide Trail. Instead I did what several people on limited time constraints did. Take pictures! The ultimate photo spot is the Continental Divide sign. It's awesome having a picture of one person on the Pacific side and the other on the Atlantic side. It's ultimately awesome spending a few minutes on Berthoud Pass rising above it all in the Colorado Rockies. read more
