Roadtrippin' Colorado Style

Another distance sign.

A dancing arrow sign that came to the party with his own strobe light and power source.

A little bit of rock movement on a cut.

Approaching the cemented-ovcer rock cut we saw on the previous page.

This is quite the sizable cut. I can see why CDOT had to do a little more to make it stable.

The wire screens are designed to trap any falling rocks and force them down into the shoulder area of the highway. I guess this works quite well since many highways in the state that have cuts like this are being fitted with the same type screen.

Continuing our descent. Tray tables and seat backs in their full and upright positions, please.

This is the most evil exit I've come across. First, it's a hard right off of the interstate. The road then drops about 15 feet, has a very tight switchback to the left, then continues to drop as it goes under the bridge we see after the exit. I think 25 may be too fast here.

Another spot where bicycles are allowed.

We're now off of the pass and approaching Trinidad. Next up, exit 11 and the weigh station.

Gotta exit here. The r-dub tummy is running short on grub and there's a Wendy's here.

That's some sign rot. Also note that the business loop jumps onto the frontage road.

Now that the stomach is full, let's continue. The weigh station is located right on the onramp for NB 25.

A shot of the scales.

All the lanes for the scales and the onramp merge into one just before the interstate. Hmmm. Probably shoulda done something about the windshield gunk while I was stopped.

There's a heavy hispanic influence in the southern part of the state. Here's one example of this.

Not well advertised closure of the offramp here.

Looks like some prevenative maintenance is underway to prevent rock movements here.

A short weave lane before exit 13B. This is also the exit to SH 12, but I want to go over the viaduct once more. We'll be doubling back on a route we've already double-backed on. Roadgeeking at its finest.

Remember that damage we saw from the SB viaduct? It's being advertised here.

A shot of the NB former exit 14. This side dropped down fast to the main street intersection, or so it seems. From Main Street, you look up to see a stub of an offramp and onramp that's about 2 feet long. Then nothing but a drop down to the road.

That pointed green roof to the right of the right road damage sign is the Colorado Welcome Center.

On the NB viaduct now. Those are some old streetlights.

Coming up on the damage. My guess is that a truck didn't make the curve and ripped apart the whole left guardrail. Ouch.

Coming around the curve, we're greeted with a worker.

Bringing new meaning to the term "Go play in traffic." This guy was darting out into the lanes when it was clear, throwing down a bit of asphalt into a pothole, patting it down, then jumping out of the way of any oncoming vehicles. This can't be the right way to do this.

We're traveling on the older viaduct here. Ask me how I know this.

Exiting the interstate at EB 160, I decide to head north and capture the BEGIN!ning of sh 239

I traveled down a bit of 239 and turned back. There's nothing too special about that road, except for the Hall1burt0n plant located on Freedom Drive. Make all the jokes you want to about that one. Here we're approaching the END! of 239.

Here's a sign we don't see often in Colorado. I love the curved edges, too.

Now we're back at exit 13B-13A headed southbound. This is the first sign we see on the offramp. There's also a SH 12 turn left sign on the opposite side.

If you remember a page or two back when I was talking about Exit 14, I mentioned that the southbound exit looped down and connected at an intersection with a railroad track running through it. This is the intersection. The exit ramps are just behind the temporary jersey barriers you see behind the pickup truck on the left.

This would have been a great shot if there wasn't a reflection of my map in the window.

Directly into the sun again, but a shot if a guide sign with distances on it, another rarity for Colorado.

SH 12 takes 5 or 6 turns on city streets trying to get out of Trinidad. This is the last one before we're on a straight path.

Our first reassuarance marker. Good thing, too, with all the twists and turns.

Heading uphill away from Trinidad. SH 12 follows the Purgatorie River and an abandoned rail line for quite some time.

Approaching Trinidad Lake State Park. I have no idea what the font on that sign is. It even has serifs!

Another climb up out of the Trinidad area.

Passing through Cokedale. The hillside to the right is a hill of coal.

There were a ton of things I noticed while flying by COkedale, so I though it best to turn around and go back to take snaps of them. This is looking back east on SH 12.

A look at the coke smelting oven ruins to the right of the roadway.

A closer shot.

Ruins of a processing facility on the left side of the road.

Turning off of 12, we're greeted with this non-standard speed limit sign.

Hey, look! It's time to play "Dial a Fire Danger!"