Travel Impressions

2014 USA

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16 Colorado's Historic Trains COLORADO'S HISTORIC TRAINS 9 DAYS • 13 MEALS Featuring Five Scenic Rail Excursions Meals included: (B) Breakfast, (L) Lunch, (S) Snack, (D) Dinner DAY ONE: Arrive in Denver Welcome to Denver, Colorado, the "Mile High City." Meet your fellow travelers at 5:00 p.m. for a get-acquainted dinner hosted by your Tour Manager. (D) DAY TWO: Rocky Mountain National Park Departing Denver, you will venture into Rocky Mountain National Park, a living showcase of the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains. With elevations ranging from 8,000 feet on the wet, grassy valleys to 14,259 feet at the weather-ravaged top of Longs Peak, the park is filled with breathtaking scenery and experiences. Following the Trail Ridge Road, a stop at the Alpine Visitor Center offers an opportunity to learn more about this fascinating place. (B) DAY THREE: Leadville Colorado & Southern Railroad Today you travel to historic Leadville to board the Leadville Colorado & Southern Railroad. While onboard, learn about the fascinating history of the railroads, ghost stories and tales of the wild from your conductor while traveling north along the Arkansas River Valley. Rising up 1,000 feet from the valley floor, you will be greeted by spectacular views of Fremont Pass and the two tallest peaks in Colorado, Mt. Massive and Mt. Elbert. Later, you will travel through scenic Monarch Pass and Curecanti National Recreation Area while en route to Montrose. (B, L) DAY FOUR: Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad This morning, you will visit the Black Canyon of Gunnison National Park. Then, it's full steam ahead today as you board the Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad. Voted one of the "Top Ten Most Exciting Train Journeys in the World" by the Society of American Travel Writers, this route winds through the spectacular and breathtaking canyons in the remote wilderness of the two-million acre San Juan National Forest. The locomotives used today remain 100% coal-fired, steam-operated and are maintained in their original condition. Later, you will check into the Sky Ute Casino Resort, where you may wish to give Lady Luck a try. (B, D) DAY FIVE: Mesa Verde National Park Today you will visit the land of the ancient Pueblo Indians in Mesa Verde National Park. The fascinating cliff dwellings and culture of these people provide you with a look into a society that existed approximately 1,400 years ago. Building elaborate stone communities, the Pueblos developed their own society that existed for some 700 years before disappearing. Archeologists called them Anasazi, from a Navajo word sometimes translated as "the ancient ones". (B) Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad

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