So I finally made it to the infamous Garden of the Gods. This is from the Visitor's Center, across the street from the actual park. (Adobe FlashPlayer needed for this link)

A plaque reading, "The Garden of the Gods. Given to the City of Colorado Springs in 1909 by the Children of Charles Elliott Perkins in fulfillment of his wish that it may be kept forever free to the public."

Location of the aforementioned plaque. What incredible views! The sun was just beginning to set as I arrived.

Another amazing view just a little further into the park. This is a short walk from the main parking lot.

After climbing a short trail, this is the view I was rewarded with. I would like to add that if you live at sea level in DC, this little hike will make you feel like a weakling. The Springs is about 6,500 feet above sea level.

People were actually climbing this formation earlier. Climbers can request a permit to climb in the park. Many were taking advantage of the weather this day.

A farm was just a short walk around the corner from Garden of the Gods. I didn't happen to grab the name, so if you know it, tell me!

The amazing Balancing Rock. The clouds are starting to move in as the sun sets so I lost the glorious red color, but it is still something to see!

Here's all the info on the rock. Should have angled the flash down a little more. Couldn't turn it off though as the sign would not show up then.

A better shot of the Balancing Rock so you can see how little it rests on.

And now I move on to the Cog Railway in Manitou Springs. There are several hummingbird feeders at the station. I must have counted around 15 hummingbirds!

Our cog train conductor, Larry. Not much of a talker.

It started with rain and cold (had to buy a fleece) but turned out sunny and cool. I was extremely lucky and landed a set right at the front of the train.

Now we are starting to leave the tree line and hit PermaFrost. This was an old stopping point for travelers heading to the peak. This area is full of bighorn sheep and yellow-bellied marmots.

Kind of hard to see, but here is a flock (??) of bighorn sheep. They gave evil glares to the lady changing the track switch for us. The switch is manually thrown on the Cog Train line.

The switch is thrown and another train passes by while we wait our turn and watch the sheep. They are coming down from the peak.

Mind that I am standing straight up. We are on one of the 25 degree grades so the inside of the car looks like a giant slide.

Pike's Peak inspired the poem America the Beautiful. This plaque rests at the peak paying tribute to this piece of history.

The plaque honoring Katherine Lee Bates, author of America the Beautiful.