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| The Garden of the Gods rock formation seen near the park sign. |
On Sunday, November 7th, I began my final full day of my trip to Colorado by spending most of the day with my youngest brother, Alex, visiting a site that I was looking forward to seeing the most: the amazing Garden of the Gods rock formations near Colorado Springs.
Designated a National Natural Landmark in 1971, the Garden of the Gods was originally called the Red Rock Corral by early European settlers in the area. Archaeological evidence shows that prehistoric people visited Garden of the Gods about 1300 BC. About 250 BC, Native American peoples inhabited the area of the park attracted by wildlife for hunting and shelter.
Garden of the Gods was neutral ground for Native Americans. Even rival tribes laid down their weapons when entering the garden. This peaceful area was sacred and served as a hub for trade between the nomadic American tribes who made the land near the formations their home during the winter months. Many native peoples have reported a connection to Garden of the Gods, among them the Apache, Cheyenne, Comanche, Kiowa, Lakota, Pawnee, Shoshone, and Ute people. The site includes some Native American pictographs.
The Garden of the Gods even has its very own dinosaur, Theiophytalia kerri (The name Theios is Greek, meaning "belonging to the gods" and phytalia means "garden.") kerri honors the name of the geology Professor James H. Kerr of Colorado College who first discovered this 125 million year old Cretaceous Period skull in the Garden of the Gods in 1878. The skull he discovered is on display in the museum of the park's visitor center.
The most outstanding features of the Garden of the Gods are the deep-red, pink and white sandstone and limestone rock formations. With the backdrop of the nearby Pikes Peak and the Rocky Mountains, the beauty of these rock formations against this scenic area made for some really amazing photos.
Me and Alex spent about three hours at the Garden of the Gods, hiking the trails and enjoying the spectacular views. We also met a few interesting folks on this journey, including an awesome lady with her service dog and Emu....yep, you read that correctly.
The following are the photos me and Alex took of our trip to the Garden of the Gods.
Designated a National Natural Landmark in 1971, the Garden of the Gods was originally called the Red Rock Corral by early European settlers in the area. Archaeological evidence shows that prehistoric people visited Garden of the Gods about 1300 BC. About 250 BC, Native American peoples inhabited the area of the park attracted by wildlife for hunting and shelter.
Garden of the Gods was neutral ground for Native Americans. Even rival tribes laid down their weapons when entering the garden. This peaceful area was sacred and served as a hub for trade between the nomadic American tribes who made the land near the formations their home during the winter months. Many native peoples have reported a connection to Garden of the Gods, among them the Apache, Cheyenne, Comanche, Kiowa, Lakota, Pawnee, Shoshone, and Ute people. The site includes some Native American pictographs.
The Garden of the Gods even has its very own dinosaur, Theiophytalia kerri (The name Theios is Greek, meaning "belonging to the gods" and phytalia means "garden.") kerri honors the name of the geology Professor James H. Kerr of Colorado College who first discovered this 125 million year old Cretaceous Period skull in the Garden of the Gods in 1878. The skull he discovered is on display in the museum of the park's visitor center.
The most outstanding features of the Garden of the Gods are the deep-red, pink and white sandstone and limestone rock formations. With the backdrop of the nearby Pikes Peak and the Rocky Mountains, the beauty of these rock formations against this scenic area made for some really amazing photos.
Me and Alex spent about three hours at the Garden of the Gods, hiking the trails and enjoying the spectacular views. We also met a few interesting folks on this journey, including an awesome lady with her service dog and Emu....yep, you read that correctly.
The following are the photos me and Alex took of our trip to the Garden of the Gods.
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| Garden Of The Gods Park Visitor Center. |
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| "Whooooo goes there?!" |
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| Gorgeous view of nearby Cheyenne Mountain. |
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| Beautiful view of the rock formations that make up the park. |
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| Yours truly at the Garden of the Gods. |
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| The full view of the Garden of the Gods rock formations. The large mountain in the back with the white crest is Pikes Peak. |
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| Watch your step! |
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| The Kissing Camels rock formation with plane in background. |
Well folks I hope y'all enjoyed my photos of the visit to the Garden of the Gods park. Next up on my blog page is the final stop of my visit to Colorado. Stay tuned.
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