Diane and Desiree' arranged their October schedule so that they were free to take a week off. They had worked long and hard so they felt that they had earned some time off. They made reservations at the "Silverado II" in Winter park, Colorado from Saturday October 18 to Saturday October 25. The following is Diane's account of what they did.

We were able to get our things together, get ready and leave by early Friday, so we took advantage of the opportunity. We arrived in Colorado Springs about noon on Friday. We checked with Budget car rental for a car but they said our reservation was for Saturday and they didn't have any cars today.

Since we couldn't check into the condo in Winter park until after 4PM on Saturday, we were completely undaunted. We called the Days Inn, which is just outside the Colorado Springs airport, and got a room for the night. After their courtesy van picked us up and delivered us to the motel, we registered and got settled in our room.

We had all afternoon and evening so we called Enterprise car rental to see about renting a car. We asked for a mid size but when they arrived at the motel with our rental - it was a full sized Dodge. We told them that we only needed it for one day since we had a car reserved with Dollar for tomorrow. We did all the paper work in the motel parking lot and the rental agent left. We had talked briefly about keeping the car all week but when we told the agent that the Dollar rate was $140/week, he said he couldn't match that rate.

As we were starting to drive out of the parking lot, we saw him drive back in. We stopped and he said he could now match the rate if we wanted to keep the car. We agreed, he changed the paperwork and we were spared the hassle of turning in one car, picking up another and changing all of the luggage twice. It addition, we got the car for $140 for eight days instead of seven we would have gotten from Dollar and it was a full size, not a mid size.

We were then off for a day's adventure in Colorado Springs. We decided on a journey to the top of Pike's Peak. We had read brochures from the motel lobby about both the Cog Railway and the drive to the peak. We decided that we would decide when we got there which one we would do.

For those of you who have read some of my previous experiences, you will notice that so far I haven't mentioned a word about clothes. The reason for that will be covered in another article - maybe even this month.

In any case, Diane and Desiree were headed for Pike's Peak - neither of us had been there before. All that we had to do was get on US24 westbound and follow the signs. The first sign we saw said "to Cog Railway" so we followed it. It took us through a small town where we were surprised to find all traffic stopped by the police!! (Was there an APB out on Diane?) No, there was a local parade. We asked a policeman about how long the parade would last and if there was an alternate route to the Cog railway. He told us the parade would last 30 minutes or so and that there was no alternate way but that we could go back to US24 and get to the road up to the peak.

As we turned off of US24 onto the Pike's Peak highway, we spied a quaint ice cream/sandwich shop. We stopped and had a sandwich and a dish of ice cream, then resumed our adventure. The drive up was beautiful and we stopped often to take pictures.

When we got to the top, as soon as we got out of the car, the altitude hit us. Desiree had trouble getting her breath and I had some dizziness. We took it slow and easy and everything worked out OK. We roamed around the top reveling in the gorgeous vistas. The weather was clear and "on a clear day," we could "see forever"

We checked out the cog railway tracks; the train was not to be seen, and then checked out the gift shop. While looking around, we heard an announcement that everyone had to be out of the parking lot in 30 minutes. We went directly to the car and started down in order to avoid the expected closing time congestion.

The trip down the mountain and back to the motel were uneventful. Back in our cozy nest, we decided that we would go to Winter park tomorrow via the Royal Gorge, Breckenridge, Dillon, and Silverthorne.

I chose a new forest green jogging suit with silk pants and knit top with silk sleeves for the day's journey. The room at the motel was right beside the front desk and morning buffet dining area. I decided to leave off my wig, makeup and flats while I was loading our luggage. It was much cooler doing the loading without the wig and also less conspicuous to the many people in the breakfast area. I don't think anyone paid any attention to my attire, or me, for that matter. Comfort and discretion have to be considered in outing situations.

I donned my wig, makeup, jewelry and flats once we were on the road. Desiree was driving and fortunately there was a mirror on the sun-visor.

There was a picnic area/rest stop outside the entrance to the Royal Gorge that we decided to use. We parked by the ladies room and took turns guarding the door (there was no locking device) while the other used the one holer. We got back into the car and were ready to leave when I looked out of the windshield and saw a full grown buck lying under a pine tree right in front of the ladies room. Neither of us had noticed him before. That was worth a picture and then on into the Royal Gorge park.

We parked, got the seniors ticket price for "you ladies" and started roaming around. We walked up to the cable car but the next trip wasn't for 30 minutes. We then walked half way across the bridge over the gorge. From there we looked down into the gorge, up at the cable car and back down at the cog railway (which descended to the gorge floor). We decided not to take either ride because of the crowds in each and the temperature - in the 80's. The weather kept getting warmer, and with wig and jacket, so did I. I had packed clothes expecting the temperature to be no more that 60 degrees and it was at least 25 degrees warmer. I hadn't brought any short sleeve blouses so had opted to wear one of my male Hanes T shirts under my jacket so that I had the option of removing my jacket. Finally my body temperature rose to the point when I had to remove my jacket for survival. Here I was, out in public with a thin male T shirt over my bra, which was clearly visible. Is there a special name for a M2F crossdresser wearing a male T shirt over a bra? I decided that I see females dressed in that manner often and if they could do it, so could I. The bottom line is that on one seemed to notice, or if they did, they either didn't care or didn't show it.

We walked back and I found a seat in the shade while Desiree purchased an ice cream cone. Two ladies came over to MY bench and the older one sat down next to me to wait for the tram for a ride across the bridge. The younger lady, her daughter, took off on foot to walk across the bridge.

My voice is anything but feminine as those of you who know me are aware. But I decided, "What the heck!" I asked the lady if that was her daughter. She replied and we had a nice little conversation. She had been there 30 years before with her husband and it hadn't changed. She was from Memphis, Tenn. The weather was beautiful, and so on. When Desiree appeared, the other lady asked, "Where are you ladies from?" YOU LADIES!! How sweet it is! She may have thought that I was the strangest looking "lady" she had ever seen, but if she did, she didn't show it.

We left shortly to continue our journey toward Winter park. We continued on US50 until getting to Colo 9 where we headed north. The drive was much prettier than going IH25 to IH70. We drove through Breckenridge noting all of the shops just waiting to be explored on our coming visit to that area in January.

We drove on to Dillon and took IH70 east for a couple of miles to Silverthorne. We drove around spotting the locations of various stores for later reference and then went to the village Inn for dinner. It sits high on a hill overlooking IH70, Colo 9 and the Silverthorne area. The last time I had eaten there, it was quite crowded and I expected the same again.

Remember, I had been traveling and sightseeing all day and now was heading into a restaurant that I expected to be busy. Was my deodorant still working? How was my makeup? Was I crazy or what? It turned out that the restaurant wasn't crowded but it might as well have been. We were seated in an end booth right in the line of all traffic to the cash register with a family in the booth in front of us and a group of two families right across the aisle to my left.

We sat and waited, and waited and waited. Several people who came in after us received their food and we hadn't even seen a waitress. Desiree' pointed out that this is a common experience for two ladies at an eating establishment. I had never experienced this treatment. Finally a waitress appeared and asked what she could get for "YOU TWO LADIES". The second time in one day that I was called a lady. I even ordered my own meal. Because of my low voice, Desiree' has usually ordered for my in the past. We discussed how far I had come in the last few years while waiting for our food.

We continued to Winter park after dinner via Colo 9 and US40 east at Kremmling. We finally arrived at the Silverado II at about 750PM, checked in, unloaded the car and were now ready for a new day and our vacation to start!

The next morning, Sunday, we awoke to beautiful, blue, cloudless skies and moderate temperatures. I decided to take Desiree' on a sightseeing trip. We got dressed and drove to town for breakfast. We selected a little diner across from Cooper Creek Square that we later discovered was open only for breakfast. It is owned and run by a couple that has been in Winter park since 1963. We had a wonderful breakfast and then "hit the road".

We headed south on US40 for the trip over Berthoud Pass. It is a gorgeous ride and much easier to drive since they have passing lanes all the way up on the north slope and most of the way up on the south slope. We stopped briefly at the summit (11,317') to enjoy the scenery.

The south slope goes through the towns of Berthoud Falls and Empire. When we went on the Alaskan Dignity Cruise in August we actually met someone from Empire, Colorado but didn't get their address and don't remember their name. Isn't it a small world?

We proceeded on US40 to IH70 and headed west towards Georgetown. On our last visit to Winter park, we rode the Georgetown narrow gauge loop railroad. This time we just waved as we drove by. We continued west and left IH70 for US6 prior to the Eisenhower Tunnel to take the scenic route over Loveland Pass. The date was October 20th and they were skiing at Loveland. As we followed the road, it was amazing how rapidly we gained altitude. We stopped frequently to enjoy the panoramic views. We reached the summit (11,990') and parked so that we could go exploring. The air was so thin (I wish that I were - thin that is) and the pressure so low that we found ourselves gasping for breath after going a very short distance. There were people climbing to peaks on both the north and the south sides of the road. We wandered along a trail on the north side of the road that provided unimaginable views of the east entrance to the Eisenhower Tunnel and IH70 approaching it. From this altitude IH70 was just a narrow ribbon and the cars looked like ants. We finally tore ourselves away so that we could continue our adventures. We enjoyed the scenery on the descent and passed Araphoe Basin and Keystone ski areas. People were skiing at Keystone, which was the first ski area in Colorado to open; the second year in a row.

Continuing on US6, we arrived in Silverthorne. Since we had scouted the area just yesterday, we were obligated to visit the worthy stores.

We visited many stores but didn't find any "to die for" items. We made a couple of minor purchases and started the homeward trek. Since we had gone via Colo 9 and US40 last night, we elected to go east on IH70 to US40. It also gave Desiree' a chance to go through the Eisenhower Tunnel. She was amazed at its size. This route turned out to be a short drive that the previous route.

We continued through Winter park on to Frazer to stock up on food for the coming week at Safeway, the Fraser Valley's only large grocery store.

Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday were rest and relaxation days. We sat around and read, rested and watched television. There was a small park nearby with an asphalt path through it for walking or jogging. Desiree' and I visited the park a couple of times just to be outside in the glorious surroundings and to play on the swings and slides in the playground.

Thursday we decided to trek back over the mountains and visit one of west Denver's larger malls.The anchor stores were Foley's, Penney's, Sears, and Wards. It just so happened that every store was having a sale. Desiree' fell in love with, and purchased, a faux fur short black coat. I got a leather vest and skirt that they were just forcing me to buy. After several hours of walking and shopping, we decided it was time to return to our condo. We did, however, make a note of the mall's location for future visits. We both liked the colors, styles, and quantity of clothes in that mall.

It was time to pack up all of our goodies and memories for the trip home once we were back at the condo. The weathermen had been forecasting a major storm to hit the area on Friday afternoon, Saturday and Sunday and we hoped to beat it to the airport in Colorado Springs.

We were on the road at 7AM Friday morning but the weather had beat us. We (the car) crawled up and down Berthoud Mountain at 25 to 35MPH in about two inches for fresh snow. After reaching IH70, we descended from the mountains in a dense fog with visibility of about 30 yards. We had gotten below the fog by the time we reached the Colo 470 bypass and then had continuous drizzle until almost to Colorado Springs.

We arrived at the Colorado Springs airport in plenty of time for our proposed flight AND ahead of the really bad weather. The cloud layer continued getting lower and we soon learned that all inbound flights were diverting to Denver. It seems that the Colorado Springs airport had decided to dismantle some of the airport low visibility landing equipment with the result that inbound flights could not land. We were stuck. The Blizzard of 97 was on its way.

We checked into the La Baron Inn, just off of IH25, to ride out the storm. The major reason for choosing the La Baron was that it had its own restaurant on the premises. Colorado Springs received 20 inches of snow in about 48 hours. During the tail end of the storm and during initial snow removal, it was illegal to drive on the major streets and impossible to drive on the side streets. We ventured outside after the storm to play in the snow. Although the storm lasted about 48 hours, hundreds of people were stranded on impassable roads, several people died and many animals froze to death.

Sunday brought clear blue skies and major snow removal efforts. Airplanes returned to the airport Sunday afternoon but every flight was oversold all day Sunday and Monday. Rather than sit in a congested airport hoping to get on an already over-booked flight on Monday, we decided to rent a car and visit the large discount mall in Castle Rock, about 30 miles north on IH25. The interstate highway had been cleared by this time and it was clear and dry. In that 30 mile stretch there were about 30 abandoned vehicles sitting on the shoulders, medians and ditches. We wondered where the people that had been inside these vehicles had gone and how they had gotten there.

We spend the day at the outdoor mall under clear blue skies and temperatures in the 50's. Our suitcases were already overburdened so we fought all buying impulses. Desiree did find two pair of pumps that she liked at Nine West so we had the store personnel contact their Fort Worth store to see if they had the same shoes in stock. They did! So here we stood in a mall in Castle Rock, Colorado buying two pair of shoes in Fort Worth, Texas! All we had to do now was pick them up after we got home.

We drove back to the motel - most of the abandoned cars were still there - to get ready to depart - again.

We had dinner at Denny's, across the street from the hotel. We were glad that the hotel had a restaurant so we could get food during the storm, but it was a pleasure to get different choices (and prices) for a change. Denny's had been closed since Saturday noon because the employees couldn't get to work.

Tuesday morning we got up, loaded our luggage into our rental car, drove to the airport, checked our luggage and turned the rental car back to the agency. We then had breakfast in the airport and caught our flight home.