Thanks MBH - can't wait to go and I don't need to get pumped up. Since I'm a planner I've had some reservations since January. My niece was in CO last week hiking and texted me several pictures. Stunning!

We really enjoyed checking the weather back home, seeing a heat index over 100, while we were wearing sweatshirts.

MBH - I have a question. A friend of mine was telling me yesterday about Altitude Sickness. Did you have anything like that. It's making me a little nervous, but hopefully everything will be OK.

Yes, we sure did, on the first night. The combination of a 15 hour drive and going from 500 feet above sea level to above 9000 feet really threw us off. We both had headaches and feelings of dizziness. My wife had no appetite and a bit of an upset stomach the first night and she just had soup for dinner. We felt better the next day, and much better by the third day. We did have trouble breathing all week, though, when walking up steep hills. We had to take our time when hiking.

Breckenridge is 2000 feet higher than Estes Park, so you're less likely to have the same issues. Most problems occur, as I understand it, above 9000 feet.

We have a nice dinner planned for our first night there (anniversary). Maybe I should cancel that.

Learn something new every day at BOL I thought you needed to go over 10,000 for this.

Click Here

This is the website I looked at to read more about altitude sickness.

The only time I remember experiencing anything close to that was at the top of Pike's Peak (over 14,000 feet). We stayed with friends and their place was at about 7,800 feet. I do live at about 2,200 feet so I'm sure someone from a lower altitude may have a different experience. The shortness of breath part is very real - when walking or hiking, you will tire out more quickly and need to take more breaks to catch your breath.

We're going there, too Thomas - and biking down.

Your link, Skittles, mentions drinking a lot of water. I wish we had been drinking water in the car, as it might have helped. Several people in town recommended drinking a lot of water.

At least you are biking down and not up! That actually sounds like a lot of fun, just make sure the brakes work!

It will be fun, Thomas. It's with a tour group and we'll stop about 10 times on the way down for sites and pictures. No way this old woman could bike up.

We took a downhill bike ride from Vail Pass to Frisco, only 14 miles and all paved. We only had to pedal a few times, but we were on the brakes a lot. It was a lot of fun, and we also stopped for pictures and just to absorb the sites.

In aviation, the regulations require that a pilot of a non-pressurized airplane must use supplemental oxygen if flying at 12,500' or higher for more than 30 minutes. Must use oxygen at all times above 14,000'. Oxygen must be provided for all passengers above 15,000'.

Interesting, Beech. Learn something new every day - and I like doing that.

Like many things, altitude affects different people in different ways and varying severity. I've been to Denver and the Rockies many times, and sometimes I can feel the altitude change, sometimes not. The only symptoms I've had were headache, a little shortness of breath, and/or a feeling of being tired. The best thing for it is drinking lots of water and not doing too much the first day or two.

Your mileage may vary.

Funny thing is - I have these symptoms when I go to a lower elevation. It feels like the air is too thick to breathe, Makes me tired just trying to breathe. I just live at about 3,500 ft above sea level too.

I cannot claim to be a fan of Denver. It seems smoggy, and the traffic was bad. I'd watch the news in the morning for the weather, and the traffic reports were horrible. Maybe if I stopped there for once instead of just passing through I might learn to appreciate it. But getting to Denver is kind of like getting to first base.

I'm actually considering, for our next trip to Breckenridge, getting off I-70 at Limon, taking 24 through Colo Springs, and then 9 up through Fairplay.

what base is this?

We'd be going all the way.

The last time I was there, I couldn't get into town. The National Guard had it closed off, because the earthen dam on Lawn Lake (in Rocky Mountain National Park)had burst, sending a wall of water down the mountain and flooding Estes Park practically to the roof tops. We were on a backpacking trip on the other side of the roaring river valley from Lawn Lake. The break, July 15, 1982 suddenly released 30 million cubic feet of water, resulting in a flash flood that killed 3 people camping in the park and caused $31 million in damages to Estes Park and other downstream areas. My mother saw the news on TV and could just swear she saw our car floating down the river. By the time we got down out the back country to a "pay phone" it had been two days from the break and my mother "just knew" we were dead.

Our head of loan admin just came back to work today from a week of camping in Estes Park. They loved it. She keeps talking about the blue skies and all the stars at night.

Now I'm getting even more antsy to get there, MBH. It will be a nice place to spend our 12th anniversary - a haunted hotel in Colorado. I'm just not sure what to pack yet, but when it gets closer I'll be scanning their weather.

We leave in 9 days - not that I'm excited or anything. Between work and my parents I really need this vacation.

We liked Colorado so much that we have already booked our lodging for next July. We'll be in Breckenridge for July 4th. We're thinking of trying fly fishing next time.