Today's adventure was a train ride through the Royal Gorge. The picture below is a replica of a Giant Hercules Beetle of the West Indies. It is located at the turn off to the campground and museum. The Mays family collected over 100,000 invertebrates from all over the world. Only about 8000 are shown in the museum. Mostly the largest, most beautiful and most valuable are the ones on display. http://www.maymuseum-camp-rvpark.com/natural_history.htm
The bottom mandible is missing.
This is the train we took on our ride through the Royal Gorge. The trip is 12 miles from Canon City to Parkdale and gains 420 feet. It takes about an hour and a half each way. The tracks were completed in 1879. The narrowest point in the gorge is 40 feet. To lay the tracks at that narrow a place they had to suspend the tracks over the river.
There are many rafters on the Arkansas River. Early in the spring the river at places is a class 5. I read that so far this year there have been 5 drowning on the river.
The Royal Gorge bridge is 1000 feet above the river.
More rafters on the river. As you can see at this time of year the rapids aren't too bad.
Notice the girders, that is what is holding the suspended bridge up. Quit a unique solution and it has lasted for 127 years.
There is a cable car that is suspended across the gorge which you can ride if you want to, not me. If you look closely you can see the wires. Unfortunately the cable car was not in view. There also is an incline you can ride from the top to the bottom. They claim it is the steepest incline in the world at 45 degrees. We are going back to the gorge Thursday to see it from the top. There is an amusement park of a sort around the top of the gorge and bridge. Admission is $21.00 for seniors to get in. You can then ride the cable car, the incline and you can walk across the bridge. Yes, you have to pay to walk across the bridge. There also are other rides. Tomorrow I hope to get pictures from the top of the gorge.
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