Above, the rising sun revealing the pristine beauty of Grand Lake, along Route 34 in Colorado. Right, Dave Nicoletti, formerly of Englewood Cliffs, relaxing on vacation at the Western Riviera Hotel in Grand Lake. The ascent into Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado is a slow ride through sidewinder switchbacks with precipices so high they could make an eagle queasy. To fall over the edge is to fall forever. This is Trail Ridge Road, a 50-mile ride across the park.
Rangers advise allowing four hours.
Only fools and bank robbers try to do it faster. On this road through the Rockies, the air is chilled, the elevation high, the oxygen thin, the sun bright, and the peaks close. This is the entrance to the sky. It took us four days, going fairly slow. I didn't want to just be high up.