In crossing over into Colorado from Kansas, one senses a marked difference in temperament. I can sum it up in one word: rangeland. In Kansas I got the sense that people are tied to their land and that they have been tempered by the wind and the weather. In Colorado I felt as though people were invigorated by the range and that they had a bit more "wildness" to them.

I obtained this image online. It is typical Colorado. I imagine that these peaks are over 12,000 feet.

I spent two days and three nights in the vicinity of Alamosa and Antonito Colorado. During that time I rode my Suzuki through La Veta and La Manga Pass. I hiked through Rio Grande National Forest at Antonito, snapping photographs of flora and the river. In the mountain passes, the Rio Grande is petite and timid, in contrast to the roaring giant it becomes downstream...