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July 27, 2009

Wachovia Fun Club heads west

Submitted by the Wachovia Fun Club



Trains, planes and buses supplied the transportation for the Wachovia Fun Club recently as they toured the Colorado Rockies. Members from Dalton, Chatsworth, Rocky Face, Atlanta and Chattanooga joined in for the 10-day adventure.

Participating members included James and Jane Adams, Joyce and Billy Townsend, Larry and Betty Swanson, Bob and Dorothy Weathersby, Ron and Ruth Henry, Glen and Sharon Johnson, Justin Bolinger and Joey Parrott.

Denver, the mile-high city, was first on the list. A quick tour of the city led out to Boulder, Estes Park and the Rocky Mountain National Park. Then they were off on the Million Dollar Highway across the Rocky Mountains and some magnificent views of the snow-capped mountains, with a lunch stop in Vail.

Traveling through the mountains included a ride on the historic Georgetown Loop Railroad, built in 1884, then down to Grand Junction and a visit to Varaison Vineyards and a wine-tasting dinner. Touring the Colorado National Monument, established in 1911, included canyons, high rock towers and panoramic views of the valley below.

Lunch the next day was in Silverton, a historic landmark hidden high in the San Juan Mountains. Most of the buildings were built between 1882 and 1910 and still look the same today. Then the group was “all aboard” the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad, with its 1881 coal-fired, steam-powered locomotive, built to haul silver and goal from the mountains to the valleys below.

A trip to Colorado would not be complete without visiting Mesa Verde National Park and the Anasazi Indians’ cliff dwellings, built between 1211 and 1278. These are the ancestors of the Puebloan peoples of the Southwest.

Traveling across southern Colorado led to the Royal Gorge Railroad, a 24-mile ride beneath the highest suspension bridge in the world. It included some of the most spectacular scenery in the world.

Another train ride on the Pike’s Peak Cog Railway led to the top of Pike’s Peak at 14,110-feet altitude. The Fun Club also visited the U.S. Air Force Academy and the Garden of the Gods.

Upcoming trips include the Albuquerque Balloon Festival in New Mexico in October, a cruise through the Panama Canal in January and a riverboat ride across Russia in July, 2010. Anyone interested in traveling with the Fun Club should contact Joey Parrott at (706) 226-1514 or e-mail joey.parrott@wachovia.com.

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