A long but spectacular day heading to Wyoming

We left Pueblo at 6:30AM knowing we had a long drive ahead of us to our destination near Rock Springs, WY. We had planned a more scenic route heading due west from Pueblo to Grand Junction and then north to Rock Springs. It was mostly two lane roads and a good bit of mountain driving. Along the way we stopped by the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and the Colorado National Monument just outside Grand Junction. Both were unplanned and were absolutely spectacular. It added several hours to our trip and we arrive a bit behind schedule at 9:30PM.