Paul Worthington

40 years ago the westbound bore of Eisenhower Tunnel opened

Forty year ago, the Eisenhower Tunnel — the highest vehicle tunnel in the world, at 11,155 feet — opened in Colorado.

The tunnel, dug directly through the Continental Divide, eliminated the 9.5-mile drive over Loveland Pass.

Eisenhower tunnel facts

• Cost: $116.9 million westbound; $144.9 million eastbound. (In today’s dollars, the cost to build one bore would be $1 to $1.5 billion).

• Travel width: 26 feet (two 13 foot lanes) each direction.

• Ventilation fans: 16 westbound, 12 eastbound. Each fan is 10 feet, 6 inches in diameter.

• Highest 24 hour traffic count: 50,918 on Aug. 2, 2009.

• Highest 1 hour traffic count: 4,708 on March 9, 2007.

my talk at TED Talk is UP!!

me & bono drinking guinness.

Google 3D Cityscape to launch for Denver

Google’s 3D Cityscape is launching in Denver this week on iOS, allowing iPhone and iPad users to virtually fly through the metro area with a swipe of the finger.

Colorado’s Great Places: Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, designated in 2004, is one of the newest national parks in the nation.  The highest dune, the 750-foot Star Dune, is the tallest dune in North America.  From spring into early summer, Medano Creek runs through the national park at the base of the dunefield. It forms a popular “beach” where vistors relax and explore.  The 30 square mile dunefield is surrounded by snow-capped mountain peaks—some rising 13,000 feet. 

PHOTOS: Before and after views of neighborhood burned by Waldo Canyon fire

The Denver Post captured aerial photos Thursday of the Waldo Canyon fire in Colorado Springs. The after photos show the destructive path of the fire in Mountain Shadows Subdivision area.

BALLOON DESK!