Cottonwood Hot Springs

I kept hearing how the bad economy means no crowds in the mountains. WRONG! December 30, Cottonwood Hot Springs said they had only the $160 cabin and a $50 dorm room bed. The back of my CR-V is WAY better than a dorm room bed. So I went looking for a desolate place to pull off.
I need to start a new business making signs that say, "No overnight camping," and, "Day use only". Municipal, County, State, and Federal are all in cahoots to force everyone to pay into the local economies.
In winter, with the roads only partially plowed, and 4' walls at each edge of the roads, I couldn't use my usual places.

New Years Eve, I bar-hopped Leadville. I was prepared to bail, because I didn't expect it to be much fun. Surprise - I had lots of fun.
I met a couple from the Denver Metro area, and we got along pretty good. However, after running 10 miles that day and eating only one meal, I was tired. I drove east to the end of a road and went to bed by 11:20pm.

I woke up at 3am, 2009, sweltering. The temps must've been 45-50F! How can anyone sleep in heat like that? The sky was split with half a featureless gray void, and the other crystal clear and starry. I was obviously in the cloudy side.
Jan. 1 was the highest winds I've ever seen in Colorado.

Not the best day to go to Cottonwood Hot Springs. Or maybe it was why they had a vacancy. I checked in at 4:30pm, soaked for nearly two hours, then got a "hot stone" massage for 90 minutes.
Either I was abducted by friendly aliens, or I was on cloud9. I kept falling asleep. I really was having a hard time not drooling - that would have been embarrassing.
Afterwards, I showered and went to bed.

This morning, I soaked for another 2+ hours. The water was hotter. I had to keep switching from the hot pool to the cool one. There were lots of cool old people (like me). I guess it's hard to be uptight at a spa.

This was the only pampering splurge I've had in a LONG time. I've been so stressed at work it's been hard not to snap at people when they start pulling corporate political BS, so this was more than just a luxury - it had become mandatory. I had hoped for three days of it, but I only got a day and a half. It'll have to do.
Tomorrow, my 2009 Race Season begins. Yup! That soon. Another in a week. Back to the Go, Go, Go.