On these widespread plains, blown clean by wind and rain, large herds of buffalo once roamed and increased in number. Warriors of Indian tribes hunted them for food and skins. Later, white men came to trap beaver in prairie channels and mountain glens. Then thousands of adventurers were drawn to the peaks and canyons by the discovery of gold. They plowed fields, built cities, and founded a commonwealth. This highway travels straight south to Denver and beyond, past ranches and then irrigated farms rich in grain and sugar beets. To the east lie hundreds of miles of prairie now dotted with prosperous towns. To the west rises the rampart of the Rocky Mountains, crested with summits like Longs Peak, James Peak, Mount Evans, and Pikes Peak, old in story.