More Mountains to Behold

Today our adventure took us northwest. That meant another two hour drive to our destination. We were headed to Estes Park and the Rocky Mountain National Park. Estes Park is a quaint little town just before the entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park and Trail Ridge Road. It is the location of the hotel that is featured in the movie the Shining. You can stay at the hotel is you so desire. Our first stop in Estes Park was for lunch. The food was just ok but the beer and the view were great.

The Stanley Hotel

Estes Park Brewery

We watched the ariel lift rides while eating lunch. I think Dad would have loved to ride if he could find a willing partner. That would not have been me! 

After lunch, we started our drive to the summit of the Rocky Mountain National Park. The summit today is 12005 feet. The road is called Trail Ridge Road. It runs through the rocky mountains. We weren't as lucky with the weather today. During lunch it became cloudy and started to rain. We drove through rain on and off both up and down the mountain.When we started our day it was 80 degrees. At the summit it was 48 degrees. Even with the rain and clouds it was still a breath taking drive.

Look close. You can see the road we had just traveled. You can tell we are still making our was up the mountain because there are still trees growing. Trees do not grow above 11,400 elevation due to the thin air and the temperature does not get above 50 degrees all year.

A stop along the way. We could see Elk in the distance from the visitors center. 

Yes that is snow!

           A beautiful rainbow on our way down the mountain. 

The animals we encountered today:

This is a Pika. Dad spotted this one running between the rocks. He was cute!

This is a mountain squirrel. He was running around right next to us. We thought he was a chipmunk. That's why it's important to stop by the visitors center. You learn many new things...like the names of the animals you are seeing. 

The Elk were in the distance but with Dad's binoculars we could see them well. 

Erinn has eagle eyes for animals. As we were descending the mountain, she spotted a moose standing in one of the ponds in the valley below. 

We ended our day at Patrick and Erinn's. They made us a delicious dinner. I'm bringing the hamburger recipe back to Ohio!