Rocky Mountain National Park-Day 1

 

The morning started with a beautiful sunrise.

 

 

 

We headed over to Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) around 9 am.  Today was National Park Day so entry to all parks was free.  There were quite a few people, but we didn’t have any major traffic problems.  The plan was to drive the 50 miles from one side of the park to the other on Trail Ridge Road.  First we stopped at the Moraine Park Visitor Center to watch the movie and to stamp my National Parks Passport.

We drove to the Sheep Lakes area to see if we could spot any elk.  We saw a ton of cars pulled over so we knew we were in luck :)

 

 

As we drove further into the park, the mountain views grew more and more beautiful.  Out of nowhere a wave of emotion swept over me.  The splendor of the scenery really got to me.  I started thinking about how lucky we are to be living this life; and before I knew it, tears were running down my face.  Kevin just goes with the flow.  He knows I get a little wacky sometimes :)

I saw this bird at one of the lookout areas.  He was sitting on this sign right next to all kinds of people, and it didn’t seem to phase him one bit.  I believe he is a Clark’s Nutcracker.

 

On the western side of the park is Grand Lake.  The mountains on this side of the park are called the Never Summer Mountains.  You can see some of the aspen.  The park didn’t have as many aspen as I imagined, but they are in full color and gorgeous!

On our way back to the east side of the park, we stopped and hiked a few short trails.  We plan on doing some more hiking this week.  Today was a get acquainted with the park day.  One of the hikes was along this small stream.  It’s actually the Colorado River.  The headwaters start in the mountains in the park.  Can you believe this is the same river that roars through the Grand Canyon.

Our final hike for today was at an area called Rock Cut.  This was a mile hike climbing 260 feet.  The trailhead started at 12,110 feet elevation.  It felt like we were on top of the world.

I took lots of pictures, but pretty soon they all start to look the same so I won’t show you anymore today :)

Back in town we stopped at Estes Park Mountain Shop where I bought a pair of Merrell hiking shoes.  I’ve heard from several other fulltimers that these are great shoes for hiking.  They were on sale for $64.99.  I know they regularly run around $100 so I broke down and bought a pair.  My tennis shoes really weren’t cutting it today.

I’m tired tonight, but it’s a good tired :)

Don’t wish upon a star – Reach for one!