The escapade contined to roll on with the next planned stop in Estes Park, right outside of Rocky Mountain National Park. Enroute between Great Sand Dunes and Estes Park we had a short scheduled stop in Castle Rock, Colorado, to visit our nephew Wes and his girlfriend Katherine. It was so nice to see someone we knew for the first time in over 2 months. Beth was almost brought to tears as she warmly embraced Wes, realizing again how much we miss our family.
We had a great visit with Wes and Katherine. While we could have spent all day with them, we still had a schedule to keep, and they both technically needed to be working from home, so we went to a nice Medeterrnean restaurant for lunch and caught up as we ate. The food was delicious and the company was even better. Wes told us we needed to come back for a longer visit at some point, and we may just do that. We bid them farewell after a couple of hours and left behind the only family we had seen since April.
Upon arrival at our campground in Estes Park, we were greeted by a very unwelcomed force of nature – wind. Strong wind. The kind of wind that will blow your hat off and knock your tent down flat. Great, not what we were expecting or hoping for. What to do? We had experienced this kind of wind in Holbrook, Arizona earlier in our trip when we were visiting the Petrified Forest, and it caused us to shelve the tent plan and retreat to a hotel for two nights. We were to be at Estes Park for four nights, and the cost of hotels in this tourist area were outrageous and more than we wanted to pay. We had little choice but to set up camp and hope we could ride out the wind.
When we reached our campsite, we noticed that the tent on the site next to ours was blown down. I walked over and soon learned that in the wind we were experiencing it was best to leave the tent alone where it lay, which I did. This also confirmed our thoughts that we would not be able to safely set up our big tent, but would have to deploy our 2 man pup-tent. There are several downsides to using the smaller tent, including the fact that we would not be able to use our queen sized air mattress as it was too big, meaning we would be sleeping on the ground; not what we wanted to do. Also, there is literally only room for two people to lay down and sleep, which meant we would be changing clothes while lying down. It was going to be an interesting 4 days at the campsite.
Over the next two hours, the 2 Stooges show played out in all its comical richness as we struggled mightily to first spread out our tarp, which billowed out in full bloom in the 30 plus mile an hour winds, and then set up our small tent on top of the tarp. Only by the grace of God were we able to firmly secure the tent to the ground using the heaviest stakes we had. We said more than one prayer that the stakes would hold throughout our stay. They did, our prayers were answered.
Having accomplished the tent set up, Beth managed to cook a fine meal in harsh conditions of everything taking off with the wind including water blowing away as she tried to fill a pot. We then retreated to our car for the evening to get a break from the non-stop wind that was pummelling our tent and our bodies.
It appeared we were in for a long and restless night when we entered our tent that night. I think the only thing keeping it down was the weight of our bodies. The noise of the wind and the rattling of the tent flaps woke us often, but we made it through the night and were anxious to begin our exploration of the park.
It was Thursday, July 4th, and we knew the park would be busy, so we decided to get an early start. We did not have a timed entry reservation, which meant we needed to be in the park before 9:00 a.m. or we would have to wait until after 2:00 p.m. to enter. No problem. We were up early anyway thanks to the wind and we were in the park by 7:30.
We decided to hike the Deer Mountail Trail, a 6.2 mile out and back trail that ended at the summit at over 10,100 feet. If we could complete the hike, it would be the highest we have ever climbed, and the first time we were ever over 10,000 feet. The elevation gain is about 2,000 feet which is not too daunting. Onward we trekked.
It was a picturesque hike up the mountain, with a number of switchbacks on the trail so the climb didn’t seem quite so bad. We kept moving forward and soon enough we were at the base of the final stretch of stone steps that led to the summit. After a few more minutes we reached the top and were rewarded with a remarkable view of the snow capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains looming over the town of Estes Park. The trail guide says climbers will get a 300 degree view of the surrounding area from the summit and we sure did. We spent about 45 minutes up top enjoying this view and taking plenty of pictures to document our first hike to cross 10,000 feet in elevation. It was a great morning.
After descending Deer Mountain, we ate lunch and then hiked a shorter trail into the Beaver Meadow area of the park. This trail was not as long or dramatic but it gave us another perspective of Rocky Mountain and we enjoyed it. This hike completed, we decided to head back to the campground to prepare for dinner. Deer and elk were in the campground every morning and evening. We enjoyed watching the quiet graceful animals.
That evening the town of Estes Park held a fireworks show. Unfortunately, we were unable to see it from our campsite because of a mountain obscuring the view and we were a little tired from the hiking, so we listened to the booms and bangs from our tent as we went to sleep.
Friday was an exciting day as we were going horseback riding through the Bear Lake section of Rocky Mountain. In our opinion, this is the most beautiful area of the park and we were really anticipating spending the day there. We had reserved our ride with Hi Country Stables at Glacier Creek and arrived ready and eager to head onto the trail.
In the past, our family has taken horseback rides on various vacations and these rides always provide a lasting memory long after the vacation ends. This ride through Rocky Mountain National Park was no exception. Our two guides, Willy and Joe, took Beth and I and one other guest on a three and a half hour tour of much of the Bear Lake area. We went up and down and around and through stunning forests of aspen trees, meadows, and subalpine landscapes, all the while gawking at the Rocky Mountains that hem in the park. What an enjoyable ride. This was the second horse back ride of our trip and we have to say we enjoyed it even more than the earlier ride at Ruby’s Inn near Bryce Canyon.
Three and a half hours in the saddle, if you are not used to horseback riding, can be quite challenging, especially when it is time to get off the horse. Especially as one crosses six decades in age. Our knees and hips were clearly telling us we aren’t in our 20s or 30s anymore. At least Beth and I could dismount on our own. The poor chap who was riding with us (and who was half our age) could not get his leg high enough off his saddle to get down from the horse and Joe the guide had to lift the man’s leg for him. I guess we are not quite as old as I thought.
On our last day in the park, Beth and I started early on the Gem Lake Trail which took us about two hours to complete. It was a challenging strenuous 1.7 mile one way hike/climb up to the small snow melt lake. We then decided to spend some time in Estes Park. Our daughter Rachel and her husband Alexander had honeymooned there and Rachel recommended we eat at Antonio’s Real New York Pizza. We were ready for pizza, so we parked our car in the Estes Park parking garage and headed on foot to Antonio’s. We weren’t expecting the length of the walk from the garage to the restaurant. It turned out to be a mile and a half. By the time we reached Antonio’s we were famished. We polished off an outstanding pepperoni pizza in record time. The pizza was amazing. It was some of the best we’ve had. If you ever make it to Estes Park, definitely eat at Antonio’s.
We walked back to downtown and enjoyed a leisurely stroll along the riverwalk to the compact business district. It was the fourth of July weekend, and the town was packed. We ventured in to Laura’s Homemade Fudge and Ice Cream shop and splurged on $6.50 double scoop cones of the cool and creamy treat. I chose cherry vanilla and Beth had something called Tiger Butter, a vanilla based ice cream with peanut butter flavoring. The cones were a perfect desert after the 3 mile round trip for pizza.
The time we spent in Rocky Mountain National Park was very enjoyable. The hikes were great, the horseback riding awesome, and the scenery some of the best we’ve encountered on our trip. The park did not disappoint. When we look back at our time there, I know we will remember the good times we had in the park, and not so much the wind and struggles back at the campground. In the end, we survived four nights of cramped sleeping on the ground in intense winds, and we were really no worse for the wear. Ok, maybe Beth was, and she ended up sleeping parts of two nights in the car. Either way, we are ready for the next adventure.