We couldn't go to Denver without spending a little time in the mountains. It was a nice day so we headed for Rocky Mountain National Park which was only about 30 minutes from our hotel. I got to use my Senior Lifetime Pass again as we entered the park.
We stopped for photos at the edge of Estes Park. The chipmunks were very friendly since most people had food. Begging is not beneath them. Hey buddy, can you spare a dime.........or a peanut?
Yes, he can.
We took several photos of couples with their camera so they could be in a picture together. There was a steady stream of tourists. I think that we could have charged a dollar a couple and paid for our trip to Denver if we wanted to hang around the Estes Park rock.
Estes Park
A necessary evil. If you are a retired electric utility engineer, the towers have a certain beauty.
Here is my one photo of the day.
Sigrid enjoys posing.
Interesting rocks that Sigrid saw at..........a rock shop.
Heading up into the Park.
What is left of an old glacier.
Click on the photo to enlarge it and read the board.
If you travel much in the west, you know that many of the pine trees have been destroyed by the Mountain Pine Beetles. What a shame. As you look up the mountains, 30-50% of the trees are brown instead of green at lower elevations. It doesn't seem as bad up high.
The snow was still 5-6 feet deep alongside the road once we got up to about 10,000 ft.
We went up until the road was closed due to snow that hadn't been cleared yet. It was a great view.
Sigrid ran into a very nice German couple who were touring the U. S. on their 3 week vacation. This was their second trip to the U. S. and I think they enjoy being here enough that they will return for more touring. We talked for nearly an hour and traded e-mails. They were renting an RV so they would have freedom to go where they wanted and stop when they wanted. We gave them a little advice on their next destination. Hopefully, we will hear from them when they get back home so we can share travel stories.
The Stanley is located in Estes Park. We drove past it on the way back down. The hotel has been used in several movies like "The Shining" with Jack Nicholson. We had a nice relaxing lunch in Estes Park.
Later in the evening, we enjoyed the Boulder Dinner Theatre with family members and friends. I think there were about 12 of us there to see Peter Pan. We really enjoyed the show and the food was good too.
Tomorrow is Jarek's graduation..........the main reason for the trip.
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