We were planning to undertake a hike, but when we arrived in Estes, we discovered that it was quite chilly, around 60 degrees. As we drove into higher elevations, the temperature dropped even further. The lowest we found was in the mid-40s!
Man, is this vacation ever going to warm up?
So instead of a hike, we opted to take a scenic drive through RMNP (that's Rocky Mountain National Park for newbies). We made it as far as the Alpine Visitor Center at an altitude of 11,796 feet. Along the way, the kids had a snowball fight. We pulled off at several great lookouts. We caught sight of a moose and unearthed our binoculars for a closer look. When we arrived at the visitor center, we stamped our passport book and enjoyed some hot chocolate and cookies!
That evening, we stopped back in Estes for dinner at Mama Rose's. The Lees returned home as the Truaxes did some shopping. We found a Christmas ornament to remember our vacation by, and Jon bought an RMNP shirt with a moose on it. We finished the night by getting ice cream cones at Hayley's and exploring Estes.
Because we had such a good time and Debbie still hadn't had her hike, we opted to return to RMNP on Saturday. We stopped in Longmont to gas up our vehicles and procure a picnic lunch from Subway. Then it was back to RMNP where we set off on a nearly 6 mile hike (round trip) to Fern Falls.
The hike took most of the afternoon and just about all of our energy! We returned to Longmont and picked up some Papa John's pizzas to share with the Lees, then went to Menschie's to enjoy some frozen yogurt. Debbie and I stopped at a few stores to stock up on provisions for the next leg of our journey. We anticipate pulling out at 8 a.m. Sunday to continue our journey to the southwest. But we all agree that we have had quite a wonderful adventure in the Rocky Mountains!
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