Breckinridge .......................Riding the Gondola
Tom at Bear Lake ......................The Elk in the Distance
We've been in Loveland since last Saturday - enjoying sightseeing and getting ready to head north together with Glenn & Karin.
The mountains and the foothills are spectacular - we can't get enough of them. FOrtunately, we'll be traveling through the Rockies for several more weeks. You may get tired of snow pictures before we get to Alaska!
We have been able to get together with another couple we met last year at BOA. Caroline and Warren went to Alaska in 2000. They shared stories, suggestions, pictures and a wonderful taco soup dinner on a very cold and rainy night this week.
Our itinerary included the Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder. They take you out on the factory floor and show you everything but the mixing process (that is too dusty). Everyone wears hair nets and Tom had to wear a beard net too. No pictures - we forgot the camera that day!
We drove on to Golden through a snow/rain mix and toured the Coors factory. There were a lot of people on the tour on such a gloomy day. I guess the free beers at the end of the tour helped warm everyone up.
We also visited Glenn and Karin up at Breckinridge before they came down the mountain to join us. Fortunately there was no snow that day. Our poor little 4-cylinder truck took us up over 11,000 feet at the Eisenhower Tunnel near Loveland Pass. We went under the Continental Divide! It was the last day of the ski season so the gondola ride to the base of the ski area was free and we were able to get a flavor of the place.
Today was our last day in the area and we spent a few hours in Rocky Mountain National Park. Some parts are open year round and we took full advantage. The snowy pictures above were taken at Bear Lake. The snow is beginning to melt but was not icy yet. We walked about 250 feet from the parking lot to the still partially frozen lake. If we had had our real hiking boots, we might have tried the 1/2 mile trail around the lake. We spotted a herd of elk and a beautiful blue bird along with what appeared to be prairie dogs but are probably something called pikas.
Tomorrow we set off toward Wyoming. Cheyenne is only 50 miles up the road. WE are stopping there for some shopping at the Sierra Trading Post outlet store - Glenn and Karin want a tent for the back of their pickup. Then we are on to see the Little Big Horn Natl Monument and Yellowstone before crossing into Canada next week.
We are going to keep a daily log in the blog, just for our own reference. Read on if you wish...
April 21: Arrived in Loveland. Stayed two nights at Boyd Lake State Park. Nice park and very interesting bird watching. We saw two horned owls on a morning walk, along with our first black billed magpie. Also a Northern Flicker.
April 22: Drove up to Breckinridge to visit Glenn and Karin at Tiger Run Park. Two good meals - The Mint was great. We cooked our own steaks on a grill in the restaurant!
April 23: Got the oil changed in the RV and the car. Lots of driving around. Moved the RV to Riverside RV park out US 34 toward Estes Park.
April 24: Visited Celestial Seasonings factory in Boulder and Coors in Golden. Ate dinner at Caroline and Warren's with Glenn & Karin. Nasty weather. We had rain and cold wind in Loveland, but it snowed in the mountains and the Front Range.
April 25: An easy day. Mainly getting supplies together. Ate dinner with Glenn & Karin - a wonderful pork dish.
April 26: Rocky Mountain National Park. See above for description. Went to Fort Collins to find a tuner for the dulcimer.
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