Colorado trip

A week in Colorado last month was a delight. We avoided Denver and stayed at a condo owned by an acquantance in Estes Park, just outside of Rocky Mountain National Park.

The town has a population of 7,000 in the winter but swells to 30,000 during the warm months. It is a family town and mostly a tourist trap. The restaurants are Ok but there are some fine dining places a few miles outside of town. We had some contacts to advise us once we arrived and were able to visit parks and restaurants that were quite nice. With a senior pass we were able to enter the National Park wihtout charge as often as we liked and spent much of our time hiking. The driving trail through the park is magnificent and reaches over 11,000 feet above sea level.
It crosses the Continental Divide. Road maintenance going on this summer slow the trip considerably but it is, nevertheless, spectacular. We saw numerous elk on the mountain, some up close, although park rangers warned us not to get too close. The females had given birth and are very protective of their brood. The road leads to the town of Grand Lake on the western side of the mountains--a beautiful spot without the tourist clutter of Estes Park. We hiked at Bear Lake to the falls at the top. Although we had done considerable walking and hiking, Joyce and I underestimated our capacity for hiking at 11,000 feet. We found ourself sucking air and needing frequent rests. However, we persevered and made it to the summit, which is spectacular. The rest stops had no running water in June. The pipes were still frozen. We threw snowballs at the summit.

A side trip to Cheyenne, about 80 miles to the north, was a waste of time. I wanted to see Wyoming. Except for two museums and a very nice park, Cheyenne is mostly a cow town without appeal. The Railroad Museum, displaying the Union Pacific RR history was poorly done. Too much time spent on the locomotives which would be of interest primarily to train buffs but boring to the casual visitor. The Cowboy Museum in the park is primarily a rodeo commercial. I would like to see the real rodeo but it was the wrong time of year. We couldn't locate a decent restaurant for lunch in the entire city.

Bottom line. The mountains of the west are wonderful. They make our Poconos look like pimples. It's a great vacation area in all seasons. The people in Colorado are warm and friendly. The lakes are beautiful and well fished. Trout are the only fish that can survive the ccld. Wild flowers abound. Even irises grow wild. Our winter brings only rain on the east side of the Rockies.. It snows in April but the snow lasts only a day or so. We look forward to our next trip to Colorado.