Trip Report
Base Camp: Rocky Mountain National Park
Last
November my sister got the whole family together for a long weekend at YMCA
of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado. She and my sister-in-law had done
all the planning and rented and four bedroom vacation home at the camp just
outside the entrance of Rocky
Mountain National Park (RMNP). We were only there for two nights but it
was a perfect base to explore the park and the town of Estes
Park.
Our first night we all went to Estes Park Brewery just outside of town for dinner. They have the usual pub fare which was quite good but what the adults really enjoyed was the free tastings in their beer garden. My favorite was Trail Ridge Red which is named after the road that crosses the Continental Divide inside RMNP.
The next morning my mom really wanted a family picture so we hiked a few yards out the back of our vacation home and got a spectacular shot with the majestic white-tipped Rockies in the background. After our pictures all thirteen of us loaded up and headed of to explore RMNP.
Rocky
Mountain National Park and Roosevelt National Forest surround the village of
Estes Park, Colorado with spectacular mountain scenery, abundant wildlife habitat,
miles of hiking trails and scenic drives including Trail Ridge Road over the
Continental Divide and the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway. It was November so Trail
Ridge Road and some of the higher trails were already closed due to snow. We
ended up at Lawn Lake trailhead and took off for a short hike up the mountain
and explored a very cool boulder field that overlooked the beautiful valley
below. I even got my 68 year old father to hike the boulders with the grandkids.
We had a great snowball fight on the way back down.
After that we drove back to explore Estes Park. We walked the entire town poking our heads in the various shops and visiting with the friendly shop owners.
The highlight of the afternoon was encountering a small herd of elk hanging out at the local park. They were at lower elevations due to the snow and having humans around did not seem to bother them at all.
We
then headed back to our vacation home where we prepared a great spaghetti dinner
and part of us played cards and games while the rest of us headed down the
indoor swimming pool. We thought it would be crowded but ended up being the
only ones there so we played catch the entire length of the pool. We also explored
the main lodge at the YMCA which has among other things a gift shop, small
restaurant, and game room.
After a great night's rest in the cold mountain air we went back to RMNP to explore some more and saw a huge heard of elk and got snowed on while exploring Bear Lake in the lower park.
The park is huge and we could have spent the whole day there.
Base Camp: Rocky Mountain National Park
Last
November my sister got the whole family together for a long weekend at YMCA
of the Rockies in Estes Park, Colorado. She and my sister-in-law had done
all the planning and rented and four bedroom vacation home at the camp just
outside the entrance of Rocky
Mountain National Park (RMNP). We were only there for two nights but it
was a perfect base to explore the park and the town of Estes
Park. Our first night we all went to Estes Park Brewery just outside of town for dinner. They have the usual pub fare which was quite good but what the adults really enjoyed was the free tastings in their beer garden. My favorite was Trail Ridge Red which is named after the road that crosses the Continental Divide inside RMNP.
The next morning my mom really wanted a family picture so we hiked a few yards out the back of our vacation home and got a spectacular shot with the majestic white-tipped Rockies in the background. After our pictures all thirteen of us loaded up and headed of to explore RMNP.
Rocky
Mountain National Park and Roosevelt National Forest surround the village of
Estes Park, Colorado with spectacular mountain scenery, abundant wildlife habitat,
miles of hiking trails and scenic drives including Trail Ridge Road over the
Continental Divide and the Peak to Peak Scenic Byway. It was November so Trail
Ridge Road and some of the higher trails were already closed due to snow. We
ended up at Lawn Lake trailhead and took off for a short hike up the mountain
and explored a very cool boulder field that overlooked the beautiful valley
below. I even got my 68 year old father to hike the boulders with the grandkids.
We had a great snowball fight on the way back down. After that we drove back to explore Estes Park. We walked the entire town poking our heads in the various shops and visiting with the friendly shop owners.
The highlight of the afternoon was encountering a small herd of elk hanging out at the local park. They were at lower elevations due to the snow and having humans around did not seem to bother them at all.
We
then headed back to our vacation home where we prepared a great spaghetti dinner
and part of us played cards and games while the rest of us headed down the
indoor swimming pool. We thought it would be crowded but ended up being the
only ones there so we played catch the entire length of the pool. We also explored
the main lodge at the YMCA which has among other things a gift shop, small
restaurant, and game room. After a great night's rest in the cold mountain air we went back to RMNP to explore some more and saw a huge heard of elk and got snowed on while exploring Bear Lake in the lower park.
The park is huge and we could have spent the whole day there.