Rocky Mountain National Park

Our intentions were good. We were going to watch the sunrise in the park, which meant we were going to leave at 4:00 or so. But our horseback ride the day before killed all of us off. (Ron was walking like he was in pain all day. Lauren was black and blue all over) Anyway, we didn’t arrive until 7:30 and the sun was already well up. But the advantage to being early was that the animals were all still out and doing their thing. My wish list included Elk. Bear. Moose. Mountain Lion (from a distance) Reality: Elk. Moose. Coyote. Birds. Ground squirrels. Oh well, can’t see all that in Iowa. We drove a big loop at the park getting up to 12,100 ft with 38 degrees and 40 mph winds. Winter on top! Once around the corner of some mountain it started to warm up and we left the winds behind. We went to Bear Lake for our ‘Christmas picture’ photo op. We hiked 1.1 miles after that and up about 400 ft. Well, Lynn and I did anyway. But ask me if it was worth the effort?! Was it ever! Dream Lake lived up to its name. Words fail me here, because it was beautiful beyond my words! Good thing I have pictures. That’s what Ron told me too. Picnic, and the tourist thing at Estes Park, Big Thompson Canyon, a roadside stand,…I’m exhausted just remembering it all. Good night from Colorado!

Horse back Riding in Rockies

Ok, so we planned this part of the trip long ago. Like 6 months or more. I had to more or less cajole Ron into doing the horseback ride. He has been less than enthusiastic since the inception. The horses we rode were draft cross horses of some kind. They didn’t look too lively, but that was ok with us. Can I say that “looks are deceiving”? We did a 2 hour ride. ¼ of that would have been enough for Ron and Lauren. Maybe even Lynn. But despite a horrible beetle infestation that is and will kill 80-90% of all the lodgepole pine trees and makes all the mountains look like they’ve been nuked, it was still quite lovely. The aspen trees were in abundance. Still lots of wildflowers blooming. Spruce trees have survived. We saw mule deer. Old homestead. Beaver dams. And our guide was very talkative. About halfway through Lauren’s horse, Bilbo decided he would eat. Since we’d been told that they were NOT ALLOWED TO EAT ON THE TRAIL Lauren pulled him up. He was bucked off for his trouble. Well,for anyone 30 and under that hurts. A lot. For someone over 50 and whose last horse ride was, oh say, 3 years ago, that’s definitely not a good thing. But he got back on and finished the ride. Impressive. Ron couldn’t finish. They had to come and get him and let someone else ride his horse back. I am the only one of the 4 of us that would willingly go again. Even though I couldn’t figure out how to make my legs work when I got off. Heck, I couldn’t even get off without one of the wranglers taking a crowbar and prying my legs up and over the horse’s back. Did I say I loved this ride? I did! And Lauren? He is black and blue from his toes to his thigh and he thinks hedislocated his shoulder. Partner, I think this was his last ride.

Pikes Peak or Bust

We joined the million or so who visit Pike's Peak every year. We drove up the 14,000+ mountain on just under a half tank of gas. (that will be problematic later on) When we stopped and paid for our ticket they told us 37 degrees and 40-50 mph winds at the top. It was 80 where we were sitting. The drive up was alternately beautiful and terrifying. My fear of heights intensified with every mile. I was in the grip of abject terror by the time I put my feet out on the ground again. Plus I definitely was feeling the effects of altitude sickness. Nausea compounded by the greasy smell of donuts "made fresh every day" on top of the mountain, and light headed ness from lack of oxygen. Ick. There were a gazillion people on top doing the touristy thing...buying souvineers. Bother. It was not peaceful up there that's for sure. But the view was stunning. Spent about a half an hour or so up there and then did the dizzying ride back down. The problem was our gas was almost gone. We couldn't stop to take pictures. I swear we made it on fumes. That was almost as scary as the ride. Pictures later. I promise

High Tea

Today we are in Colorado Springs. We are at the home of the Navigators, Glen Eyrie. We had 'High Tea' at 11:30 in the castle. Oh my. Did I tell you our husbands actually agreed to this? Though they weren't the only guys, they were definitely in the miniority. They were good sports about it all, though. They drank tea, ate quiche and beef wellington, and a spinach roll. They were pretty little and the guys both thought it was short on substance. I think one of them commented about needing to stop at a fast food place later on. But of course Lynn and I were enchanted by the whole place. We 'teaed' in the music room, then checked out the rest of the castle which was just as one would expect: full of nooks and crannies and beams and fireplaces and armor and paintings and servants. We are here overnight though we aren't staying in the castle. More later!