Wednesday morning we drove the Trail Ridge Road in the Rocky Mountain National Park. It is the highest paved road in the United States. And it takes your breath away. Everywhere you look you are surrounded by gorgeous views. Sometimes it is a lush, green valley that seems to go on forever. Sometimes it is majestic, snow-covered peaks with thin clouds whirling around them. Sometimes it is a sunny hillside covered by an elk herd.
This was the first scenic overlook on the drive. I love this picture, I just wish Jav were in it too. The colors are so bright and everyone looks so happy - because we were! Except maybe Macy, who is confidently smiling here but was in actuality pretty nervous because of the precipitous dropoffs on the drive.
These may be my two favorite non-people pictures from the trip. I was riding with my parents, while everyone else was in my brother's car. I got so excited that the elk looked like they might cross the street in front of our car that I forgot I had my camera on zoom when they finally crossed over. I LOVE the one of just his head. But I think I equally love the one of his big 'ole elk butt. So funny still, every time we look at it.
As soon as we reached the highest point of the drive, it began to snow. This was the record year for snowfall, so I took this pic to show how thick it was on the side of the road. There is a small museum and a gift shop/restaurant. There is also a huge set of stairs leading up to an even higher overlook that just the four of us decided to try. Philip, Macy and Cade started out but Cade's leg was still bothering him and Macy didn't need to have her arm twisted to turn around and head back. I almost decided to also, because the wind was suddenly blowing ice cold snow in my ear, and my blue jean jacket was NOT enough coat for the elements up there. But I had to ask myself, "When will we be back to do this again, and will I be too old to try this at that time?" I prevailed. And I'm SO glad I did, because it was special up there with our boys. I will never forget it.
The clouds and the weather were something I could have watched up there all day, if I'd had warmer clothes on! It didn't stay the same for longer than about 4 minutes. It snowed about three times just during the short time we were up there. Just before heading back down, Some college-age boys were gathering for a picture, and they took their shirts off. Silly college boys. But we all laughed.
I love this picture of me and my boys making our way back down. The plant-junkie in me was glad to see they had signs to tell us which flowers were tough enough to thrive up that high.
The same elk heard we saw on the way up was on the move when we drove back down. Look at the babies!
We did our usual lunch then naps after we got back home. Then we started planning our second big home dinner for the evening. Grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and broccoli. While the food was cooking I made up a game of charades for the kids. They loved it! I helped Joel when it was his turn. I've promised them we can play it again some time.
After our excellent dinner the grownups played Password. Remember the show from the 70's? Allen Ludden was the host, who I believe was married to Betty White. She was always one of the celebs pairing up with a regular person on the show. The person looks at the word clue, and is supposed to say one word to get his or her partner to guess it. If they don't it goes to the next pair. We always end up in hysterics when we play with my parents, and this time Philip and April added to the hysteria! It was crazy fun, and all of our stomachs hurt from laughing long after the game ended.
I sadly didn't think to take pictures while we were having our night of family game playing. But I did go out and take some pictures of the Fall River and our cabin at dusk. What a perfect day.
