Relaxing with Family

We woke up this morning to heavy fog/mist.  We all stayed in the camper trying to let the fog burn off.  Finally, we decided that we needed to do something inside today. 

By eleven o'clock the fog was beginning to lift so first order of business was to get something to eat.

We went to Pizza Ranch.  John and Family had never eaten at one.  It has a great buffet.  There are four areas to choose from.  You can choose pizza, a hot food bar with fried chicken, mashed potatoes, etc., a great salad bar, and a dessert pizza bar.  Everyone liked it.

After eating, we drove by where Linda has been student teaching and where Katie goes to school this year.  Our final stop was at a store called "Jax."  This store is a combination Rural King, Farm and Fleet, and Cabela's.  There were several buildings all filled with merchandise.  We have visited John and Linda for the last four years and have never been to Jax.  Linda got a telephone call that her dad had arrived in town so we had to cut the shopping short.  Her dad drove from the Detroit, Michigan area and will spend a month or two with them. This is one store we will definitely come back to next year.

What could be more fun for a eight-year-old boy than to play in the soot and remains of last night's fire?  Grandpa and Dad were in charge of Aidan and this is the result.  Oh well, a little soot and dirt never hurt anyone and he did have fun as his smile proves.

The sun came out for a few minutes and we were actually able to sit outside and get warm in the sun.  It didn't last long.  Carol had a nice fire going and we were going to roast hot dogs when a short rain shower came up.  It didn't last long and ended with a beautiful rainbow.

No wiener roast is complete without making S'mores.  Here is Katie enjoying hers.

It wasn't as cold tonight so we were able to sit around the fire and feel comfortable.  It was a good time of reminiscing about past camping trips.  It is interesting to hear about what John's memories were of all the time we camped together so many years ago.

Again, the clouds began to clear and the sky was picture-worthy.

I think tomorrow we may wake up to clear skies.  This picture was taken toward the west.  It looks bright and clear.  Hopefully, in the night, the clouds will move on to the east and leave us a beautiful day.

Although we didn't do anything to rugged, everyone was tired and retired to bed by 9:15.  Carol and I will soon follow.  Tomorrow we will go to the Harvest Farm Fall Festival with John and Linda and kids.  It will be a fun way to end our time together.

A Day with Katie and Aidan

This morning we were up by 5:00 a.m.  because we needed to be at John's house by 6:30.  Katie and Aidan were out of school today and both mom and dad had to work so Grandpa and I stayed with the kids.  John and Linda needed to leave their home by 7:00 a.m. so we needed to be rolling by 6:00 a.m. to be there before they needed to leave. It was dark when we left the campground.

We had a good day being with the kids.  We don't get to do this very often and were glad to be able to help them out.  Both Katie and Aidan were good.  Isn't that the way it always is?  Kids are better behaved for others than for mom and dad.  Linda got home at 3:30 and we went to the camper to see Sandy.  By the time we made it back, she had been in the camper 10 hours.  She was fine but excited to take a walk.

John and family made it to the campground and set up their tent.  It has warmed up.  When we left their house, the thermometer in our car showed 60 degrees.

As we were driving back to the campground, some light was beginning to show above the mountains.  That is a good sign for a better day tomorrow.

The brightness continued to grow.

Finally, we saw blue skies.  It has been five days since we have seen the blue sky.  It was so pretty.

We had a fire tonight.  It was so nice to sit around the fire and talk.  It was a little chilly but not uncomfortable.  It wasn't long before everyone relaxed to the point of realizing they were tired so off to bed they went.  Hopefully, tomorrow the morning will arrive with blue skies and sunshine.

Rocky Mountain National Park

It rained most of the night but when we got up, we decided to go to the Park and I'm glad we did.  We experienced RMNP like never before.

We took Highway 34 through Big Thompson Canyon.  It certainly looks much better than the first time we drove through this canyon.  Four years ago, a huge flood come barreling down the canyon, causing havoc and destruction.  From what we could see, everything has been repaired or replaced.

The first few miles of the canyon, the road weaves along the Big Thompson River between tall rock walls.  It always amazes me how a tree could grow on rock but all the seed needs is a small amount of soil and it will send out roots.  This tree is surviving on the rock wall of the canyon.

After entering the park we found this herd of elk.  It was rest time for them.

This time of the year the bull elk is gathering his herd.  He can be seen in the left of the picture, standing watching his females.

Their coloring makes them blend in with the grasses and scrubs.

The clouds were low on the mountains so I was not able to get a picture of a mountain; however, the aspen trees added color to the normal green landscape.

Another herd of elk.

Elk

As we climbed higher on the road into the mountains of the park, we found snow.  The higher we went the lower the temperature became.  When we finally had to turn around it was 32 degrees.  The wind was calm so it didn't feel like 32.

Not sure I like this picture but since the guy was nice enough to take it for us, I decided to post it.  It looks like we are leaning when we actually are not, the photographer is the one leaning.

A partridge flew into this tree.  Believe me, there is a partridge in a pine tree.

It was like a winter wonderland as we drove up into the park.  We were only able to go 12 miles before we found the road closed and had to turn around.  We loved seeing the snow covering the trees.

From snow to misty clouds over the mountains.

Elk.

We took Highway 34 back through Big Thompson Canyon.  This road will be closed beginning Monday.  They are making some changes in the way the road runs through the canyon.  This bridge is new.

We were lucky enough to find these two Big-Horned Sheep as we were leaving the canyon. They were right by the road so I was able to get a close-up.

It was a rainy, dreary day but that day turned into a winter wonderland once we got into the mountains.  It was pretty seeing the fog and mist on the tops of the mountains.  We got to see lots of elk and even big-horned sheep.  We always get excited when we encounter wild animals in their natural habitat.

We got back to camp around 3:00 p.m.  That is nap time and it is just what we did.  We will spend the rest of the evening relaxing.  Tomorrow we have to set an alarm clock so we can be at John and Linda's between 6:30 and 7:00 a.m.  Katie and Aidan are out of school tomorrow and John and Linda both work, so grandpa and grandma have the privilege of watching them.  This is a rare occurrence for us since they live 1,200 miles from us.  Then in the evening, they will bring their tent and camp with us for the weekend.  We brought firewood so we can have an evening fire.  It will be a great way to finish up our trip before we drive our final three days home.