Rocky Mountain High

Woke up to a foggy mist.  The forecast was for a sunny day and about the time we made it to the mountains, the mist had cleared and it was a beautiful day.   I am going to let the pictures tell the story of our day.

This was taken as we were driving through Big Thompson Canyon. 

The famous Stanley Hotel.  Supposedly, it is haunted.  Parts of the movie "The Shinning" was filmed here.

Father and daughter and an unnamed moose.

Keegan and Hunter.

Aidan, Keegan, and Hunter.

We drove the Trail Ridge Road to the Alpine Visitor's Center.  This picture of Hunter and Keegan taken from the overlook there.

Mom and her two sons.

The blogger and her honey.

At the Alpine Visitor's Center, there is a trail to the top of the peak there.  The elevation is 12,005.  The steps and trail were steep.  My body told me not to go up the trail.  My mind said you are still young and fit enough to make that climb.  My mind won that argument but I told Jason when I got down to not let me ever do that again.  It was quite a climb.  Everyone was huffing and puffing but Kara, Hunter and I made it to the top.  The view was worth the effort.  That will be the last time I do something that stupid (I hope!)

Kara and Hunter.  They look a whole lot better than I looked at the top.

The view from the top.

Another view from the top

The Vlogger practicing his trade.

This is the trail.  It doesn't look too bad.

A group picture.

A section of the Ridge Trail drive. 

We spent most of the day in the park but the weather forecast called for thunderstorms around 2:00 p.m. so we headed back to Estes Park for some food and shopping.  The rain finally hit Estes Park around 4:30 which ended our day.  We parted company and all went our separate ways  It was a great day.  We enjoyed each other's company and saw some of God's beautiful creation.  Hunter and Keegan were very impressed with the park.  We made it back to camp about 6:00 p.m.  This left time for some bike rides and rock throwing into Boyd Lake.  About 8:30, the sky gave us a beautiful sunset.  Keegan made a new friend and he played with him until way past dark.  All are settled in for the night.

Finally...Colorado

Up early.  I think everyone was anxious to get on the road to our final destination of Colorado.    Kara and Jason stayed in North Platte.  They "waved" at us when they passed Grand Island last evening so we "waved" at them when we passed North Platte.    Clouds kept the sun at bay so it was a nice day to travel.  Somewhere after North Platte, Kara and Jason passed us again for the final time.  The boys actually took a nap on our bed in the bedroom (at different time, of course).

After traveling nearly 300 miles through mostly flat land filled with corn and trains, the view changes to mesas.  I think the mesas are pretty.

This was on top of one of the mesas.

After 450 miles of Nebraska, we entered the State of Wyoming, but not for long, because we actually only drive about 50 miles in Wyoming before we turn south to Colorado.

This Colorado family will be transplanting to Florida after visiting with us this week.  We will spend this week visiting and sight-seeing with them.

I got this picture from Hunter's camera so it is out of order.   This is the Archway across I-80.  It is a interesting place to visit but did did not stop today.

When we drove south from Wyoming, the clouds were covering the mountains but after the rains stopped and the sun came out, this is what we were able to see of the Rocky Mountains.

Tomorrow the whole family will be going to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.  Can't wait.

One final note:  The Traveling Vlogger will not be posting tonight.  It is late and he is tired.  He hopes to post two tomorrow.

Still Driving West

I think all had a good night's rest.  I know I did.  After showers we packed up and were on the road by 8:30.  As usual, I-80 is heavy with traffic.  Huge clouds filled the sky so for most of the day we drove without sun.  That is alright with us because it kept the motorhome cooler.  We were clicking right along when we ran into a big traffic snarl.  We heard that an accident up the way was the cause.

This is spot #36 Newton, Iowa KOA.  

Keegan has been waiting all day for Omaha.  We made here around noon.

A picture of the vlogger doing his thing.

We stopped for lunch at a rest area just outside of Omaha.  This is Nebraska.

Spot #5 at Grand Island, Nebraska KOA.  It is hard to tell from this picture, but the sites are very close.  As we were hooking electric and water up we were standing under the awning of the camper beside us.

The boys went swimming and Keegan jumped on his bike to explore the campground.  It has been a cooler day with less humidity and the best part is no rain.  Tomorrow will be our longest day.  I have estimated it is 400 miles to Boyd Lake State Park where we will stay for six nights.  Everyone is anxious to get there and see John and Family.

Check out Hunter's vlogs at Hunter Ozee on You Tube and don't forget to subscribe.

On the Road to Colorado

We were able to get most of the RV loaded yesterday so finishing up this morning didn't take long.  We pulled out of the driveway at 8:00 a.m.  This trip Sandy is not going with us so we took her to Ruff N It before we left.  It was sad to leave her but know she will be better off and we will have more freedom to do things.

My trio of boys pose for me shortly before we all climb into the motorhome.

Our first stop was the Iowa 80 Truck Stop.  It is advertised as the world's largest truck stop.  It is big but I'm not sure it is the world's largest.  Carol and I had been there many times but it has been remodeled and updated.  It is very nice.  The boys really liked it especially a display case filled with throwing knives, swords, throwing stars, etc.  

The store is filled with at least three full-sized semi trucks and all the accessories to make your truck special.  This is is one of them.

There were also older restored trucks like this one.

There is a food court and we chose to eat at Wendy's.  Everyone had chicken except Carol.  He is a beef man.  Back on the busy I-80 interstate heading west, we drove a couple more hours to Newton, Iowa KOA.  It is small, close to the interstate, but under trees so we aren't complaining.  The owners tried to make our spot even better by directing us into our spot backwards  This made our door open onto a very large grassy area with no other campers beside us.  However, our electric cord wouldn't reach so we ended up having to re-enter the site in the proper way.  Just as we were getting hooked up, the skies opened and hard rain fell for an hour or so.  It was a good time to fix supper.   After eating supper, it is our tradition to go to the camp store for ice cream.  It had stopped raining so after ice cream, the boys wanted to swim.  The rain cooled things off but fortunately, the water in the pool was nice and warm.

Hunter made a friend and they swam together and discovered a mutual interest in You Tube channels.  Keegan has really taken to the water (finally).  He actually jumped into the pool and put his face under the water.  I think he is ready for swim lessons.  We were at the pool at least an hour but when Keegan's lips turned blue, I had to make him get out of the water.  Showers taken and  Indespicable 3 in the DVD player, the rain has begun again.  I love sleeping when the rain is beating on the top of the motorhome.  I think this rain will cool things off and when we set up tomorrow in Grand Island, Nebraska, we won't have to use the sweat towels.

Hunter is doing daily vlogs.  You can see his vlog at Hunter Ozee on YouTube.  He would be very happy if you would subscribe.