Jim and I drove up Trail Ridge Road and hiked on the tundra by the gift shop. My favorite place to hike is the tundra. We walked up to the peak of the hill and could see for miles in all directions and see nothing man made. It was a bit windy up high today but not too bad.
We saw an elk herd in the distance grazing. Saw some snow fields but they weren’t close enough to touch. There are still a few flowers blooming here and there but I could almost feel the season starting to change today. Snow will be flying before too much longer up there.
There was a traffic jam on Trail Ridge and as we got closer to the road we discovered there was a coyote running down the road. We were close enough to the road that Jim yelled at the coyote and it took off down the tundra.
We saw a huge elk herd coming back down the road on our way back to Estes Park. There must have been at least 100 in the herd if not more. We stopped at several of the pull offs just to admire the beauty. I’m not sure we will get backup there this year.
Tonight I fixed a chicken in the crock pot and served it with a big pan of roasted veggies. Simple, easy to fix food that seemed to hit the spot with all tonight. I roasted all the leftover veggies in the refrigerator. Trying to get rid of as much food as I can before we leave Friday morning.
Tonight the kids got some firewood and are hoping to find an open fire pit on the grounds so they can have a fire to gather around. They are to text us soon to let us know where to meet them. I brought some warm pants I will put on to go out. It has dropped to 62 already and is still dropping.
We got a few sprinkles today on the way down Trail Ridge Road. We left the tundra in time to not get wet. Tomorrow the forecast is calling for more rain.
I took a short nap when we got back to the cabin. I woke up around 2:30 this morning and didn’t go back to sleep until around 6:30. Everyone fixed their own breakfast this morning so I didn’t have to get up and do that.
Jim and I took about a 45 minute walk around the grounds before dinner. I was feeling a bit restless and dinner was cooking and I didn’t need to do anything for it so we took a walk. I’m grateful I have felt like walking this week and have had lots of chances to do so.
I got a pass again for tomorrow at 9:00. I wasn’t sure what our plans were so got one for Bear Lake as that gives us the option to go to Bear Lake or up Trail Ridge Road. If it isn’t raining we want to get one last hike in. I hope we get back fairly early so I can start packing things up.
I am fixing tacos for dinner tomorrow night. We have some leftover chicken from tonight and I will also fix some hamburger. It will be another easy dinner to fix and serve.
Friday morning we will head for the hills of home. It will be good to get home. I’m glad we only stayed three weeks this year. Last year we stayed four and it felt like it was one week too long. Three weeks feels just right.
One more full day and then home. All good things must come to an end. The best part of going away is getting to go home.
Grateful for the beauty of the tundra, grateful for easy dinners, and grateful for naps.