8/5/2016

We headed up into the Rockies for what turned out to be an adventure. Our morning was spent wandering around Estes Park, a cute town at foot of the Rockies. After lunch we headed further into the Rockies to the national park.

Our plan was to enjoy the amazing views on the drive up to the Alpine Visitor Center in the Rocky Mountain tundra, the highest Visitor Center in all the National Parks at 11,796 feet in elevation. But, the weather blocked most our views on the way up. I ended up having to drive 10mph up the winding road through zero visibility fog. It was stressful, to say the least.

When we got to the summit, Gavin and Aliciana ran through the freezing rain and fog to see if you could see anything in the Visitor Center. Connor was asleep and I waited in the car with him, calming my nerves. All the views were completely fogged in, but Gavin did learn that it was 42 degrees outside.

On the way back down, the weather cleared a little bit, so we took advantage of the break to walk down a little trail and see some of the tundra. Then it started raining again, so we made a dash back to the car before we all froze to death.

After leaving the park and driving back though Estes Park, we stumbled upon 3 elk just hanging out by a creek off the main road. So, we did get to see some elk after all, and the boys enjoyed watching them. They are larger than they look in my photos, so rightfully acted like they own the place.