We left the bus at 8 AM to drive to Rocky Mountain Nat. Park. It took us an hour to get there. We drove through Estes Park and stopped at a bakery and got some cinnamon rolls.
When we got there we exchanged Pickles' paper 4th Grade Park Pass into a card. Her card got all of us into the park for free. We had to drive to a Park and Ride spot because all the parking lots were full. Once we were ready, we went and got on a shuttle bus. We decided we wanted to hike to Alberta Falls to see some waterfalls.
Have you ever been to Rocky Mountain National Park?
If you have, comment below what your favorite part was.
The hike was 1.6 miles one way, so in total we hiked 3.2 miles round trip. When we got there we sat in a shady spot and had a snack. KC went close to the falls and got misted. The kids and Dad went up the stream and did some bouldering. After that, we hiked back down to the trail and got on the shuttle.
Then we went to Bear Lake. As we started walking there was a ranger that was giving a talk about horns and antlers. I learned that bighorn sheep's horns grow like fingernails and keep growing their whole life. When moose grow antlers they have a velvety covering that protects it as they grow. When they are done growing the velvet falls off. After the talk we walked around Bear Lake and then went back to the Jeep.
We then ate a small snack because Dad forgot lunch meat. As we were driving to a discovery center KC fell asleep. The other kids got to go inside and look at the interactive displays.
Finally we drove on the main road through the park and got to see lots of wildlife. We saw female and baby bighorn sheep and lots of elk and moose. When we got to a cool look out point, we got to see two yellow bellied marmots and a great view of the mountains. Afterwards we decided to turn around and leave the park.
We drove into Estes Park and went to an Italian restaurant. We got lots of yummy food like spaghetti and meatball (No, this is not a grammatical error! KC's meal came with just one giant meatball), lasagna, and other good dishes. Once we had our fill, we got back in the car and drove back to the bus.
Stay tuned for more Adventures in CO!
Written by BOB, Edited by Mom