Rocky Roads

We woke at the base of Chimney Rock and continued our Little House on the Prairie fun. After venturing through a pioneer cemetery we continued along the Oregon Trail. We went through Mitchell Pass and into Wyoming. It was here the pioneer fun reached an all time high. We found Register Cliff and spotted the names of pioneers carved into the stone dating back to the mid 1800's. Then we found the ruts. Thousands of wagons traveling over the same area definitely leaves an impression. My social studies loving heart barely made it. I had my whole body in the wagon ruts made by those settling the west. I can't even handle it! I'm so thankful Mindi goes along with all my little history stops! We survived the Oregon Trail. No one contracted dysentery, the oxen all lived, and the wagon axels didn't break. 

 

There was a small accident. No worries, we have a first aid kit packed!!

We landed in Cheyenne for the night. After taking the self guided walking history tour, we went to ride the free horse drawn carriage. He was packing up for the day. So we went to the free nightly gunslinger show. Not this night. So basically we must return to Cheyenne with better timing! 

Today we ventured into Colorado. Either we completely missed it or there was no "Welcome to Colorado" sign. If there isn't one on the way out we can get, I will be very disappointed. 

We drove into Rocky Mountain National Park from the east. Through the town of Loveland into Estes Park. This was the most spectacularly beautiful drive!! I would love to show you pictures, but I didn't take any. I was too busy staring out the window. 

The Rockies did not disappoint!! It was so beautiful!! We didn't have a lot of time so we drove Trail Ridge Road through the whole park and stopped for a short hike. I can't even describe to you the curves! These road signs had curves in shapes I had never seen before on a road sign. Patty wasn't so sure she could climb round and round to 12,000 feet! The higher we climbed, the colder it got, and the snow appeared. So. Much. Snow. The car said it was 50. The wind made it feel like 30. 

This is rushing water!

As we entered the park we saw a sign that warned of several bikers on the road due to an event. We did not expect to see 2,500 people "Riding the Rockies". How do you even train for that???! The altitude change alone would be terrible. Hats off to those guys, especially the paraplegic riders. 

We ended the day in Denver. Where it was not a frigid 50 but a sweltering 95. Such a fun city! Again, we missed some things due to time so we will have to return. 

In 2014 we became Packers fans. We have now switched our alliance to the Broncos. A tour at Mile High was all it took! So much information imparted upon us. Here's a bit for you. 1 million dollars worth of beer is sold at every game. $1,000,000. 

We wanted to tour a brewery while in town. Google led us to the oldest craft brewery. We missed the tour by 30 minutes. We must start timing things better! 

We knew we couldn't come to Colorado without visiting a Cannabis Dispensary. We were complete "out of towners" and asked 5 billion questions. Austin, the lovely gentleman at Rocky Mountain High, answered them all and we feel much more informed regarding the legal sale of recreational marijuana. We left him a tip for his time and information since we did not purchase any of his goods. 

We ended our day with ice cream. Multiple people told us to go to Little Man Ice Cream. When we saw the line we knew they hadn't led us astray. A perfect way to end the day!!

Our tent is now pitched on the top of one of those curvy roads. I've seen signs that say there have been mountain lions and a bear spotted in the area. We will sleep better knowing that.