Road Trippin’: Day 3

 Rocky Mountain National Park

Our first day in our first park. And, oh boy, did we set the bar high! I have always considered myself a beach vacationer, but after visiting this park, I may have to reconsider. We hiked about five miles throughout the course of our day, and every time we turned a corner we were greeted with amazing, yet different views. But before we left our camper for the morning, we ate breakfast with a surprise visitor…

{This brown bear was wandering in the creek not more than 50 feet from our camper!}

{We grabbed a picture at the entrance later in the day when the crowds died down. Caleb was our photographer.}

The day started out cool but quickly warmed up—though not enough to melt the large amounts of snow left on many areas of our hike. 

{Some of the snow I mentioned. The urge to make a snowball in July was strong with this group.}

{After a short hike, this was our view in the first clearing. Not too shabby.}

{The first part of our hike landed us at Nymph Lake. This clear and quiet lake was filled with lily pads that were bobbing up and down in the water.}

{Dream Lake was our second stop, and it was amazing. It had water so clear you could see the trout swimming around several feet away from shore. This one was my favorite. Dream Lake is the exact image I have in mind when I picture a mountain lake.}

{The final stop on our first hike was Emerald Lake—Caleb’s favorite. Jagged snow-sprinkled mountains provided a back drop to this perfectly named emerald green lake.}

We then headed back to the trail beginning—which was thankfully mostly downhill—and took a bathroom break (eww, those literal hole-in-the-ground bathrooms) before taking a quick half-mile trip around Bear Lake. And, oh wow, Bear Lake was breathtaking. 

{This view is going to be hard to beat!}

By the time we made it around Bear Lake, at least one of our children was ready to tap out. Any guesses?

It was time to go, and, besides, Molly missed us. I’m sure. 

Some leftover bits of our morning…

After lunch at the camper we regrouped and headed back out with Molly to make the drive up to 12,000 feet on Trail Ridge Road—the highest continuous paved road in North America. 

{Nothing really beats driving through the mountains.}

{Living her best dog life with her head out the window—and Mason freaking out because he was sure she was going to bail and roll down the mountain. Worst case scenario. Every. Single. Time.}

{Our view at Rainbow Curve. 10,829 feet in elevation. Up high, but not really up high compared to where we ended up!}

{We saw a few of these little guys poking around today. They are called marmots, and are apparently members of the squirrel family.}

{Close to the top! We made it above the tree line and were officially in the Alpine tundra at 11,716 feet at Forest Canyon Overlook. The smells of the flowers at this stop filled the air in the best possible way. I wish I could bottle this up and save it for home!}

It was at this stop that Mason complained of a stabbing headache in the back of his head, so he decided to sit out the final hike: Alpine Ridge Trail, a one mile round trip hike with an elevation gain of 209 feet. It was definitely not an easy walk up the paved path, but I am so glad we did. The flowers were beautifully subtle, rock formations were scattered about, and sound was absorbed almost completely the higher we got. It really was quite an experience. 

{Alpine Sunflowers filled the nearly baron landscape of Alpine Ridge Trail.} 

{At the top! And just as rain started to sprinkle on us. Time to hoof it back to the truck!}

{Those random rock formations.}

Colorado is all fun and games until altitude sickness becomes a thing. It hit Mason. First with a headache, then with the barf. Luckily we were back at home base when it happened, so no truck interiors were ruined. He is currently feeling much better, but has asked to keep the heights down. Will do, buddy!

Our favorites:

Caleb: Finally reaching Emerald Lake and sitting down to enjoy the views.

Morgan:  I thought it was going to be seeing the bear out our window this morning, but then we got to our hike and every single thing I saw on our hike became my new favorite part of the day. 

Jacob: Getting really cool panoramic pictures.

Mason: Seeing the really cool view at Emerald Lake with the waterfalls and mountains. 

Camryn: Seeing all the cool views on our hikes.

Road Trippin’: Day 2

We arrived in Estes Park, Colorado, which will be our home until Friday. The ride through the mountains to get to our campground was amazing, and we were greeted at our site with no less than 30 elk! I assumed the campground had some sort of a petting zoo set up, but quickly realized that these were just a bunch of wild animals passing by. What a welcome! And immediately after the elk left, my very favorite friend arrived with her crew to hang with us for the evening. This day will be hard to top! 

{It’s crazy just how long it takes Colorado to look like Colorado. Lots of desert-looking landscape before the mountains finally appear.}

{But those mountains. They take my breath away. Every. Single. Time. This was our scenery for the last half hour of our seven hour journey.}

{Our campsite. And the elk. They were sooooo close to us. And the babies with their spots. Adorable.}

{Any day spent with this chick is a dream day for me. A few hours is never enough!}

{Reeling in the fish at the campsite. I could get used to these views!}

 

{Our campsite has a stocked pond where you can fish up to four fish daily. It is not catch and release. In fact, it is strictly catch and keep. You absolutely cannot throw back your fish. So we had fresh trout for appetizers tonight. Hats off to Caleb for filleting them with a miniature sized paring knife. It was either that or a plastic spork.}

{After fishing, our group of fast friends jumped in the cold pool and then warmed up in the hot hot tub. Over and over and over.}

{Second generation Jenni and Morgan. I felt like I was watching us while watching them!}

{These kids spent the afternoon interacting like they have been best buddies for years. I loved seeing them have fun playing bags, putt-putting, swimming, and fishing.}

{A full moon to cap off the night. The perfect ending to the perfect day.}

The gas recap: We filled up twice for a grand total of $320.32. In Lexington, Nebraska we paid $4.37/gallon, and in Atwood, Colorado we paid $4.79/gallon. Looking forward to a quick break in the gas station stops!

Our favorites:

Caleb: Watching the boys trout fish.

Morgan: Spending the day with Jenni.

Jacob: Hanging out with Jenni’s family.

Mason: catching my first trout.

Camryn: Exploring the campground with Gigi. 

Road Trippin’: Day 1

Caleb has been planning our US National Parks 2022 Tour since February, and today was the day we began on our trail. First stop: Doniphan, Nebraska. Not because we wanted to see the sites of Nebraska, but because driving straight through to Rocky Mountain National Park in one day seemed unnecessary. It took us almost exactly 9 hours to the minute to arrive at this RV park located directly off of I-80. We were some of the first to arrive, but this place was packed by evening! 

{Loaded up and on the road at 5:20 AM. Wouldn’t be a family road trip without an obscenely early departure time.}

{Last time we went camping, Molly wasn’t a 90-pound beast. But the van won’t pull a camper, and we didn’t have a horse trailer readily available, so it was a cozy ride crammed in the back of the truck. But it really wasn’t all that bad. I know because I gave up my front seat to Mason near large municipal airports so that he could plane spot easier. If you know Mason, you know.}

 

{We drove through a bit of weather, which slowed us down.}

{The Iowa 80 Truck Stop. An attraction we have driven past so many times, but when you are on a road trip, you must highlight the uniqueness of the state, so truck stop sign it is.}

{We were welcomed in to Nebraska with warm and sunny skies!}

{Our campground had some fun amenities including sand volleyball and an in-ground pool. When Mason saw the sand volleyball, he was all-in. Not because he is good at—or even enjoys playing—sand volleyball, but because it reminds him of a certain movie. His words: Great! This is going to be just like Top Gun. And then he ripped his shirt off. Oh my.}

Fun fact: Nebraska is roughly 1900 feet about sea level, compared with our hometown of 600 feet above sea level. I only know this because my ears started popping. I imagine I will be in for a real treat once we actually start going up the mountains… 

Favorites of the day: 

Mason: Seeing the Doomsday 747 as we drove past the Lincoln airport. 

Jacob: Beating Dad and Camryn in volleyball after being down 18-0.

Camryn: Seeing a windmill wing on the ground as we drove. There were workers standing around it. *I cannot confirm this, because I might have been sleeping. 

Morgan: Having 9 hours of time to delete nearly 300 videos off my phone. 

Caleb: Is asleep. But if I had to speak on his behalf, I would say his favorite was probably driving through the rain. That seemed fun. 

*We filled up twice with gas: Amana Colonies, Iowa at 4.39/gallon, and in Underwood, Iowa for $4.07/gallon. We spent $275.70 on gas today. 

Next up: Estes Park, Colorado, where we will spend a few days exploring Rocky Mountain National Park. 

June Bits

The pieces of our June puzzle.

{Jacob will be getting braces before school starts. He went in for all of his X-rays and pictures and can’t wait to pick out rubber band colors.}

{Oops. Tailgates beat phone every time. It always warms my heart when Caleb screws up and has no one to yell at for “careless mistakes.” Phone has been replaced, and caution is on high-alert.}

{We have birds living in nearly every downspout of our house, and at the perfect height to torment Molly.}

{We got a new driveway installed. And had a bit of dirt work to do.}

{Camryn had her yearly pediatrician visit. 50 pounds and 50 inches. A perfect combo!}

{So. Much. Pool.}

{My mom took the kids shoe shopping, and they capped off their day with lunch at the local airport. Mason’s dream come true!}

{The boys made a quick trip to Iowa to pick up the camper. They had a few extra minutes to catch fish and jump in the pond.}

{The kids give Caleb back rubbing services in exchange for cash or other pre-negotiated goods, but this is usually how the massage ends up…}

{Camryn and her bestie attended dance camp at the local high school and had a blast. They learned and performed a routine in between playing silly games and taking endless snack breaks.}

Baseball Wrap-Up

The Stars finished off another season of play with a record of  36-18-1. After playing—and crushing—teams much less skilled than them last year, this year was much more competitive (and frustrating, at times). Mason had a great season as catcher, had several solid hits (but also struggled at times), and was surprisingly good at pitching when he was put in! Now it’s time to put the glove up for a few weeks and enjoy summer!

{Only one championship this season, but those boys worked hard for the win!}