Rocky Mountain High--Real High

Hi, everyone,

We celebrated our 43rd anniversary in Jackson Hole, then reluctantly left the Tetons traveling south, then west toward Laramie, WY. We experienced our first traffic problem along the desolete route from Rock Springs to Laramie. We sat, engine off, for about 1 1/2 hours not knowing until later that a tractor-trailer rig had wrecked and burned to the ground. It was a terrible sight. We said a little prayer, hoping the driver had survived.

We arrived in Laramie (one of the wild, old west towns) and found that it hadn't changed much from those cowboy days. Only now, it's returning college students (Colorado U.) that are "shootin' up the town." We ate at a hangout for college kids that was right next to the Union Pacific rail yard and watched one train after another come and go. It was fun. Laramie, however, had nothing else to offer, so we hit the road the next day.

We drove out of Wyoming intending to go on into Denver but stopped at a vistor's center first. After reading through a brochure on Rocky Mountain National Park, we opted to see one more park before heading home (this makes Nat'l Park #4; thank goodness for the Senior Pass we purchased for $10 at our first one). We entered the Park at Estes Park, CO. It's a nice town with lots of shops and restaurants. This morning (Sat.) we drove into RMNP and all the way to the top (12,000+ ft elevation). WOW! John Denver was not kidding about the Rocky Mountain High. We were a little winded after walking around a bit. It is spectacular! Sorry, it was a little hazy and the photos don't do justice to the magnificent views. The winding road had very few guard rails between us and valley floor below. We thought it funny that there were a few signs reminding us to "buckle up." We finally saw elk grazing in the lower elevations and the Aspens are beginning to turn. Beautiful day!

Enjoy the photos.

Carolyn