Honeymoon 2005
This was our first full day in America and we spent the day travelling, first North and then West. It didn't seem long before we'd left Colorado and entered Wyoming.
We went through what can only be described as desert. How people farm here I don't know. From the air, the fields that are farmed are round from the pattern made by the irrigation system.
The monotony of the scenery on the first part of the 550 mile journey was broken by the odd rocky outcrop (very cowboys and indians) and a train or two. We also saw cattle, horses, deer and camels!
As we travelled North, it just seemed to get rockier. What struck us more than anything was the lack of trees. Occasionally we found one or a small bunch of them but hardly any - guess they'd struggle to survive on such hostile territory.
Travelling West everything seemed to be more dramatic, the mountains in the background, the afternoon sun etc.
Very occasionally there was some water. We called into a lookout for some very pretty scenery as we were almost at our destination for the day. The river below is the River Wind and we were driving through an Indian reservation.
Our accommodation for the next 5 nights was a log cabin in the Bridger Teton National Forest at Togwotee Mountain Lodge. It was a bit cooler when we arrived there than the 31C we'd left in Denver for which we were very grateful.
Togwotee Mountain Lodge is 8,600 ft above sea level so we had to make sure we drank plenty and got lots of rest etc. to avoid altitude sickness. The Lodge closed its restaurant and bar for the end of the Summer season the day after we got there - when we opened the curtains the next morning we could see why!
The picture on the left was taken at about 10.30 a.m. The photos below show how much can change in a few hours in the mountains.
Above - The left picture was when we got up, the middle when we came back from breakfast and the one on the right about 2 hours later.
Below - the photos are the view from one of our windows. The left one from when we arrived, the second after breakfast the next day and the third at about 10.30 a.m. We think we had about 4 inches of snow in a couple of hours.
We waited until the thunder and lighting had stopped and the snow wasn't falling quite so fast before we ventured out into Grand Teton National Park. The lodge people assured us it wouldn't be snowing there - it wasn't - it was raining instead. At this point, the temperature was 32F (0C) even down in the valley so pretty chilly. We also spent our 4th day of Togwotee at Grand Teton NP - you will see from the photos, the weather was very different.
First stop Elk Ranch turnout to enjoy the scenery. The tops of the mountains are hiding behind the clouds.
Next stop was Cunningham's Cabin. I think I prefer our cabin but the views from the windows are lovely!
The turnouts are great but there aren't many of them. When it's not busy you can stop and take a few snaps that can be just as interesting.
The 2 main lakes in Grand Teton NP are Jenny Lake (the food at Jenny Lake Lodge is superb) and Jackson Lake
Cathedral turnout gave us good views of the mountains - as you can see, the sun is trying to come out - this is late afternoon. See below for a picture taken a couple of days later in the sunshine!
The best part of the first day's "tour" was the trip up to Signal Mountain Summit (the large picture above was taken from there). This is where we came across our first lot of wildlife.
From the top you get a fantastic view of Grand Teton Valley - lovely with the afternoon sun on it. You can also see Snake River.
The best part of the first day (weather wise) was late afternoon and we were treated to a beautiful view of the peaks as we left the park and headed back to our cabin to get warm.
4th day at Togwotee and 2nd at Grand Teton NP - the weather couldn't have been more different - by the afternoon we were walking round in t-shirts instead of a couple of jumpers! We booked ourselves a float trip down the river for late afternoon then did the circular tour - much more water features in today's pictures - not least because you could see it.
Oxbow Bend and the Snake River Overlooks both provide good vantage points for photos.
This is the river we floated down in the afternoon - the rafts that were on the river when we were taking photos were so small they hardly showed up but the river didn't look like it was moving too fast.
Today also gave us more opportunities for wildlife spotting - some big and some small! We also spotted a coyote but he was far too fast for my reactions so no photos I'm afraid. The float trip gave more opportunities - sorry the horn-eared owl's a bit "furry" - it was getting a bit dark and the raft wasn't staying still (that's my excuse anyway).
Driving around we continued to enjoy wonderful views and were delighted to see that some of the trees had started to change colour ready for Autumn.
A quick picture of me just to prove I was there then on to the float trip pictures. As you'll see, the sun and the clouds were wonderful to see from the raft.
We had to say Goodbye to Grand Teton NP - a beautiful place with very friendly people - but we really enjoyed our time there (even if we didn't see a bear).
Morning, Day 2 at Togwotee, there was still plenty of snow around (pic on right is where we were staying) and the temperature was well below freezing! The sun was shining so off we went to Yellowstone National Park for the day. Day 3 was also spent in Yellowstone.
Yellowstone is huge and, as we only spent a couple of days exploring it, there was probably a lot of it we didn't see. The following pictures will, hopefully, give you a guided tour in an anticlockwise direction - entering via the South Gate.
First stop West Thumb Geyser Basin. It looks like a fairly desolate place with the steam from the sulphur pools but the colours and the atmosphere are amazing.
The main river is Yellowstone River and the main lake Yellowstone Lake.
On the way to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone, we drove through plains/prairie where buffalo (aka bison) were roaming freely.
We also passed waterfalls ...
... and saw plenty of wildlife but no bears.
The canyon itself was spectacular.
From Canyon, we continued North through some very pretty countryside and more wildlife (all pics above). We decided to do the Blacktail Plateau Drive - a bit of a rough road (to say the least) but well worth it to get the views.
Our main treat for our second day was to visit Mammoth Hot Springs. They were spectacular. There as a good walking trail to follow (J had to be very careful at these altitudes but he managed by taking it steady).
First stop - Liberty Cap, created by a hot spring that was active in one location for a long time. Its internal pressure meant the water rose to a great height and mineral deposits built slowly over hundreds of years to form this rock.
Stop 2 - Palette Spring. Very spectacular with water flowing down it creating wonderful colours.
From Palette, you keep walking up and up past Cleopatra Terrace and on to New Blue Spring.
New Blue is part of the Main Terrace. The Mammoth Hot Spring area is primarily limestone and the colours are created by therophiles (heat loving microorganisms). The colours change with the seasons and the springs can be active or non-active - we were very lucky on the day we visited.
The colours were wonderful and we didn't think it could get any better, that is until we reached Canary Spring - the colours and atmosphere here were amazing.
Down the west side, past more waterfalls and geysers/thermal activity which makes for dramatic scenery and we've almost completed the circle now.
Finally, a stop to see Old Faithful in action was a must before we said goodbye to Yellowstone.
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One final word before we leave Togwotee - as it was closed season (and therefore no food at Togwotee itself) we should say a big thanks to the team at Hatchet who gave us breakfast and dinner - delicious food and fun people.
We're now on Friday and coming to the end of our first week here. That means its time to head back down south to Colorado. Rather than doing the journey to Estes Park in one go, we stopped at Rawlins overnight. The journey to Rawlins was not the most interesting we've ever done - the best part was a wrong turning when we ended up seeing Red Canyon by accident. Other than that it was plains, big skies and a few mountains in the distance - very nice but not for quite so long! A few pictures of the more interesting bits of our journey follow.
Saturday and we finally arrived at Estes Park. More big skies etc. but also some wonderful scenery to enjoy on the way. The temperature varied from 49F to 83F during the course of our drive which took some adapting to.
To make the journey "prettier", we went over Snowy Mountain Scenic Byway rather than sticking to the Interstate. We even did a short trail at the top (10,800 ft) to see an old mine and miner's cabin.
We stopped for lunch in Laramie (nice place, lovely people) and drove through Fort Collins and Loveland then alongside the Big Thompson River on the final part of our journey. We also managed to catch sight of a few critters along the way.
On the way back we took a detour via Glen Haven. We were really glad we did as about halfway along the loop, a lady called Lisa stopped us and pointed out a Mum Bear and 2 cubs ambling up the hillside. These are the only bears we saw the whole holiday - not in a park but living wild the way they should. We were delighted to have seen them.
We spent the next few days at the Days Inn at Estes Park. We were spoiled here with a pool and a hot tub - lovely after being out and about all day. It was much warmer here than up north with temperatures in the 70s so we could take full advantage of these facilities - no pics as we wouldn't want to put you off your food!
Our first day in Estes Park was one without photos! We spent the day walking around town and exploring the craft fair that was there for the weekend.
A recommendation - if you want to eat good Italian food in Estes Park, try the Dunraven Downtown - we really enjoyed our food there and the service was good too - very friendly.
Day 2 of Estes Park and we went out for the morning with American Wilderness Tours on a 10 wheel drive expedition into Roosevelt National Forest.
Our excellent driver was Thomas and JC sat up front with him for most of the journey, chattering away about all sorts. No-one else seemed to want to sit there, in fact most of our fellow travellers sat as far to the back of the truck as possible.
With some of the roads a bit steep and rough I suppose you could understand their reluctance to see where they were going but what did they expect?
We stopped about half way up to admire the wonderful aspens that had decided to change colour earlier this year (lucky for us). Some of these trees are remarkably tall - they reckon they are c.200 years old.
Our climb continued to Panorama Peak where we had wonderful views. The light was kind to us with not too much of a haze.
Yes, we were there together!
A great trip and we highly recommend it.
The afternoon saw our first foray into Rocky Mountain National Park - what an amazing place. We spent quite a bit of the remaining 3 days of this part of our holiday in the Park as there was so much to see.
We were staying on Route 34 so a "guided" tour from there...
First stop was Sheep Lakes lookout (no sheep but pretty views) ...
... followed by a visit to Alluvial Fan lookout. This area flooded about 30 years ago causing Estes Park itself to flood. As a result of all this activity, there are loads of boulders strewn around making for dramatic viewing.
We then decided to take the Old Fall River Road - a narrow, winding road that was the original road up the mountain (we did check at the gate first to make sure it was suitable for cars). This drive gave us the opportunity for some wonderful scenery.
This road brings you to the Alpine Visitor Center so time for a well earned drink and a gaze at the mountains.
The park is quite high - the highest point we reached on foot was just over 12k ft. Not too much oxygen at that sort of height so definitely need to take it steady.
The views on the way up (and from the top) are spectacular. This is an alpine tundra area so a very fragile environment.
We took a picnic with us for the second day touring around. We had a few little helpers while we were eating it. Picnic was at Lake Irene (we'd visited the lake the evening before as well, hence the difference in colours).
As you can see, the colours were lovely.
The tree line, at about 11.5k ft. is quite easy to see in some areas of the Park.
It also makes for some very pretty scenery in the late afternoon sunshine.
Moving on, we called in at Fairview Curve to enjoy the lovely valley views and the aspens (see more aspens below).
A bit further down the road and time for another stroll. This time to visit the Holzwarth Historic Site. This used to be a holiday place, run by the Holzwarth family for people to hunt, shoot and fish. It's now owned by the National Park and, although still a place for hunters, is a visitor place. The road to it was closed in the evening as it was rutting season whilst we were there.
A quick drive to the South Gate before we turn around and head back, just in time to see some elk trotting around. The bull elks were bugling like mad, especially on a morning, calling in their harems.
Driving back up, we took time out to admire the changing colours of the aspens.
A quick stop at Gore Range lookout and it's time to go home for the night.
After our excitement with the bears on the morning of day 3 in this area (see above), we decided to explore the last bit of Rocky Mountain National Park but were mindful of the weather so didn't stray too far from the car. Off we went down Bear Lake Road where we enjoyed yet more autumn colour ...
... until we arrived at Sprague Lake for our picnic.
Again we had some "helpers" in case we dropped crumbs (has anyone been saying that Jonathon's a messy eater?). The ducks even came and sat by his feet while he was eating. Needless to say they didn't get anything!
The sunsets weren't that spectacular but this one was pretty good so we froze ourselves at Forest Canyon lookout to capture the moment.
At last we had to say goodbye to the parks and head back to Denver for our last couple of days before flying back home. We were mightily relieved to find the clouds had arrived and cooled the city down - it was very pleasant walking around (but a lot warmer/hotter on Day 2!). We did what we think a lot of tourists will do and walked the length of 16th Street Mall (there and back) - a very nice street with plenty of space and lots of colour from the planters.
Some of the buildings were incredibly tall giving a real mix of old and new.
There's a lot of street sculpture around - these are bison albeit a bit of a funny colour - they were great to look at. The next picture was one of the sculptures at the end of our street.
Some buildings justify having 2 pictures! These are of number 1301.
Just round the corner is Broadway where we made a quick detour, not least to see 1700, Browns Palace hotel, the World Trade Center and Trinity Church.
At one end of 16th stands the State Capitol building. We spent quite a bit of time in here on Day 2 - what an interesting building. Having been used to the high level of security in London we were amazed that you could just walk into a government building and stroll around at your leisure.
The statue on the left is a war memorial from the Civil War.
The view from the "front door" looks across to the City and County Building (local rather than state government). We didn't go into this building but it looked good from the outside.
Lunch was at Dozens - very nice - this is near the Art Museum where a big extension is happening. The triangles will add to the overall interest of the skyline in this area.
We came across more street sculpture as we wandered around and we finally made our way to the History of Colorado Museum - definitely worth a visit.
The wagon on the left is apparently a conestoga wagon - it was displayed next to an electric car.
The exhibits were really nicely done with plenty of variety. One of the special exhibitions was a "Then and Now" photo exhibition with photos from William Henry Jackson from late 18/early 1900s next to recent photos of the same place by John Fielder.
Lots of references to the different Indian tribes with plenty of historical facts to read/watch and loads of interactive displays.
Right at the other end of 16th Street is Union Station with an interesting bridge leading to Riverfront Park.
On our way back, we went via Larimer Square (but not before we'd found a lovely book shop/coffee shop and spent a good few minutes in there).
Finally, our holiday came to an end and off we went to Denver airport to fly home. We would have loved to stay in this beautiful, friendly part of America for longer and explore further but work beckons etc. etc.