Evenin' Campers! It's Silver Cliche' with you. We are in a new location tonight... Rocky Mountain National Park near Estes Park, Colorado. This is not 1 of a planned 3 night stay here at RMNP and first impressions are very favorable.
Those of you who like these entries to be profusely illustrated will be disappointed. Here at RMNP, like most National Park campgrounds, there is no electricity. We call it "dry camping" (in addition to no electric service, there is no water, sewer hookup nor dump station here). Normally I prepare the blog on my laptop but it needs electricity. Sure, we have an inverter built into the Airstream. That's a device that turns 12 volt battery power into 120 volt AC for normal appliances. One problem... it takes a lot of 12 volt power from the batteries to make that 120. Guess what else needs battery power? Our heating system. Guess what the forecast is for here tonight? 35 degrees. So, faced with the option of sharing fresh pictures of moose (mooses?... meese?... whatever... more than one moose) and elk and spectacular snow covered peaks, or keeping Mrs. C's and my rear,ends,warm until ththe sun once again hits our solar panels, I picked warm butt. Sorry. The pics will follow... maybe tomorrow when the sun has,recharged the batteries and the solar panels are, saying,"What shall we do with all of this extra electricity, boss?".
So, the day... do you remember those grey sky pics of Cheyenne Mountain State Park I showed you yesterday? Well, look at them again. That's how the morning started. We got ready and we're rolling by 8:45. Why? Because the campground we were heading to is technically closed for the season. They do allow people to camp as "walk ups"... that is, you arrive, you drive through campground, if you find a spot that will fit whatever you camp in you may have it. If you don't find one you leave. We know that the secret to walk up,camping in a place like this is to get there early. Noon is often too late,in season. We figured noon was a good bet at this time of year and that meant leaving between 8:30 and 9.
We hit the people mover of Colorado... I-25! We took the northbound option toward the mile high city and state capital... Denver! Getting out of Colorado Springs wasn't bad. Getting through Denver, even at 11:00 AM was a nightmare. Two accidents and some of the worst bumps and ruts I've seen on an interstate took its toll on man and machine. At one point, sitting in traffic literally outside Mile High Stadium (ok, it's,officially "Sports,Authority Field at Mile High", but who wants to go through all of that effort? Say it three times fast. I bet your tongue gets tired. Anyway, in traffic on an Interstate in the capital,city of one of these United States and Mrs. C' turned to me and said "is that marijuana I smell"? I replied,"I definitely think so". Where but Colorado do people light up for recreation while driving? Well... maybe everywhere... I don't know... but I can now say I've seen it in Colorado.
On we pressed to Estes Park. Got to the gate at RMNP, flashed our "senior parks pass" and they waved us through. I think the National Park Service feels sorry for old folks so they let us in for free so we can see the wonders of America before we croak. Nice folks, the Park Service... I think... wait a minute, I'm not planning to croak soon... who do they think they are letting us in for free?... maybe those hats they stole from Smokey the Bear are a bit too tight.
There were still 3 or 4 open spots that would fit us. Not the best spots, but we picked one. It'll do.
So here's where today's title comes into play. We had lunch, took a nap and later headed in to Estes Park. Those of you,who've traveled with us for a while may remember that we did something similar while at Grand Teton Natinal Park two years ago and we went in to Jackson, Wyoming. It was,the fakest town I've ever been to. A fraud committed on western architecture and history in the name of tourism. A man made betrayal of the beauty that nature placed nearby. I railed about Jackson periodically for the rest of that trip. Well, I learned today that Jackson has a twin city... Estes Park, Colorado. All I'll share tonight is that the retail offerings of Estes Park suggest that every visitor to this town must forget to pack their tee shirts. There is no other rational explanation for the fact that every other storefront in this town is dedicated to tee shirts.
Ok, that's it for me for tonight. Hopefully tomorrow will be a picture bonanza!
Later...
SC'
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