This mama elk and baby greeted us at our site.
Boofus couldn't wait to roast marshmallows so he put his pjs on at 8pm before it was dark.
Our little campsite...on a hill that overlooked the rest of the campers...to which Joseph exclaimed, "Bow down before me all you peasants!"...luckily noone heard him. I hope.
My new red camping stove. I love it.
Using his new hatchet.
Manning the grill.
"Boof Dog", "NationWide" and "Ock-Word"...their rapper names.
The Mountains that hold Alberta Falls, Mill Lake and Loch Vale...among other awesome places.
New Aspens line the trail.
Mountain Man in the Makings.
Bee up at Alberta Falls. Born to be wild.
Snow run-off.
On the way to Loch Vale
Another cow elk by us, taking it easy.
Heading up to the Alluvial Fan Falls.
Boulders along the stream
I don't know.
Word.
Snow coming!
We are home. I slept like a babe in my own soft bed last night. Nothing like sleeping in a tent and sleeping bag for 2 nights to help you appreciate a quiet house and soft covers.
The weekend went by fast...the kids and I got up to the park about an hour before Dad did and had camp totally set up before he got there. Daisie, Boofus and Bee were great helpers. Nana didn't go because she had a weekend babysitting job (that caputted on Friday night! so she could've gone if we'd known), so it was just the 3 youngest. So easy.
Friday night, gale-force winds blew thru the Park and we didn't get much sleep. Saturday morning it was still very windy, but we ate breakfast, and headed up to Alberta Falls with a plan to zip past there and continue up to Loch Vale, another 1.7 miles up the mountain. Well, the plan wasn't fail-proof. We didn't count on snow on the trail. We didn't count on Bee accidentally wetting her jeans while trying to potty outside (she complained that boys have it easier cuz "they can aim")--which made her very uncomfortable and self-conscious, so that she wanted to turn around and go back to the campsite immediately), we didn't count on Boofus getting worn-out because he'd been sick over the winter and his endurance is still not what it used to be.
So Ari and I hung back at the Falls, while Kent and Joseph hiked on to try and catch up with Daisie, who had hit the trail hard and was way way way ahead of us. Joseph petered out on Kent, about .5 from the Loch, and with so many others on the trail, he thought he'd leave Joseph and quickly catch up to Daisie. Well, Joseph "freaked out" in his own words, and bolted down the mountain to Ari and me. Once Kent caught up with Daisie, they were .2 from the Loch, and his conscience got the better of him, forcing him to bolt down the trail after Joseph and upon finding the place he'd last seen Joseph empty, he "appeared to have skis", according to Daisie, as his adrenaline caused his feet to take flight...so that when he came into veiw at Alberta Falls, I thought something was wrong. Nope. He was just worried about Joseph.
Doesn't this just sound like a poorly written Scooby Doo movie? About 10 minutes later, Daisie came behind with an exasperated,"I was SO close to the Loch only to turn around!" Which she repeated about 100 times the rest of the day.
I'd given her the camera once I knew Ari and I wouldn't be making the trip. She took some great pics of the trail and the veiw about the treeline. She & Kent are planning a backpacking trip to Thunder Lake this summer.
Sunday started out quieter, with the winds dying down. We ate breakfast, packed up camp and headed for the Alluvial Fan Falls in the Park. We walked around the huge boulders for a bit then decided to have a picnic before going fishing in a nearby river that runs thru the area.
We'd barely gotten the cooler out, when I looked up and saw a snow mass coming towards us! I am not kidding. There were lots of tourists around us, setting up their own picnics, but when it started snowing, POOF! they were gone. Not us. We just laughed at the crazy weather, made our sandwiches and then Boofus, Ari and Daisie got in the car and ate. I actually was okay--my fingers got a little cold and red, but I was okay--until I noticed there was snow in my hummus.
Pffft. I tried to ignore the fact that there was snow in my hummus, but somehow a littel voice of reason said this was utter nonsense--to be eating outside in the snow--so we caved in and packed up. And just about this time, another rotation of tourists arrived as the snowclouds passed, and they unloaded their families and coolers. I was half-tempted to do the same, but saw there was another snowcloud on the way, so we decided to call it. Our camping trip was over, it was time to go home.
Darker clouds were rolling in just as we left the park and were into Estes Park...it hailed like crazy between Longmont and Denver...so much that cars were pulling over and parking under the freeway overpasses. But we just trudged home to the Springs...where it was warm and sunny on arrival.
They say if you don't like Colorado weather, wait a minute. It's true, which makes camping that much more exciting if you ask me. David Scott and Tisha...we want you guys to come to CO and go camping with us...let us know when you can!!
The weekend went by fast...the kids and I got up to the park about an hour before Dad did and had camp totally set up before he got there. Daisie, Boofus and Bee were great helpers. Nana didn't go because she had a weekend babysitting job (that caputted on Friday night! so she could've gone if we'd known), so it was just the 3 youngest. So easy.
Friday night, gale-force winds blew thru the Park and we didn't get much sleep. Saturday morning it was still very windy, but we ate breakfast, and headed up to Alberta Falls with a plan to zip past there and continue up to Loch Vale, another 1.7 miles up the mountain. Well, the plan wasn't fail-proof. We didn't count on snow on the trail. We didn't count on Bee accidentally wetting her jeans while trying to potty outside (she complained that boys have it easier cuz "they can aim")--which made her very uncomfortable and self-conscious, so that she wanted to turn around and go back to the campsite immediately), we didn't count on Boofus getting worn-out because he'd been sick over the winter and his endurance is still not what it used to be.
So Ari and I hung back at the Falls, while Kent and Joseph hiked on to try and catch up with Daisie, who had hit the trail hard and was way way way ahead of us. Joseph petered out on Kent, about .5 from the Loch, and with so many others on the trail, he thought he'd leave Joseph and quickly catch up to Daisie. Well, Joseph "freaked out" in his own words, and bolted down the mountain to Ari and me. Once Kent caught up with Daisie, they were .2 from the Loch, and his conscience got the better of him, forcing him to bolt down the trail after Joseph and upon finding the place he'd last seen Joseph empty, he "appeared to have skis", according to Daisie, as his adrenaline caused his feet to take flight...so that when he came into veiw at Alberta Falls, I thought something was wrong. Nope. He was just worried about Joseph.
Doesn't this just sound like a poorly written Scooby Doo movie? About 10 minutes later, Daisie came behind with an exasperated,"I was SO close to the Loch only to turn around!" Which she repeated about 100 times the rest of the day.
I'd given her the camera once I knew Ari and I wouldn't be making the trip. She took some great pics of the trail and the veiw about the treeline. She & Kent are planning a backpacking trip to Thunder Lake this summer.
Sunday started out quieter, with the winds dying down. We ate breakfast, packed up camp and headed for the Alluvial Fan Falls in the Park. We walked around the huge boulders for a bit then decided to have a picnic before going fishing in a nearby river that runs thru the area.
We'd barely gotten the cooler out, when I looked up and saw a snow mass coming towards us! I am not kidding. There were lots of tourists around us, setting up their own picnics, but when it started snowing, POOF! they were gone. Not us. We just laughed at the crazy weather, made our sandwiches and then Boofus, Ari and Daisie got in the car and ate. I actually was okay--my fingers got a little cold and red, but I was okay--until I noticed there was snow in my hummus.
Pffft. I tried to ignore the fact that there was snow in my hummus, but somehow a littel voice of reason said this was utter nonsense--to be eating outside in the snow--so we caved in and packed up. And just about this time, another rotation of tourists arrived as the snowclouds passed, and they unloaded their families and coolers. I was half-tempted to do the same, but saw there was another snowcloud on the way, so we decided to call it. Our camping trip was over, it was time to go home.
Darker clouds were rolling in just as we left the park and were into Estes Park...it hailed like crazy between Longmont and Denver...so much that cars were pulling over and parking under the freeway overpasses. But we just trudged home to the Springs...where it was warm and sunny on arrival.
They say if you don't like Colorado weather, wait a minute. It's true, which makes camping that much more exciting if you ask me. David Scott and Tisha...we want you guys to come to CO and go camping with us...let us know when you can!!
Next trip is gonna be the Collegiate Mountains down south.
Snow in June ? How bizzare ! The photos are just beautiful but if snow was on my hummus, I'd call it too !
ReplyDeleteI guess Dad just breezed in to look good in the photos LOL
Amazing pictures. Can't believe it snowed in June. Setting up camp on your own- very impressive.
ReplyDeleteIt's beautiful country. I want to visit up there someday. . .
ReplyDeleteI can't believe it snowed on you!
Beautiful spot. Beautiful family. Beautiful aspens, too.
ReplyDeleteI LOVE aspens.
*sigh*