We were up BEFORE the crack of dawn this morning. Steve wanted to get into the park before sunrise, and it was a good thing that we did because the elk put on quite a show for us. Rosie and I stayed in the van while Steve set up the tripod in an area where we had observed a large elk herd the previous day. Well, little did we know that all of us were about to get up close and personal with a big bull elk!
Two younger males kept trying to horn in—pardon the pun—on Mr. Bull’s harem. And this was right where we were parked. I filmed a lot of it, but there was bugling, charging, snorting and lots of aggressive elk behavior, right there beside us. Rosie got quite an education in elk behavior. At one point, the bull was about 15 yards from us, and kept watching me as I filmed him.
After that excitement, we stopped at the Beaver Meadow Visitor Center to ask about the best wildlife spotting areas. The ranger told us that today would be a good day to drive the Trail Ridge Road to Grand Lake, CO, over the highest part of the park—12,000 feet above sea level. He recommended we take the old dirt road up the mountain, a one-way road called Old Fall River Road.
Well, let me tell you, THAT was quite the experience. The old road is an original passage across the mountain, and it is rutted and rough packed dirt. Pretty hard going with many switchbacks and lots of scenic and somewhat scary views. No guardrails, of course.
Steve got a fleeting glimpse of a yellow-bellied marmot scurrying across the road, but I didn’t see it. We made a stop at a waterfall called Chasm Falls, with a steep and rugged path to the falls. A very old lady, at least 75 years old, was making her way up toward us as we went down, and she looked pretty unsteady. Steve was just about to ask her if she needed a hand up when down she went! If not for a small bush beside the trail, she would have rolled all the way down the hill. She refused any help from us, pulled herself up and went on her way. As Steve commented, she had no business out there alone.
Onward and upward! We finally reached the Alpine Visitor Center, at about 11,700 feet. Steve and I were both feeling decidedly sick from the altitude. It makes your legs and neck feel very odd and I felt distant and a little wobbly. They say that no one can live long at such a height, and I believe it.
After we visited the Center, we picked up Trail Ridge Road. The next stop along the way was the Continental Divide. We looked for bighorn sheep, which we were told were in this area, but didn’t spot any, nor did we see any pikas or marmots. I guess I was too uncomfortable to really look too hard! We still had not hit the highest point.
The road wound on for several more miles, with beautiful views. We were pretty far above the treeline at this point. Gradually we descended and made our way closer to Grand Lake.
We had been told that the Kawuneeche Valley would be an opportune place to spot moose, and lo and behold, I spotted a female and baby shortly after we entered the area. We stopped and photographed them for about 1 hour. They ate constantly and seemed unconcerned with our presence.
Shortly thereafter, we reached Grand Lake. This is a neat little town, touristy but nicely done. The shops’ storefronts look like an old western town, and the sidewalk is a boardwalk. We ate a late lunch at Fat Cats Café. The food was excellent. We walked around briefly, met a friendly English bulldog named Roscoe, then it was time for the return trip over the mountain.
We made a stop to walk to Adams Falls, just a half-mile hike. Rosie was a real trooper, but she was pretty exhausted at having been dragged out of bed at 5:30 am, so she lay down to take a little nap. It was a good thing she did, since we don’t like to let her see us when we are scared out of our wits!!!
Trail Ridge Road is scary. The vistas are magnificent, but it’s really unsettling to be so high on the side of a mountain with no guardrails. Since we were on the alpine tundra and above treeline, there were no trees to stop our van should we suddenly careen off the road! Steve and I were both feeling pretty uncomfortable from altitude sickness and just wanted to get down off that mountain!
We made it, and didn’t plunge off the side, but Steve told me later that he was really concerned because he was having some very bad symptoms. But he said it would have sickened him even more if I were driving! At least it was clear and we didn’t have to contend with rain or fog.
To end the evening, we took a leisurely stroll at dusk around Sprague Lake. Rosie found a grouse huddled in the woods, and a young male elk waded out into the lake to eat and drink. Tired out from the day, we got back to the Stanley after dark, ordered room service, showered, and finally got to bed about 10 pm.
