Lake with a Grand View

Grand Lake, Colorado

Grand Lake sits at the Western entrance to the Rocky Mountain National Park. A dozen lodges rest along its edge, but travelers beware, there aren't many to pick from in the off season. We ended up staying at the Big Horn Lodge, which Aaron nicknamed The Stinky Goat.

High Elevations

One of the most spectacular experiences at the Rocky Mountain National Park is the drive up to the top of the world. At least it felt like the top. Above the treeline, in the alpine tundra, visitors are cautioned to stay on the paved roads and paths, as the sparse grasses grow so slowly that a footprint can take a hundred years to heal. The air is so thin that a 200 yard walk can make you breathless, and the view is enough to take your breath away.


Aaron swears he wasn't actually asleep.


A bird's nest at 12,600ft elevation. Possibly an eagle's?

Autumn in the Rockies

Just one of the vistas we saw in the Rocky Mountain National Park. The leaves were turning beautifully on the plateaus, but up in the higher vistas, deep green pines and furs dominated that brilliant yellow-gold of the sparse deciduous trees.

The Cliffs of Insantiy

OK, well it might not take Andre the Giant to scale these puppies, but when you're driving along this little road in Colorado, between cliffs that shoot straight up several hundred feet, the view is rather impressive.

Buttes

Buttes of South Dakota

These upthrusts of rock really do look like one edge of the earth just shoved another edge up toward the sky. Some of them are mind-bogglingly tall and huge. Others are almost delicate looking in the near-distance. Looking at them today, I can really see why settlers, and the Souix and other tribes before them, chose to embrace the wild beauty of this land.

Psst. Buttes are pronounced with a long-U sound. No comments from the peanut gallery. :)


Buttes of South Dakota