Labor Day Adventure!!!

Shana and I decided to expose Samara to the elements! As a result of the three-day labor Day holiday (too many days), we decided to find a nice cozy place to partake in camping activities; to "teach" Samara how to "survive" on the bare necessities. We left home Sunday morning and headed north toward Estes Park, but were afraid all of the camp sites would be full due to the extended weekend. Fortunately, we decided to aim ourselves at a lesser visited portion of the Rocky Mountain National Park and found a nice place at the Long's Peak campsite. We finished setting up our tent at around noon and journeyed into the more accessible areas to find some small, less strenuous hikes.

We grabbed lunch in Estes Park, which took 1 1/2 hours (Labor Day festival), and drove through the park on the old one-way Fall River Road. Samara became a bit cranky on the way up, so we took her out of the Jeep and walked down to Chasm Falls(see photo to the right). She enjoyed watching the water cascade by and appeared to be mesmerized (as she seems with most everything at this age). We arrived at the Alpine Visitor's Center (the highest visitor's center in the park) at about 4 PM and decided to take Samara on the short summit trail nearby (a 200-300 yard trail). We wrapped her up and trekked to the top of the summit (see photo at the bottom right). The winds were strong and the temperatures were cold but that didn't stop us from taking a couple of photos. Samara acted like she had been slapped in the face, well, so did Shana and I. Imagine 30-40 mph winds at a temperature of 45-50 degrees!



After the Alpine Visitor Center, Shana and I decided to drive down to the west side of "The Park" and find a location to take a short hike. We found a short loop that parallelled the North Fork of the Colorado River and provided excellent scenery. Lately, we've heard news reports about a certain type of beetle called the Mountain Pine Beetle that has invaded the Rocky Mountain region. The beetle bores its way through the bark of the tree and eventually kills its host. The west side of "The Park" provided significant evidence of this act as nearly 60% of the pine trees were dead; mostly brown trees with green patches here-and-there.


After our long day, we headed from the west side of the RMNP to the east (to the location of our campsite). September is the time of the year when the male elk buggle to the females (a far more effective mating ritual) looking for love in the air. Occassionally, I suppose, more than one male elk is smitten over the same female. And, if the female decides to run away from the males (similar instances occur with human females in bar-type settings), the male elk engage in "the chase". Well, as we drove on Trail Ridge Road, a female jumped into the roadway several hundred feet in front of us. She stopped and stared at us before she decided to continue her trek through the park. My initial reaction (1/2 a second) was to not slow down and drive on; however, I realized, "when do elk travel alone?" I hit the brakes in time to see two male elk dart across the road as if they were a graduate student and heard someone yell "free food".

By the time we bought some groceries for dinner and arrived at our temporary home, the time was 9:30 PM. I slaved away at starting a fire to cook our meal (chicken and corn on the cob) while Shana fed and changed Samara. Weather reports for that day had called for nightime low temperatures to be in the upper 30's lower 40's; at bedtime the temperature was about 45 degrees! Shana had dressed Samara appropriately and papoosed her in two extra blankets (see photos).

We survived the frigid night without any casualties! Samara kept us warm and seemed to enjoy the crisp mountain air. On one occassion during the night, Samara needed her diaper changed and we proceeded to unwrap her thermal blanketry. After loosening her cloths and unfastening her diaper, Samara gave a quick shiver and "goose bumps" began to form all over her body. From a scientific perspective, that reaction was very interesting to witness! We awoke in the morning and I stoked the fire to cook breakfast; toasted bagels and grilled sausage links. Samara was very attentive in the morning and seemed to survive the camping without any wear!

Before we headed home, we decided to view some scenery and take a short hike. The photo with Shana and Samara overlooks Moraine Park with Long's Peak visible on the far left. As you can see, the weather was great. So finishing the afternoon with a hike seemed like the most logical choice. We found a trailhead, Fern Lake Trailhead on the east side of the park, and hiked in for a half hour before we reversed direction and headed back. The image on the upper right is of Samara before we started hiking. Below is how Samara enjoys hiking around; sound asleep!