Rocky Mountain National Park

Based on my original itinerary, we were not going to visit Rocky Mountain National Park on this trip. I had to change our route up a bit due to the reservations I was able to get at various locations and boy, are we glad it worked out this way!

Our base camp was the Jellystone Camp Resort in Estes Park, CO. The kids LOVE a Jellystone Park and this was their favorite of the ones we have visited.

The staff here was great and the kids were able to do a treasure hunt, make cookies and watch Yogi cartoons, play pool games, win big at candy bar bingo, and the big kids also participated in laser tag in the nearby hills. The campground is on the side of a mountain and our site was at the top, so we finally gave in and rented a golf cart. It did make life a lot easier!

We spent a full day at the campground and reserved the next day for exploring the national park. We got up early, grabbed some donuts in town, and headed for the scenic drive on Trail Ridge Road. This is the highest paved road in America and gains elevation rather quickly. There are many places to pull over and marvel at views like these:

We saw the most wildlife in this national park. Almost right away, we began to see mule deer and elk grazing. Then we had a couple of exciting episodes where wildlife crossed the road in front of us! The first animal that crossed, we couldn’t tell what it was, but we were all afraid it was going to be crushed by a motor home driving the opposite direction that didn’t seem to see it. Fortunately, it was okay and we later determined it was a yellow-bellied marmot. Then, a little further on, a coyote walked crossed the road and walked along the ridge beside our truck.

He blends in with the scenery – can you spot him? At the visitor center, we chatted with a ranger and learned that the coyote is called “Kamikaze” because he often crosses traffic like we witnessed. The Alpine visitor center is nearly 12,000 ft above sea level. Despite the warnings that weather changes dramatically, we were all shocked about how cold and windy it was at this location!

After getting our passports stamped and stocking up on postcards, we hopped back in the truck to continue on the scenic drive. We decided to drive as far as the Holzwarth Historic Site before turning around. A short walk leads to log cabins from the early 1900’s. We crossed over the Colorado River, which is quite narrow here, but explained to the kids how this is the same river that carved the Grand Canyon, which we will see very soon!

When we arrived at the cabins, we happened upon a pair of researchers who were capturing and tagging hummingbirds in order to track their migration patterns. They have a special cage set up over a feeder, and a trap door is rigged to a string they can pull to close the door once a hummingbird flies in. The door is a special soft netting that does not hurt the birds if it were to close down on top of them. Then, they climb a ladder and retrieve the trapped bird in a little, soft bag. Once at the table, they wrap the bird in a small, blue cloth and hold it closed with a clip. The bird is checked for a band. If it already has one, they record the number and date and time of his capture. Otherwise, they will give him a band on one of his legs. As you can imagine, the bands are tiny! Lastly, they weigh the bird and record it.

Although they were at the end of their research period for the day, the researchers were kind enough to catch a bird for each child to hold and release. The kids were able to hold and pet the bird, and even listen to it’s heartbeat! It sounded like a tiny motor. The girls’ birds flew away the instant they could and I was able to capture the escape on slo-mo video, which is really fun to watch. Colin’s bird, however, rested in his hand for 20 or 30 seconds before flying away.

It was such a unique and educational experience and something we never expected. By this time, everyone was hungry and we started the trek back to Estes Park to find lunch. Another unique aspect of this park was the Junior Ranger headquarters. The kids have been completing Junior Ranger activity books and earning Junior Ranger badges at the National Parks we’ve visited. But this is the first park we’ve visited that had a Junior Ranger headquarters. The headquarters is a stop along Trail Ridge Road with covered picnic areas, restrooms, and a short walking trail. The rangers had activity bags for the kids to borrow for the walk that included a guide and real research equipment like a ground thermometer, hand lenses, and real-deal binoculars.

The whole day was full of wonder and excitement, but we were given one final thrill on the way out – a moose sighting! He was just off the road, relaxing in a pool of water. I had my heart set on seeing a moose when we visited Maine, but he was waiting for me in Colorado!