After our (too) brief visit with the families for the holidays, it was time to make the trek back to Logan. We left from Delphos and caravanned with our friend Jenna until we stopped for the night in Topeka, KS. Jenna was driving to Denver and decided to make the drive non-stop…we’re not that hardcore.
The next morning I explored some of the outskirts of Topeka during a run, then it was back to the road as we drove to Estes Park, CO. Since we knew we’d have to be making our way back to Logan around New Years, we decided to take a side trip to Colorado to hole up in a small cabin for the holiday before finishing the trip home.
We arrived in Estes Park just after sunset on December 30th and relaxed at the cabin, making dinner in the small kitchenette before watching a movie and going to bed.
Our New Year’s Cabin (and Derby searching for wildlife)
New Year’s Eve morning, I got up early and went to town to find a gym to run in, then grabbed some breakfast and returned to the cabin. Our plans for the day were to explore the town and to head into Rocky Mountain National Park, which was adjacent to our cabin. Since we knew the impending holiday would probably shut down business early, we made the town the first priority.
Heading to Estes Park’s commercial district
Estes Park sits in a valley around 8000 feet, just east of Loveland, CO. It is built around Lake Estes and surrounded by steep, rocky mountains. Most of the area was residential or hotels/resorts, but there is a small commercial district which included mostly outdoors and arts related shops. In the winter, the lake was not the focus since it was totally frozen over, so we turned our attention to the shopping district. There were a lot of interesting shops, but one of the highlights was Jenna’s suggestion, The Rock Shop, where Susan found some jewelry.
After checking out town, we grabbed lunch at a local Italian restaurant before heading back West and into Rocky Mountain National Park. Being the important National Park supporters we are, we used our annual pass to get free admission. From the gate, we started driving UP. We climbed into the falling snow, stopping occasionally to look back into the valley from where we came. We climbed as far as the park would let us (the rest of the pass is closed for the winter) before turning back and exploring some of the lower lying areas. As with all national parks, the scenery was beautiful.
The rest of the afternoon/evening was back to the cabin for more relaxation. For dinner, we got takeout from a Nepalese/Indian restaurant in town and rented a DVD from the resort (Get Smart…it was enjoyable). Once the movie was over it was 9:30, so we watched East coast coverage of the countdown until just before “midnight”, where we were greeted with the start of the 10 o’clock news instead of the ball drop. Once we realized they weren’t going to show the ball until 12 local time, we toasted with our champagne and went to bed not too much later (yes, we’re old).
Susan showing off her fire making skills & our “midnight” toast
New Year’s Day was time to return to Logan. We checked out of the hotel, crossing paths with an enormous elk on our way, then hit the road. The weather cooperated so we made it home before sunset. Back in the Cache Valley, we unpacked and prepared to start a new year.
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