Our First Trip to Colorado, Day 7: The End

8/9/13

We were up early to finish packing, and fit in some last minute playing before heading for the airport. Check out from the hotel proved just how “small” the hotel was. When Nick gave the name to check out, the lady at the desk said “Oh! I’m the one you talked to on the phone to make the reservation (no online reservations for Amberwood). I was hoping I’d be here when you came in. I’ve never met anyone from NH before”. So, now she has met someone from NH. And we will happily return to Amberwood in the future.

Our last breakfast of the trip was at the Notchtop Bakery and Cafe, and was our only truly disappointing meal of the trip. The pancakes were burnt, the egg and cheese sandwich had about 2 shavings of cheese on it, and the service was attrocious.

After breakfast, we headed back to the Fall River entrance of the national park, and quickly encountered a bighorn sheep jam! I was thrilled, as this was my first time ever seeing bighorn sheep! Perfect way to wrap up the trip! The sheep kept crossing back and forth across the road, before settling back down in the field. 

After getting our fill of sheep viewing, we hopped back in the car and drove to Alluvial Fan, a waterfall that had been created by a flood years earlier (and would be rerouted by another devastating flood just one month, to the day, after we were there).

We enjoyed Alluvial Fan, but eventually decided to head out of the park, to allow time for the roadwork by Alluvial Fan and further sheep jams. It was a wise choice. The paving held us up for a bit, and the sheep had settled by the lake, so we stopped for additional pictures. A ranger was also there doing a previously scheduled presentation on the bighorn sheep so we were able to learn about them while furiously taking pictures.

Eventually we headed out of the park, sad that it was time to drive back to Denver. We took the route through Big Thompson Canyon, which we really enjoyed (and, about a month later, realized we were glad we got to see it before the floods hit). 

 

We stopped for a picnic at one of the pull-offs by the river, which worked really well. I had packed a collapsible, soft-side cooler for the trip, and this was an awesome thing to have with us. We loved the drive through the canyon, but all too soon we were back in the Plains, and headed south on 25 to Denver.

Traffic coming into Denver was heavy but moving, and quite frankly, minimal compared to what we deal with here, less than an hour from Boston. We made it back to the airport plenty early, in fact, really a bit too early. And of course, just like clockwork, the afternoon thunderstorms moved in just in time for our plane to be delayed getting in, so we were delayed getting out. By the time we made it on to the plane, we were just ready to be done with all things air related. Thankfully, our plane arrived only an hour late. The flights leaving from gates next to ours were significantly delayed, as their plane had to be diverted to Cheyenne to refuel after circling for too long. The flight home was smooth, and we were back in NH, cursing the humidity that we had not missed in CO, shortly after midnight.

This was our first trip to CO, but will NOT be our last. We LOVED RMNP!!! So beautiful, so inexpensive, and we loved the summer weather, compared to the hot sticky soup summer weather at home. We WILL return to RMNP, for longer next time. We have learned our flying lesson though, and will avoid flying into or out of Denver at dinner time at all costs.