Rocky Mountain National Park (or An Ode to Mountains)

I love mountains. When I was a kid, I thought I lived near some nice mountains. Then I went to Europe in college and stayed at a hotel on the summit of Mt. Pilatus in the Swiss Alps. Those were Mountains compared to what I had grown up with. But it wasn't until I drove through the Big Horn Mountains on my first cross-country trip that I really found out what mountains were. And now I am addicted to them. So Rocky Mountain National Park was a much-anticipated stop, which did not disappoint.

See? Mountains everywhere you look. It's like God took two-thirds of Colorado and crumpled it up like a piece of copy paper and then tried to smooth it back out again, only you can't really smooth paper back out; thus, the many ranges and peaks of the Colorado Rockies were formed.

Mountains so tall that nothing grows on top of them. Mountains that are, well, rocky.

And mountains that are covered with snow. Even in July.

Bear Lake was probably my favorite place in the park. I went later in the day, finishing up my short hike around the lake just before sunset, so it wasn't too crowded. The altitude kicked my butt a little, even though I had just slept at 8,000 feet in Yellowstone a few days before. I just love how the blues were so blue and the greens were so green, especially against the stark gray of the mountains. And how the mountains stand so proudly and resolutely above the rest of the world, like sentinels watching over humanity and nature.

RMNP also has some cool wildlife. Here's a Stellar's jay, which is so brilliantly blue and beautiful.

I also saw a TON of elk. At the top of Trail Ridge Road, which runs over the mountains at a top elevation of around 12,000 feet, I saw about ten bull elk grazing in a field.

This guy was my favorite, even though he wouldn't pick his head up for me.

Up at the Alpine Visitor Center on Trail Ridge Road, a huge herd of mamas and babies congregated.

On the other side of the mountains, I saw several moose grazing along the banks of the teeny, tiny Colorado River, more like a stream at this early stage of its journey.

Another thing I was really looking forward to was seeing tons of wildflowers. I didn't see tons, but the ones I did encounter embodied everything I love about wildflowers; they were sweet, colorful, delicate yet hardy, bringing a mini-party to the harsh mountaintop.

I definitely plan to return to RMNP one day, hopefully earlier in the season so I can see even more flowers. And one day I'd like to come in the fall to hear the elk bugling. It's really a beautiful place.

Grand Teton National Park

Located in Wyoming in between Yellowstone National Park and the town of Jackson, WY, Grand Teton National Park is truly stunning. The park is linked to Yellowstone by the John D. Rockefeller, Jr. Memorial Parkway. As you head south out of Yellowstone to drop into the Snake River valley, you are treated to glimpses of the jagged Teton peaks.

The road then turns and begins to follow Jackson Lake, providing views of the Tetons in profile. I don't think any picture can truly do justice to the majesty of these mountains, which tower over Jackson Hole with (Hole being the early settlers' word for valley) with elevations ranging from 11,000 to 13,000 feet.

Another stunning view of the Tetons:

The view of Mt. Moran from the Oxbow Bend overlook, with the mountain reflected in the Snake River.

This is the view from Signal Mountain. If you visit the Tetons (which you should if you're in Yellowstone, even for a day), take the time to drive up Signal Mountain Road. The views of Jackson Hole are stunning.

Another view from a turn-out on Signal Mountain.

This is Jenny Lake, which is amazingly blue up close. You can hike around it or take a boat across, which I will definitely do the next time I'm out there.

Below is the Chapel of the Transfiguration in the Menors Ferry Historic District. The view from inside is amazing as well, but I didn't really get any good snaps.

These last two shots are from Mormon Row, where the early settlers tried to make a go of it. Unfortunately, the land wasn't right for farming, but their buildings remain as a testament to their pioneering spirits. 

Back to the Road (Trip)

I've been posting tons of things about other travel I've been doing, but tonight I'm going to head back to my road trip. We left off as Tasha and I were leaving Seattle. So let's return to the I-5 and our totally unplanned jaunt down the west coast.

The International Rose Test Garden in Portland is really cool. They have TONS of roses (duh) with really interesting names. Unfortunately, I didn't write any of them down, but I did spend about hour taking pictures. The shots below were my favs:



This is Powell's City of Books in Portland. THE absolute coolest bookstore ever. It is basically a 4-story, city-block-sized warehouse chock full of books, on every topic imaginable, including bargains and new books. I could have spent days in there, but I restricted myself to only an hour, because that's how long our free parking was good. But the mere existence of this bookstore really made me consider moving Portland into the number one spot on my "Cities I Want To Move To List."

 

 This is Salt Creek Falls, a random waterfall (which happens to be the second highest in Oregon) that we came across in the Willamette National Forest on the way to Crater Lake. It was pretty cool to be at a point overlooking the top of the falls.

Now we come to Crater Lake, which was my absolutely-must-visit national park. And it did NOT disappoint. The water was so blue and clear and it was so uncrowded and peaceful, even on a gorgeous summer day. We only spent a few hours hear, but one day I plan to come back and spend a few days. So amazing!

 They call this little rock formation the Phantom Ship, because it looks like a ship, I guess, although I didn't really get that. But the towering trees at this edge of the lake lent such a majestic note to the view.

 The one thing I was most excited about at Crater Lake was a wildflower meadow trail. Well, we obviously missed the peak wildflower bloom, because this is all we saw. But we didn't miss the mosquitoes! Still charming though.

 Up next, we become crazy California girls!

Flower-Filled Collage

So I just learned how to use the incredibly cool collage feature on Picasa, as well as how to upload the collages to my blog. So here are the best flower shots from trip, arranged in a mosaic. It took forever, but I think it looks totally awesome! (Tip: If you click on the image, you will be taken to a window with a zoomed in view, and then you can have a better look. I'm thinking of getting a poster printed of this!).

I will have a few full-length posts about Vermont (can you say "amazing fall foliage shots!!??") coming up, as well as continuing with my road trip from last summer as I review my trip down the west coast.

Minter Gardens

After we left Hyder, we drove the rest of the afternoon and all night to the Vancouver area. But first we stopped at Minter Gardens, which is a beautiful little botanical garden right at the foot of some mountains. We had a scrummy lunch and then walked around; it was a beuatiful, sunny day. I tried to make a collage, but Picasa was frustrating me, so here they are to enjoy, one at a time! More later.