We reached Estes Park around 4 in the afternoon. The sky was overcast. And looked like it was going to rain. But after seeing all the elks beside the road earlier, John and I got so excited that the gloomy weather failed to disappoint us.
I made a booking with Coyote Mountain Lodge online one day ahead of time. I was actually so surprised about the cheap price considering the volume of tourists that visit them during fall. At $70 per night, we thought that the place isn’t nice. But when we finally checked in, we were definitely mistaken. The log cabin looked clean and spacious. The bathroom was small but well, we’re not going to stay there for a long time anyway. 🙂
And the receptionists were so kind and helpful. They gave us maps and told us that we can find more elks at Estes Park Golf Course. Yep, you read that right. At the golf course. ha ha
So after leaving our luggages at the cabin, we went to check out the elks. The place wasn’t far from the hotel. The drive took about 5 minutes only. It wasn’t crowded too. In fact, there were more elks than people at the golf course. 🙂 I must have had this look of amazement on my face because John grinned at me. lol
People are not allowed to go near the wildlife, so we kept our distance. I was just glad that John bought me the Canon SX50 prior to this vacation. It made taking pictures of these animals a lot easier and safer. So as not to distract the elks, we positioned ourselves where they won’t mind us being there. We were having fun watching them and enjoying the quietness and peacefulness of the place when it started raining.
Oh god, that was cold! When you’re on the mountain during fall and it starts to rain with wind, believe me, even your bones would rattle because of the cold. 🙂 That’s why it is very important that you should be ready for any type of weather. The temperature can change drastically from the 80’s to less than 40 at any given day. And don’t forget to layer. Bring extra jacket too. 🙂
With the heater on, the car felt comfortable. So I continued to take photos from a distance. Until the elks started to go back to the woods. What a beautiful way to end our day….
Downtown Estes
The Rocky Mountains, as seen from Estes Park.
The elks at Estes Park Golf Course. 🙂 They look so cute!
The Stanley Hotel. It is believed to be haunted.
Stanley Hotel inspired the famous author, Stephen King, to write “The Shining” . Part of the movie was shot here too. 🙂
I would have tried horse back riding if it wasn’t so cold.. Gee, snow and wind should never go together! ha ha
Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…
I took the photo above after I swirled around with wide arms, enjoying the snow. “Keber” if people wondered what happened to this crazy lady. I loved the snow! ha ha
Fall makes an overcast day look brighter. Beautiful right?
It is difficult for me to explain how pretty this sight looked like. For a Filipina who isn’t used to snow, I found this scene so surreal. I feel blessed to have experienced all of these during our road trip. 🙂
Estes Park is at the foot of the Rocky Mountains. It is the gateway to the Rocky Mountains National Park in Colorado, U.S.A.
Up next will be our Rocky Mountains story. 🙂
Lea C. Walker
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