A sunny Sunday in Colorado Part 3

Sunday morning we checked out of the cabin in Estes Park.

This is the room I was sleeping in with a quilt on the bed.

I noticed summer cabins in Minnesota also had quilts on all the beds.

I don't know where these were made but no quilt police around ... 

If you ever begin to feel your quilting stitches are inferior, you have only to check these out.

I have heard of something called "large stitch quilting" but not too sure thin is what it means. Certainly the stitches were not only large but widely placed as well.

The rustic cabin furniture was made of very heavy wood.

Even the chairs around the dining table were difficult to move.

In the morning we had planned to do some scenic hiking in the Rocky Mountain Park, and set out early hoping to get a good parking space.

Back over the mountain pass and over the tree line ...

Herds of deer ... or elk covered the grassy areas.

One antlered male and lots of old and young family...

After entering the park and driving along the park roads into the trail heads ...

The road was blocked! 

Parking full

Name not on the list 

turn around and drive back toward the entrance.

Next was plan "B", another hiking trail in a different area. We set  off up another road only to be turned back short of our destination by a full parking lot.

I am still wondering why the entry gate did not mention that there was no parking and those areas were all closed to visitors before taking the entrance fee.

Luckily my senior pass at least saved us that expense ... except for gas.

We did enjoy the scenery as we headed out of the park and back to the Longmont area for a day trip to Button Rock Dam. It may have been plan "C" but if you like rocks and trees and water, it was a great choice and I can't imagine plans A or B being any better.

The hiking road was wide and sunny but the view around every bend of the river was lovely.

.I have to admit, I came home with a few very pretty sparkling rocks.

There were swallows nesting among the cliffs of rock and the cool sound of rushing water.

At the base of the dam there was an outlet with gushing water casting spray in the trees below. Cool and refreshing but too noisy to talk.

We decided to climb the rest of the way up to the top of the dam, stopping in the shade of some pines to eat out lunch.

The Ralph Price reservoir above the dam supplies the water for the Longmont area where my son and his family are living.

The trails were wide and rocky with very little shade. We grabbed what shade we could before making the return trip.

Since we had scrambled up the rocky hill to the top of the dam, we decided to tale the wide smooth road back down.

The view from the bridge shows the overflow stream.

Lots of water running in all directions...

And sunlight glittering on the pines.

It was a lovely way to spend the weekend ... even if the first part didn't pan out.