Since we are always looking for someplace new to go and any "National Parks" to help check off our bucket list, the Colorado Rockies were definitely a place to see. So we flew into Denver, drove an hour north to Estes Park and lodged just outside the Rockies.
Our fourth grade son's National Park pass saved us money on the multiple visits we took into the park, he saved us roughly $100. (See National Park Pass for Fourth grade).
We stayed at the famous Stanley Hotel which is over 100 years old and is known for its appearance in the movies "The Shinning" and "Dumb and Dumber". I have seen neither of those movies, and it made my stay at the hotel much more comfortable. Rumor has it the hotel is haunted. We didn't witness anything odd or bizarre happen, and you better believe I prayed over every part of our hotel room. The hotel was beautiful, but out dated and definitely not recommended for families with young children. There was a maze, corn-hole, and other amenities for the kids to explore but not much to entertain young ones. *Note-there is no air-conditioning in the hotel rooms if you ever considered visiting during the summer.
Estes Park is a small touristy town with a 7, 522 elevation, so if you get winded as I did climbing stairs, realize the air is much thinner.
Day 1:
Our plan was to stay in Estes, Colorado for two days then drive north-west to South Dakota. We accomplished some great exploring in those two days. Day one, we arrived at the Rockies National Park Visitor Center right before it closed and enough time to get information about Trail Ridge Road. I had read great things about this 40 mile drive, yet being limited on time we started the drive right away. It was 5pm and the road wasn't busy at all. Being that it was September, the off season, allowed for us to have a crowd free drive. Dusk is the best time to travel this road, especially if you intend to see wildlife. September is rut season for elk, we saw dozens of bull elk with their calfs some even bugling (mating call)-which I unfortunately did not catch on video.
When we started our ascent up Trail Ridge Road there are many stops you can merge off to, to site see or take pictures. We were selective because of our lack of sunlight and time. There is a portion of the road that closes from October to May, so if you plan to travel during those months you may not get to enjoy the entire route. The temperature at the base of the mountain was in the low 60's, and as we gained elevation the temperature dropped 20 degrees. There is an obvious change in the topography. From the evergreen forest to the rocky boulders and glaciers, and yes, there were still glaciers in September.
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| Longs Peak is the highest point of The Rocky Mountains reaching 14, 259 feet high. |
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| I did on more than one occasion have to ask my husband to slow down, winding roads and steep inclines. |
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| One of my favorite pictures with the sun setting in the back light. |
The peak of Trail Ridge Road reaches 12, 183 feet. Alpine Visitor Center is the summit with a short hike to the peak of the mountain. It was closed for the day once we arrived, so we continued down the backside of the mountain towards Milners Pass, where the continental divide is located. To those of you who are unaware of the what the Continental divide is, it is the divide of the continent that stretches from Alaska to Mexico indicating the division of tributaries. Another educational opportunity for this homeschooling family.
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We did not complete the entire 40 mile drive of Trail Ridge Road, because of limited time and daylight. We were roughly 10-15 miles short of experiencing the full drive. Trail Ridge Road is well worth considering when visiting the Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP).
Day 2:
We had friends that had just visited Estes and highly suggested the experience of ATV riding through the forest. *Disclaimer* if you have an husband that likes to drive fast and boy's that encourage reckless driving consider taking an anti-anxiety medication prior to the drive.
We had an AMAZING time if we don't count those few encounters of driving recklessly. The terrain was bumpy and we really felt isolated in the forest. We came across other ATV riders but very few, it was an exciting drive and a unique experience to drive in the remote areas of the park. This ride allowed us to see areas of the RMNP that we wouldn't otherwise experience.
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Seeing as much wildlife as possible was on our bucket list. We had multiple elk, and now we were ready to see moose. With the direction of some locals, we hiked to a secluded pond where a moose family had been spotted. We parked our UTV a mile away a quietly hiked to this isolated pond. Hushed, we sat around this pond for a while until our son spotted a bull moose roaming across the pond. We then noticed his calf moose was eating not far from him. |
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| Here, the calf is eating and if you can see the bull moose antlers by the tree on the left. It was surreal being their with my family and these wild beasts.
After our excursion, we had just enough time to do a quick hike up to the beautiful Alberta Falls (recommended from another blogger). The elevation was 9, 200 and a very easy hike. We spent nearly an hour up at the falls, the boy's leapt from rock to rock, and to save me from anxiety I just photographed the beauty of the mountains.
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We packed up and drove six hours to Rapid City, South Dakota. The mountains in Colorado were beautiful to drive through and we saw a few mountain goats.
A few hours later, we were in the flat lands of Wyoming and South Dakota.
The drive was long and would have ever so boring had is not been for my husbands Road Trip Bingo.
Our plan was to visit Mount Rushmore, so we chose to stay in Rapid City, South Dakota.
You realize as you head into Midwest metropolis cities become more and more scarce. Rapid city is a decently large city with eateries and stores. While in Rapid City, we stayed at the Fairfield Inn and Suites by Marriott. We were able to earn some Marriott points and use this great indoor water park (at a discounted price) for down time. I found the water park to be very clean and accommodating.
The boys had a great time here, we spent four of our five days here for just a few hours, it was a great way for our sons to rid some extra energy. My in-laws met us here and we started on our bucket list of places to see in South Dakota.
Days 4-7:
Unfortunately, rain thwarted our initial plans and we couldn't experience some things on my itinerary. Thankfully, we had so many great things planned we just rearranged our agenda and Mount Rushmore was one of the first things to see.
Prior to visiting Mount Rushmore, the boy's had learned about the presidential monument and its designer, Gutzon Borglum.
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| The view on the road to Mount Rushmore. |
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| We took a easy hike down to the base of the monument to get a different perspective. People of all ages and capabilities were on this trail as well. |
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| The boy's also became Jr. Rangers. |
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| If this wasn't considered busy, I think I would avoid visiting Mount Rushmore during the peak seasons. |
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| Thomas Jefferson ice cream is a must. It is his original recipe and its yummy. *Note the ice cream addict, dad, got two scoops.
Keystone City is the closest city to Mount Rushmore. If you plan to visit Mount Rushmore it does not require an entire day, its an easy half day adventure. Be sure to pack a lunch or be prepared to wait at any local restaurants in Keystone. We ate at Halley's West, it is both an antique store and restaurant which satiated our hunger at a low cost.
We took a drive through Iron Mountain and Needles highway which is listed as one of the Top-10 scenic roads in America. The views were beautiful and unique, the tunnels were exhilarating and nerve wracking.
 
There are a few tunnels large enough for one vehicle during the drive. Thankfully, it wasn't too busy in September but busy enough to have to share the tunnels with opposing traffic. We made it safely through with a suburban. Trailers and larger SUV's are not encouraged to enter.
     
Not originally on the itinerary but thankful to visit was Wall Drug Store and Badlands National Park. Even more exciting, while on our way to Wall Drug Store we stumbled on an old sod homestead. The Homestead Act of 1900 enabled Mr. Brown to purchase this acreage for only 50 cents/acre once he lived on the lot for 18 months. Having just learned about the Pioneers, this brought our books to life.
        
There were many great things about this homestead; First, was being the able to dress up and another benefit was the full access we had to all the props. We were able to touch and feel everything in the home which made it a great educational experience to see and touch the structures of homes in the early 1900's.
Oh, and how could I even forget, prairie dogs/! When researching the wildlife of Colorado and South Dakota prairie dogs were high on my sons list.
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Wall Drug Store has a unique story behind it.
In 1931, Mr. & Mrs. Hustead (a pharmacist) moved to Wall when it was a poor little town in need of a drug store. Tentatively, they would live there for five years. As the years went on, it became harder for Mr. Hustead to maintain wages to support his family of four. Meanwhile, his wife, Mrs. Hustead, had the grand idea of placing signs on the famous I-90 highway to advertise free ice water at Wall Drug Store. Frequent travelers on the 90 heading to Mount Rushmore during the sweltering summer months would need ice water! With this creative marketing idea people detoured to Wall Drug Store. Today Wall Drug Store is a mall full of various stores and visited by approximately two million people throughout the year. And still, ice water is still free and coffee is just 5 cents.
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| "Free Ice Water. It brought us Husteads a long way and it taught me my greatest lesson, and that's that there's absolutely no place on God's earth that's Godforsaken. No matter where you live, you can succeed, because wherever you are, you can reach out to other people with something that they need!" - Ted Hustead |
Just south of Wall is Badlands National Park. The Lakota Indians named it "bad lands" because of its rugged terrain and water lacking region. I can't say I've ever seen anything like it, its very unique and beautiful in its own distinct way.
The Wind Cave National Park is just one of many underground caves South Dakota is known for. We chose this one for its close proximity to where we were traveling. Of the many tours, we chose the Garden of Eden Tour- a 60 min., 120 step guided tour down into the cave. This walk took us along the upper portion of the cave where we explored interesting cave formations called "popcorn" and "boxwork", both naturally made.
*Tickets are sold on a first come first serve basis. Something to be considered during peak season visits.
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| Uniquely, the caves were discovered in 1881 while two boys were hunting. A gust of wind from this hole blew one of the boy's hats off and a new discovery was found.
I researched many great things about Custer's State Park, sadly, we hardly saw any wildlife. I'd like to think that was related to the time to year we visited, we only saw but a handful of mule deer and nothing more. Outside the National Wind Cave Park we did spot a few scattered buffalos.
 
This is a picture of Legion Lake in Custer's State Park. There is an easy dirt path and fun boulder to hop onto around the lake.
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After a quick four days in South Dakota, we traveled six hours back to Colorado to complete our vacation. Initially, we hadn't booked our last night lodging. A local gave us a recommendation to stay at the YMCA of The Rockies, so we gave it a try. For a decent and affordable cost we had this superb view and numerous amenities! The campus, which is acres upon acres big, had breathtaking views. Unfortunately, with only one day of vacation remaining we didn't have much time to explore.
Last day in the Rockies was spent well. We hiked around Grand Lake which had awing views. I had the urge to plop a chair right on the path. In fact, I did see a woman do just that, she had chose a beautiful location, set her chair up, and breathed in the serene beauty.
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