Rocky Mountain National Park... without a reservation!

 It used to be that you could rock up to our "local" National Park, buy a ticket and drive on in. Sometime during the COVID pandemic though, the park kept overflowing, parking shortages resulted in clogged scenic byways and measures were taken to limit the traffic in the peak summer months. 

By June this year, just as the infamous Trail Ridge Rd was reopening, we had moved from the no-res system back to the reservation system and I was left trying to figure things out - Alas I was apparently not as smart or quick as the average tourist and despite my best efforts, the weekend I wanted to visit, there were no reserved entry timeslots available ahead of time or 7pm the night before, when 40% of tickets are released for us last minute go-getters. 

However... to make sure the less organized of us are not denied a national treasure, there is a loophole. The reservation system starts at 5am for the park including Bear Lake Rd and at 9am for the park excluding entry to the Bear Lake Rd portion. Doable! 

Sue and I left Boulder around 7:35am, anticipating a 1 hour drive and a queue of people just like us at the Rocky Mountain National Park entrance. Bingo! Nailed it. By 8:50am we had eeked in and now were free to escape to 12,000' where the plan was short walks and time spent at altitude. IE More "getting to know our bodies" at a higher elevation, in preparation for Kilimanjaro training at altitude later this year and into next year. 

The first stop was the Visitors Center on Trail Ridge Rd. Kinda wanted to see the 20' wall of snow that had been plowed through to open the road for us. It was almost gone though. 

From here, we hiked (pole pole) up the hill for a spectacular view and a new wind-inspired hairdo.

A bit light-headed and 30 IQ points short of an intelligent picnic but otherwise well, we made a quick stop at the gift store to fantasize about buying cute little things despite having left wallets in the car, then hit the road. Breathless little trails beckoned. 

This stretch of road turned out to be the favorite haunt of all sorts of wildlife. We stumbled upon marmot after marmot and they seemed to want to pose for us! And... the elk stumbled upon us! Literally bee-lining down the narrow trail we were on, passing us as we tucked into a pile of boulders and making their way to the parking lot before wandering up the road for about a mile. Stopping traffic - both directions. 

Final thought for the day; Driving along near Sheep Lakes and we spot what appears to be a moose in an enclosure. Before entering the enclosure (and after wondering why there is an enclosure) we read the following sign...    Nope. Not too eager to confront a mama moose in the foliage, we stayed outside. She never reappeared so there is no photographic evidence. But this sign clearly indicates it's not the first time she or one of her kin have broken into the enclosure where the grass is definitely greener.