Friday, July 31, 2009

Day 8: Rocky Mountain National Park

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For the last day of our adventure, we decided to do the 7 mile loop up to Loch Vale. After an amazing breakfast of blueberry pancakes, eggs, and bacon at the B&B, we took the shuttle to the trail head, and started our trek up into the mountains. About a mile into the hike, we passed by Alberta Falls.
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After a quick breather, we pressed on. Along the way we stopped a few more times for Nate so he could get footage for his project.
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When we were almost to the lake, we turned the corner and ran into our friend Michi who we'd met in undergrad! I had known she was going to be in the area while we were there, but what luck to randomly run in to someone you know halfway across the country.
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Right as we got up to the lake, another thunderstorm plowed through. Luckily we found another overhang to sit beneath. I didn't mind resting in the rain at all. When the lightening struck, it made the most amazing and scary noise as it echoed between the granite cliffs. It was a sound I'll never forget. We stayed underneath our overhang until the lightening stopped, and then started our hike down. It didn't clear up until we were about halfway back down the mountain.
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It was a tough hike, but we had the motivation of knowing we were going to have some indian food for dinner when we got down to keep us moving.
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We were a little sad too that our trip was almost to an end. We both agreed that if we were to do it again, we would spend twice as much time at rocky mountain and arches, and extend our trip by at least a week.
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We waved goodbye to the park, and headed into Estes Park for some dinner. Indian food really hit the spot!
After walking around for a while downtown, we headed back to the B&B and made good use of the outdoor hot tub. The stars were out in full force, and there was a thunderstorm to the north of us lighting up the sky. It was the perfect way to end our adventure.

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