July 4, 2012

Wednesday, July 4, 2012--Rocky Mountain National Park and Boulder, CO

I slept just as well in my tent at my free campground last night as I did at the ones where I had paid.  I could hear the tree leaves rustling, but otherwise it was quiet.  The nearby stream was so small that the sound did not travel into the tent.  I hope that other states will have such free campgrounds to use occasionally.  The only drawback was no place to shower.  There was even a portable potty there for campers to use.

I awoke at 6:30 and was packed and on my way by 7:00.  I went through a town called Grandy and noticed there was no Grandy's Restaurant (a chain that used to be quite popular in America).  There wasn't any chain restaurant that I could see.  About 6 cops were out posting no-parking signs along the main street.  My guess is that they were having a parade to celebrate the day.  A bakery was open, so I bought a huge cinnamon roll for breakfast and ate 2/3 of it and saved the other 1/3 for dessert at night.

I was at the western entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park at 8:00.  I was worried about the crowds I might face in the park.  If I could have visited another day, I would have; my schedule just happened to get me to this spot on this day.  A park ranger from Oklahoma visited with me and told me that I was lucky to be entering from the west (300,000 visitors per year vs. 3 million entering on the eastern side) and that I was probably lucky by being there early since many people tend to sleep in on holidays.  She gave me suggestions of where to pull off and enjoy the scenery, and I was on my way.  When I passed through the toll gate indicating a cost of $20 to enter, I was glad I had my Senior Pass which got me in for free.

As I drove through the park, there were few cars ahead or behind me going my direction.  The opposite lane, however, had a long string of cars.  At each of the pull-offs, I was able to find a place to park and it was easy to get back into my lane to continue onward.  My guess is that later in the day many people were unable to stop due to a lack of available parking spaces.  The scenery was spectacular.  Fortunately, the skies were clear of smoke and clouds giving wonderful views everywhere.  The only wildlife I saw was a giant herd of elk on a hillside.  The park ranger had warned me that they are more dangerous than bears, especially if there is a mother with babies.  After parking, I approached them from the side and used my telephoto lens to get a good shot of them.  Just as the park ranger had said, it took me 2 1/2 hours to drive from one side of the park to the other.  I skipped visiting the Bear Lake area because the road is being rebuilt and it is necessary to take shuttles to go there, but I saw so many wonderful scenes that more would have been boring.  It is truly a beautiful park with dramatic views.

From the park, I drove to Boulder which I have never visited.  I parked near downtown and walked to Pearl Mall, their downtown pedestrian street.  It was alive with people--families, students, and wierdos (which, like Berkeley, Boulder is known for having).  It is the prettiest pedestrian shopping street I have ever seen.  It is filled with trees, playgrounds, sculptures, benches, etc.  Today, every block had 3-4 entertainers performing--a man in African dress playing drums; a young man and woman playing banjos and singing; a very young boy and girl playing classical music on a violin and cello; a student performing stunts with a ladder, knives, and lots of humor; etc.  The shops were a mixture of local and chain stores but few major ones; there is a mall with department stores and other chains located only about 10 blocks from the center of town.  I walked up and down the mall several times watching the performers and the people in general while enjoying the nice atmosphere of the place.

The University of Colorado campus is only a few blocks from downtown.  It was a bit too warm (95 degrees F) to walk to there today, so I drove.  Because of the holiday, I could park on campus with no problem.  I wandered through the oldest parts of the campus enjoying the layout and the buildings.  The campus has lots of green spaces and is not as compact as the University of Texas has become as they have built up over time.  The buildings are all of rough-cut native stone with red tile roofs.  I found it to be a very attractive and impressive campus.

Tonight I am in a hotel for the first time in 5 days.  It will be so nice to sleep in a bed and have my own bathroom.  I am staying in Longmont near Berkeley.  I arrived at 16:00 and, after first taking a shower, have just enjoyed using the computer and being in air conditioning.  Tomorrow, I will be at another hotel closer into Denver.  I plan to see some sights away from downtown Denver.  Then Friday, I will move into the apartment I have reserved and will begin attending the choir conference that brought me here.  Will write about all that as it happens.

Walking Steps:  11,713

Distance Driven:  142 miles (229 km)