The Colorado Chronicles- part 1

Joe and I were able to embark on a legendary adventure to Colorado. We got back last night, and we were gone for 10 nights. It was such a memorable trip. I'd like to share with you a highlight from each day. ;-)

Monday-

Our first stay was in the lovely, small town of Estes Park. My dad chose this spot because it was minutes away from an amazingly beautiful National Park that we wanted to explore. The night of our arrival, after checking out our spacious condo, we went into town. Estes Park is similar to Hawaii in that it rains every afternoon. This evening was special though because it didn't just rain, it stormed. There was lightning and thunder exploding in the sky. I've never seen such a light show. We walked around the town with our eyes up and then walked home backwards so we could study it. What an wonderful example of the power of our God. We sang How Great Thou Art which accurately describes our experience.

Verse 1:
O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder
Consider all the worlds Thy hands have made,
I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder,
Thy power throughout the universe displayed.

Refrain:
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee,
How great Thou art, how great Thou art!
Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee,
How great thou art, how great Thou art!

Tuesday-

We woke up early, went out to breakfast, and then hiked up a beautiful trail to Emerald Lake. The sky was a rick blue, the trees were a vivid green, and the crisp breeze kept us going. Here is a photo of Emerald Lake.

On the trip we were constantly in search of wildlife. Bears, deer, squirrels, and Magpie. No animal was ignored. After the hike, we found a very large group of Elk chillaxing on government land. We figure they knew that no one was supposed to follow them. We met a little boy who contrary to his parents' instructions, strutted over to the Elk, stood a few feet in front of them, and bellowed, "Take a picture of me! I'm not going to scare them away!" Let's just say, they didn't stay long.

Wednesday-

This morning we got to embark on a three-hour horseback ride! It was exciting. I got a horse named Medicine Hat who would have been revered by the Native Americans because of his special white mane and black tuft of hair in the front. Our guide, Kylee, had a very hard time keeping the three men of our group in line. My dad especially wanted to constantly let his horse creep through the forest instead of walk and eat everything in sight, two things that Kylee felt were unforgivable. It was quite entertaining to see her frustrated face. The scenery was the bomb, but our bums were thankful we didn't go for the 5 hour ride. ;-)

After the ride and some great lunch, we explored the park some more. Hiking, taking pictures, basking in the beauty that was there. No matter how much I love California weather, there is nothing more awe inspiring to me than the mountains.