Down by the LLR Corral

The wranglers live down at the corral either in bunk houses or trailers. It is down the hill from the rest of the guest ranch so unless you know it is there, you would never know there were horses sitting up by the pool or at the Lodge.


Rebecca wanted to go see the corral as soon as we settled in on Sunday afternoon. We later learned that the horses here all get Sundays off, which is really nice compared to the day riding places around Estes Park. This pretty Palomino was by itself but definitely wanted some attention. We later learned that is was new this year and Denny was getting it ready to ride next year.


Here are Denny's horse, the Paint, and Mr. Man, the pony Amber rode when she led trail rides. He's quite large for a pony but just right for Amber. He's still young (4, I think) so he didn't always listen but you could tell he was going to be a great pony when he matures a bit more.

Here's the view of the Twin Sisters from the Corral. Just a gorgeous setting and a wonderful place to go every morning.

Here's Mount Meeker one day after a ride. The road leads up to the rest of the ranch. The tack room was behind us, the corral was over to the left and behind, and the bunk houses were up to the left just outside this photo.

And, a slightly different view of Mount Meeker. This was sunrise on our last day there. It sure was beautiful!

One morning, we got to watch the hay being delivered. This truck sure makes it look easy. And, those horses go through a lot of hay!

The horses would not be happy to see this sign if they could read! Denny told us we could bring carrots down for the horses if we wanted. We bought some but none of them were really interested in them. Guess they aren't spoiled like the horses we ride at home!


Of course, the horses do get fed. Denny has this cool old truck (I forget the year) that is perfect for dumping the hay into the horses' bins. Notice how interested they are in what he is doing! That horse in the front was trying to help, I guess.

And, here are some of them after he's finished filling the bins.


That's it for today's photos. Up next, photos from our rides.

Guest Ranch Photos, Part 2

I wasn't having any luck adding more photos to the previous post, so I'll try a second post.

This is Millie, the owner's dog. We really enjoyed all the dogs there - just 3 of them and they were never pests.


Here's the sign to the Kid's Camp. Normally, I think those tree faces look tacky but I really liked this one and it made the kids laugh.

Here is one of the many hummingbirds we saw. They had 4 feeders and the birds seemed very territorial. One day, when the other large feeder was empty, one of the hummingbirds kept chasing away any of the other birds that came to the full one.


Next, I'll post some corral and ride photos.

Guest Ranch Photos

Here are some photos from around the guest ranch. I didn't take as many as I thought I did. Oh, well, there is always next year. These are from around the lodge; I'll add corral and horse photos later.


Here is the sign you see in the parking lot:


This is the Lodge:



Here's our cabin - #13. Note the tree growing through the roof. Unfortunately, it is now dead.


Here is the front room of our cabin. Rebecca slept here. No, I didn't make Ali take the top bunk. She liked being on the bottom bunk and she pulled the bedspread down from the top to turn it into her special little cave.



Here's the back room, where Ali and I slept.


And, here is the view out from our deck, which also had a really nice hot tub.


All of the cabins were different. Some were larger with 2 full bedrooms and 2 baths; some were smaller A-frames. They also have rooms in blocks of 4, many of which connect. Most of the rooms and cabins have hot tubs. They also have a large house, the Doctor's House, up on the main road. They rent that one to large groups. While we were there, it was being used by a former Commandant of the Marine Corps and his family.

Some more photos

Okay, back to school has been busier than expected. Well, not really, just very busy. Add in all the after school activities, getting started with Girl Scouts, and a holiday today, I just haven't had tons of time to work on photos. I had planned to post some last night during swim team practice but I couldn't get an internet connection to work. Oh well, anyway, here are a few Elk images to tide you over until I get photos done.

Here is the large herd I was the morning of the wildlife excursion:


Here are two yearlings from that herd:


And, here is the bull - only one in the herd that we could see, other than the yearlings, which don't count:


Oh, these guys aren't Elk, they are Mule Deer. Thought the baby looking back at us was really cute:

First Photos!

Well, here goes - the first photos. These are all from Ali's bike rides so I'll do the best I can explaining them.

This photo is the first one he took on his first ride. (He didn't take photos on all of them). I wish I could tell you the name of the distant mountain, but I can't. This ride was from Big Elk Park to Lake Meadows. See if you can find his bike in one of the photos he took on this ride.

I know the name of this mountain - it is Mount Meeker. Poor Mount Meeker - at 13,911 feet, it doesn't quite reach 14,000 feet in elevation, so it is mostly ignored by all the hikers who think anything less than that isn't worth climbing. But, it sure is a pretty view that we saw many times during our trip. I'm guessing the road is Cabin Creek Road, but I could be wrong.

Another view of distant mountains. If you want to know anything about it, you will have to ask him.

I'm guessing this next photo is a closer shot of the mountains in the distance of the previous photo. I could be wrong. Notice the glacial lake in the center.

I'm not sure why Ali took this photo. I'm guessing he stopped here to "commune" with Mother Nature.

Ali didn't take any photos on his second ride, so sorry, none for his first trip to Johnny Park. But, his next ride was back to Johnny Park (and down to it) so no real loss. He saw this guy on the trail. Presumably, it is a Western Terrestrial Garter Snake.

Ali's last ride was definitely a pretty one. This ride was south of Lane Guest Ranch, near Pleasant Valley. Can't tell you anything about the photos, but enjoy the scenery he elected to share with us. See if you can find his bike in one of these photos too.

Back to the big question, was it the right choice?

We're back at home, now for 2 weeks. I'm finally catching up and although I wrote most of my last posts on the airplane on the way home, I hadn't managed to find the time to post them and finish the rest. And, yes, the photos are coming - I took hundreds and am slowly managing to sort and get them ready to publish. I promise they will come and I don't think you will be disappointed.

Anyway, I started this blog talking about how I chose Lane Guest Ranch and wondering if I had made the right choice. Rebecca's tears on Friday evening and Saturday morning showed me I had.

Rebecca was very sad to see this vacation end – she met some nice kids – her new friends - and got to ride a beautiful horse and enjoy the fresh air. She quickly put this vacation up there with her two other favorites – Disney World and Mexico – and said it would have been way above the other two if she had seen a Bighorn Sheep. (She later told me it was the best vacation ever and that this had been the best summer of her life!)

So, with the knowledge gained about their behavior, it looks like an early summer trip to the Lane Guest Ranch for us next year – maybe for Ali’s birthday. And, we know that we’ll be getting to the park entrance when it opens for our second trip up Trail Ridge Road in search of Bighorn Sheep.

We all agree that the Lane Guest Ranch was definitely the right choice. The accommodations are rustic (but very clean) but what makes this place a success is the wonderful people who work there and their willingness to always find a way to say yes to anything you want or need. From Tom, the guy who services the pool and hot tubs plus manages the grill at lunch 2 days a week, to Al our waiter who also fills the hummingbird feeders and remembers I can’t have any dairy products, to Denny, Jenny, Amber and all the other wranglers who make sure everyone has a great ride, we salute you and look forward to seeing you next summer! And to Lloyd Lane, we hope that you continue to let people share your wonderful ranch for a long time - you are an exceptional host!

Finally, a Stellar's Jay

All the guide books write about the various birds you see in this area, and the favorite seems to be the Stellar's Jay – a gorgeous bright blue jay with a tufted head. We had seen a lot of wildlife, including many Gray Jays, but no Stellar's Jays.

I wanted some more early morning shots of Mount Meeker and knew that down by the corral offered one of the better views of it. So, up early again, I was out the door by 6:10 to catch the sunrise. Just as I got outside, I heard birds I had not heard before. When I looked, up, there were two Stellar's Jays just outside the main Lodge. I wasn’t able to get photos of them – I guess they are about as shy as the Bighorn Sheep – but at least I finally saw them. And, yes, they are as pretty as everyone says they are.

The walk down to the corral along with some nice views of Mount Meeker was a nice way to end the trip. The horses seemed to wonder why I was there – no one else was up. The new Palomino in particular, was very interested in me. He is just 4 years old and is a new acquisition for the ranch. Not yet ready to ride, he still seems to be a very friendly and eager young horse. Denny, the head wrangler, said he is happy with the progress he has made – he lets Denny put a saddle on him and has let Denny sit on him. He is kept in his own pen separate from the other horses so that he begins to associate human contact with good things. I gave him a last few strokes and said we would be back, hoping to see him in the saddle next year with Mr. Man, Bonnie, and all the other great horses we met this year.

The season is approaching the end for the ranch and the horses – they have 2 more weeks before they head down to Lyons to winter over in a 1,000 acre pasture. Before they go out, the ferrier removes their shoes so they really get to run wild. While some might think it cruel to keep them out all winter, those who have met them know that it is the best vacation they could ever ask for. They get to run wild, barefoot, while eating fresh, delicious grass with no human telling them what to do or putting saddles on them. Yes, they love to work but they need their holidays just like humans do.

Next up - Back to the big question, was it the right choice?

Mine #1 and Pleasant Valley

Today was our last full day and we were not really looking forward to our trip ending. There were tons of trails for Ali to test on his Klein and Rebecca and I were enjoying our daily horseback rides.

The Ranch Program Director had suggested to Ali that he head quite a ways south just past Pleasant Valley for a really nice ride at a trailhead marked Ceran Saint Verain. So he headed out just after breakfast (we always seemed to be the first to arrive for breakfast when they started serving at 7:30). Rebecca and I were off for our last ride on the Mine #1 trail. Rebecca got Bonnie again, which made her quite happy, and since I had liked Squirt so much (not everyone did), I got her for our ride. Stephanie and Amber were our guides for this trip, which ended up being my favorite. It is longer than the other beginner rides, goes above the tree line for some incredible views, and has a very fun, technical downhill section that it shares with Mine #2. The mine itself is pretty boring – a hole in the ground that we approach from above and can barely see – but the scenery is beautiful. The guides say that this ride is the hardest of the beginner rides and it shows – we had to stop several times to let some less experienced riders catch up. But, we played a great game on the way down – Amber grabbed a stick and place it in a tree. The next ride, in this case Rebecca, had to grab the stick and place it in another tree. And, so on, we went down the line until it either reached Stephanie in the back or was dropped. Well, it made it all the way back to Stephanie, which according to Amber was a record for the summer!

In the meantime, Ali was riding what he said was his favorite ride – a very technical but beautiful trail. It was very rocky and even he admitted to having to get off the bike a push in some places it was so steep and rocky. But, there were a couple of locals from Boulder out there too and even they had to get off and push. He came back with a smile and was even happier to see that it was burgers on the grill for lunch.

Rebecca again went with the Kids Camp – this time for putt-putt golf in Estes Park. Ali and I, unfortunately, had to start packing up. Ali wanted to make sure we had ample time to return our rental car, check in and pay for his bike, so we were leaving at 8 am the next morning.

Up next – Finally, a Stellar's Jay.

Early Birds Catch the Wildlife

There is a beautiful church not far up the Peak to Peak Highway from the ranch that I had been trying to photograph all week. It is aptly named the Church on the Rock, which you will see why when I post photos. Each time, the clouds and light had been bad so I decided to wake early and do it early in the morning. I woke about 6:10 and looked out our deck to see a gorgeous sunrise – Mount Meeker was a beautiful shade of pink with gorgeous clouds above. I quickly dressed, grabbed my camera gear and the car keys, and raced outside to catch the light on Meeker. I got a “grab shot” but that was all I could manage before the light starting getting too bright. Then, I headed out the highway to the church.

I decided to do a bit of exploring since it was still a bit early for the light to reach the church and I was hopeful I would see the herd of Elk again and maybe some other critters – I had yet to see a Stellar's Jay. First, I drove up the road towards Longs Peak hoping to get a nice early morning view of it. Instead, all I saw was a line of cars parked on each side of the road leading up to the parking area. Even at 6:30, the parking lot was already full and there were not many spaces along the access road to park. (I talked with one of the uber-hikers later, Mary Beth, and she said she has been up there at 3:30 am and parked in the last spot in the lot!)

Next, I drove up to the pond where we had seen the Elk yesterday, and sure enough, they were there again. So, I pulled into the next road to turn around, and there was a gorgeous coyote, peering across the road at the Elk. I managed two quick photos out the window before it decided it could not handle the herd on its own (Yes, they do hunt Elk but usually in packs and usually they go after the very young or elderly.)

After turning around, I pulled off the road and took a few photos. Mostly, I watched because I had a decent number of Elk photos already and I wanted to see if they did anything different. But, soon, I decided it was time to head back to the church, and I was right. The sun was lighting it nicely and there were some nice clouds behind it. I spent about 30 minutes doing various shots of it before heading back to the ranch. Figured it was about time for Ali and Rebecca to be up and I was getting a bit hungry. Of course, when I got back, Rebecca was up playing on her Nintendo DS while Ali was still lazing in bed….

Next up – Mine #1 and Pleasant Valley

Loping and Rock Climbing

Today was our day to try for an Intermediate ride. To do an intermediate ride, you have to pass a loping test. Loping is faster than trotting but slower than a gallop. My horse today was Squirt - the other riders say it is because she frequently "passes gas" but that is just talk. Squirt is a lovely Paint mix who the wranglers say has a very nice lope. I took the test and passed, thanks to Squirt, not any great skill on my part. Rebecca was on Bonnie again. On her first try, Bonnie only got up to a trot. But, on her second try, Bonnie got up to a nice lope. Rebecca, however, decided that she wasn't quite up to loping. Thankfully, Denny, the head wrangler was really nice about it and asked Amber to take us on a shorter ride along much of the same route the other group was riding. So, once again, we had a private ride. Amber's a really nice guide and we enjoyed having more time to talk with her. She was riding one of her favorites - Mr. Man - he's still young and needs some work but will be a great lead pony soon. (He's not the normal, small pony either - as big as some of the horses and quite stout!) We went on Cabin Creek Road, which was the road Ali used to get to several of his rides. It was just a dirt road but we got to see lots of small and large homes. I assume many of them are vacation homes but some looked like year-round places. (We were amazed how many places were for sale everywhere we went - of course, Colorado has one of the highest foreclosure rates in the country right now.) We also got lots of chances to trot with the horses, which was fun. Squirt has a reputation for biting the other horses (she's in heat right now so no wonder!) so I had to make sure we stayed back from Bonnie. For some reason, these horses really like to stay right behind the horse in front so it's work to keep them back. Squirt is also one of the horses they use to lead rides and I could tell she didn't like to be in the back. At one point, Bonnie stopped to use the bathroom and Squirt just walked ahead, ignoring my attempts to keep her back. Oh well, at least I kept her from biting Bonnie.

Ali chose to ride to Johnny Park again – this time he planned to descend to the park and ride back up. We had hoped to go hiking in the afternoon so he didn’t want a really hard, long ride but he left earlier so he could do this one. He really enjoyed it – by this time, we were all feeling much more acclimatized to the altitude so it was a good day to do this ride for him.

As has been the case all week, after lunch the storm clouds started rolling in. It seems this time of year, they come from every direction and roll over the mountains with their pitch black clouds and occasional lightening. We hoped for the best, setting off in our little SUV with a plan to look for sheep again at Sheep Lake, head into Estes Park to buy a few things, and hike around Bear Lake, a nice easy hike for Rebecca. Ali was worried that our gas gauge wasn’t working right – it showed over ¾ full despite quite a bit of mountain driving. So, we stopped for gas on the way. Surprisingly, our little Kia SUV was getting about 30 miles per gallon, a nice surprise! Unfortunately, when we got to the Park entrance, it started to rain. And, when we got to Sheep Lake, the sign said that no Bighorn Sheep had been seen since they saw 14 on Friday, August 10. We spoke to one of the volunteers and she said that the likelihood of seeing them at Sheep Lake was about nil – they tend to stop coming down about mid-August and it was raining so the visibility was poor, meaning they couldn’t see if there were any predators about (primarily coyotes). She told us they have their babies in May so the best time to see them is much earlier in the season. We promised Rebecca we would come back earlier next year so we would have a better chance of seeing them. We nixed the hike around Bear Lake due to the rain and headed into Estes Park to the main shopping drag – Elkhorn Avenue, which of course should be named Elk Antler Avenue…. Afterwards, we headed back to the ranch – on the way, we saw quite a few Elk – a pair grazing next to a church, a couple of yearlings a bit further up, and a small herd at a pond near where I saw the large herd on the early morning guided drive.

Later, Rebecca finally joined the Kids Camp for some fun – it was a tie-dye party with games and a cook-out. Ali and I ate on the patio and Rebecca joined us when she was done for her dessert.


Next up – Early birds catch the wildlife

Silver, Silver Everywhere

Thursday's ride for Rebecca and me was the same one we did the first day - Deer Ridge. Since we had originally planned to take Thursday off, we hadn't signed up for a ride and this was the only one that normally wasn't limited to a certain number of riders. However, some of the horses were out of commission due to lost shoes or injuries (it is nearing the end of the riding season and they are starting to show some wear and tear). So, I almost didn't get to ride but another nice mom volunteered to stay behind so I could ride with Rebecca. Rebecca got Bonnie again, I got Cheyenne, and they found a horse for the other mom so we all got to ride a very pleasant ride to a beautiful vista.

Ali decided to ride to Johnny Park and told us he would be back by noon but don't worry until 1pm. He was back when we got back from riding - he rode to the the area right about Johnny Park and saw that it was a very technical, rocky ride down to the actual Park. He thought it might take longer than expected so he came back to the ranch. He saw his first snake and assures me he took some photos, which I'll share when we're back home.

Thursday afternoon, Rebecca and I did the silversmithing class again. She enjoyed it so much on Tuesday, she wanted to do it again, and for some reason, Ali didn't want to do it with her. So, I did it again too. She made a Bighorn Sheep out of copper with an amber stone - turned out very pretty after it was polished. I did a simple silver pendant with a white stone. We helped clean up again so this time I got a really pretty coyote and Rebecca got a Bighorn Sheep.

After dinner, we did some more silversmithing. This time, we did what Don called "Pine Needle Casting." He had a log where he placed an ounce of silver and heated it until it was liquid. Then, we poured it into a bundle of pine needles and he quickly took the bundle and put it in water to cool. When we unbundled the pine needles, the silver had formed around them making a unique piece they would turn into a pendant. It was a fun and different experience that we'll remember for a long time.

Next up - Loping and Rock Climbing

Little Bo Peep has Lost Her Sheep

Because of the rain, we decided Wednesday would be our day off riding and our trip along Trail Ridge Road. First stop would be Sheep Lake which is one of the places where there are numerous Bighorn Sheep spottings. The sheep come down from above to get the salt and other minerals from the mud in the lake. There had not been any sheep sightings since last Friday so we were hopeful they needed a trip to the lake. No such luck this time but we heard they had seen some at Rock Cut, which was on Trail Ridge Road near the Alpine Center.

After a detour to the Alluvial Fan - we walked the path to get close to the falls created from the flood and to see up close the huge boulders washed down - we were off on our adventure along Trail Ridge Road. The high point on the road is 12,183 feet, more than 2 miles above sea level! You are above the tree line for much of the drive and the ride up is spectacular. We had packed coats, hats, rain jackets, and plenty of water for the trip and we were glad we did. There are 12 main stops along the road. Our first stop was number 4 - Rainbow Curve, so named because you can see many beautiful rainbows after the frequent thunder storms in this area. The view is excellent. At this point, you are at 10,833 feet. There are restrooms here, so it is a good place to take a break. We saw some very tame critters here too - a ground squirrel looking for handouts as well as some gray jays that liked to hang out on one of the signs describing the overlook. Of course, despite signs telling people not to feed the wildlife, we saw plenty who did. Hope the birds and other animals know how to feed themselves when the road closes in October.

Further up the road, we saw a larger herd of elk so we made a quick stop to view them. They were quite far in the distance and Rebecca was anxious to get to Rock Cut so we didn't stay long.

Up at Rock Cut is a half mile trail - Toll Memorial. You start at an elevation of 12,110 feet and climb another 260 feet over that half mile, making it feel like you are walking around the world. Of course, by this time, there are too many people so the Bighorn Sheep are gone. Using our binoculars, we think we see two off in the distance near a snow patch but we can't be sure. The trip back down to the car was much faster, in part due to the cold rain that started falling. Up the road a bit was a small lookout near the snow patch. We stopped to look but much of it was below us where we couldn't see. So, back in the car to our last stop before turning around, the Alpine Visitor Center. By this time, we were all tired and feeling the effects of the altitude so after a quick snack stop we headed back down the road. We saw the herd of elk and a marmot on our way down. Our only stop was back at Sheep Lake. No sheep again, but the Ranger led a nice 30 minute program that was interesting and very well done. Our favorite part was when he commented on Elkhorn Avenue in Estes Park - of course, Elk don't have horns, they have antlers!

Next up - Silver, Silver, Everywhere

Rain, rain, go away

I was up at 5:50 to get ready for my 6:30 guided drive looking for wildlife. If nothing else, I figured we would get some great sunrise scenes. Unfortunately, the day broke very cloudy - it had rained much of the late afternoon and evening on Tuesday. But, it wasn't raining, yet, so I was hopeful we would see some wildlife. There were only 2 other guests on the trip (another overslept) plus another employee learning about the trip so she could guide it in the future.

I was not to be disappointed. Just after turning onto Highway 7 (the Peak to Peak Highway), we saw a coyote, who ran off when he saw our van. Then, a couple miles up the road (we were heading to the Rocky Mountain National Park), we saw a huge herd of Elk off to the left. We quickly turned around and pulled off the road to get a better view. There was one large bull elk and several male yearlings. Plus, a large number of females and one small, very young calf. (Yes, I know, where are the photos? Well, they will just have to wait until I get back - it takes long enough to write this stuff up and copy the photos to the computer and we're having too much fun to spend all my time on the computer. But, yes, I will post them and will let everyone know when they are here.)

We spent a long time there taking photos and admiring the Elk. But, then it was time to continue our journey, with everyone wondering if we could possibly top seeing this beautiful herd so close up. We continued north, entering the park at the Beavers Meadow entrance. We did a nice scenic drive around the eastern area of the park, managing to see a mule deer female and her two fawns and a wild turkey. The most interesting place we visited was the alluvial fan caused by the Lawn Lake Dam failure on July 15, 1982. (Wikpedia had a good article on this topic.) I made a mental note to return with Ali and Rebecca.

The trip back to the ranch was uneventful except the grey clouds turned to rain clouds. Uh, oh, not likely any of us will fill like riding. Maybe today is the day we take the drive town Trail Ridge Road, in the Park. I'll talk to Ali and Rebecca when I get back.

Ali and Rebecca were just finishing up breakfast when I got back so I joined them and we decided to take the day off from riding and instead drive along Trail Ridge Road at least to the Tundra Region. Would we luck out and also see the Bighorn Sheep Rebecca so wanted to see?

Next Up - Little Bo Peep in Search of Her Sheep

Thar's Gold in Them Thar Hills

Not really, but our horseback ride Tuesday was into the Rocky Mountain National Park to one of its abandoned gold mines. For some reason, Rebecca and I were the only ones signed up for this ride. So, we had our own personal trip which was really nice. Our guide Amber was great and the ride was fun. We had to cross the highway from the ranch and then we entered Roosevelt National Forest for a bit, wandering through on an easy trail to the junction with the Rocky Mountain National Park (RNMP). Amber said that they are only allowed 8 riders plus the guide from the ranch into RNMP at any given time. I guess the daily stables get priority in the park since there are several large stables in Estes Park that offer rides into RNMP. None of them would come anywhere near where we were going since Lane Guest Ranch is 12 miles south of Estes Park. Oh well, one can never figure out the ways of the federal government.

Anyway, we had the trail to ourselves the whole time. After entering the Park, the trail got tougher and we had to cross a small creek to get to the mine. Amber was riding Mr. Man who she said was a bit afraid of the creek, but today he did fine - maybe since he was in the lead, he had to show our horses that he could do it. He only stopped for a quick drink of water before crossing.

Oh, Rebecca had her same horse - Bonnie - while I got to ride another mustang, Oreo. My horse from Monday was being used by a National Forest guy who was riding one of the trails that the ranch uses to check soil quality and trail erosion - why they worry so much about what the horses do and could care less what all the ATVs do on the trails (noise, pollution and trail damage) is beyond me. But, at least they used a great horse for that trip.

Back to our trip....The gold mine isn't much to look at - basically a bricked-up hole with some water streaming out of it and some quartz rock lying around. This was not a very successful mine but at least it left a nice trail that the donkeys/mules used to cart out the rock. After seeing the mine, we went up a steep bank and had a very steep, technical trip down to a meadow area - the horses were great although Oreo frequently wanted to make her own path and I had to keep her from taking some shortcuts. What made this bit difficult was that it was mostly sand and small pebbles, which slipped under the horses' hooves. The ride through the meadow was nice and we headed back across the road back to the ranch where we got to hang out with the wranglers and the barn dog for a while. Then, it was back to our cabin to see if Ali was back from his ride.

He chose a more difficult ride than Monday so Rebecca and I were a bit worried about him. But, he was back when we got back to our cabin. The ride wasn't described correctly and he thought he was going to have an extra 2000 feet vertical - 1000 feet down to the end and 1000 feet back to where the descent began. But, he got to his goal - House Rock - and realized that the ride had him going much further than that. He chose to turn around at House Rock, a smart move since he had already done a very technical 12 plus miles.

We all had a nice lunch by the pool - of course, Rebecca swam first. Afterwards, Rebecca and I took a silversmithing class - included in the rate and we got to keep our creations. It was really fun to do so we plan to do it again on Thursday afternoon. Ali spent his free time reading the newspapers - they arrive a bit late in the day - and then planning his next ride. Rebecca and I are scheduled to do our first Intermediate ride in the morning and I'm also getting up to do an early morning wildlife excursion the ranch offers one day a week.

Next up:

Rain, rain, go away

Wranglers, Rides, Wildlife and Peanuts

Our first full day at the ranch has been a busy one. We were awakened early by birds outside and the sun shining through the windows. Oh well, no sense wasting a nice day. Had breakfast as soon as they opened - 7:30 - we were the first there. Al, who will be our waiter all week except the one day off he gets, was there to greet us. They have a decent number of food choices plus plenty of fresh fruit and juices - the bagels are great! Everyone is so nice here, it is easy to see why so many people seem to return year after year. We sat out on the patio - covered but still outside - a bit cool but it felt nice and we knew the day would quickly heat up. Some critters came around, which we all thought were nice fat chipmunks but we later learned they are Golden-mantled Ground Squirrels - quite a bit larger than chipmunks. You can tell the difference because the stripes on ground squirrels don't continue onto their faces like they do on chipmunks. Anyway, Al told us they can't put the butter pats on the tables until guests arrive because the critters love to steal them - they find butter wrappers all over the place!

After breakfast, Ali got ready to ride - he was doing a relatively "easy" ride - Big Elk Park to Lake Meadows. Of course, adding the miles from our ranch to the starting point plus it being our first day at 8500 feet, meant this "easy" ride isn't quite as easy as described. He had a great time however, saw some interesting things, and yes, managed to take some photos so I could share them.

Rebecca and I weren't riding until 9:30 - the earliest one they offer. Ours was a beginners ride to Deer Ridge. The scenery on the way up was great but the view from the top was really impressive. Rebecca got to ride a nice black Quarter horse named Bonnie; I had a gorgeous black Mustang named Honey. We both loved our horses and got along well with them. We loved them even more when we started our descent back to the ranch! While considered a beginners ride, the steep decent was quite difficult - if it hadn't been for some very sure-footed, well-trained horses, it would have been much more difficult. It was a great experience and Rebecca was awesome with Bonnie! At the end of one steep decent that was very rocky with sand, the horse in front of ours, Banks, decided to show us he could do more than just lumber along and he went off on a loping run. Of course, Bonnie and Honey followed to the delight of both of us!

After we got back, a few minutes after Ali, what do you think Rebecca wanted to do?? Swim, of course. Even I felt like a quick dip before lunch would be great but the sun went behind a cloud, it cooled off, and I chickened out. After lunch by the pool, and my struggles to get photos copied over to the laptop, we headed into Estes Park to pick up some provisions (good beer and wine - the ranch offers Bud and Coors, neither of which are Ali's favorite) and run by the bike store to pick up some chain lube, which Ali forgot to pack. We saw some awesome storms in the mountains (photos to follow) and Rebecca noticed the Aerial Tram that runs up one of the mountains in Estes Park. She said she wanted to go so after I quick trip to the Visitors Center in town to find out how to get there, off we went.

When we pulled into the parking lot, Rebecca said, "Look, there's a deer!" When I finally saw it, I said no, it looks like a female moose. We later learned it was actually a cow elk that hangs around there - a bit disappointed but happy to have seen our first "big" wildlife."

The tram was built in 1952 and each car (one up, one down) holds just 10 adults (plus the tram operator). Ali kept wondering when they last refurbished it. It was a quick ride (about 10 mph according to the tram operator) to the top where we learned the favorite activity was to feed peanuts to the chipmunks, ground squirrels, and gray jays that frequented the area around the tram and its buildings. The views were stunning too. Rebecca enjoyed feeding the wildlife, I took a bunch of photos (yes, those will come too!), and then we headed down. Back in the car and back to the ranch to relax a bit before dinner and tonight's entertainment, a magician.

Where are those photos?

I promise I will post some as soon as possible, but today was a comedy of errors trying to download the ones I have to my laptop, back them up and then try to post them. First, my laptop refused to recognize one of my cards - said it did not recognize the format. Uh, oh, I've had that message before and ended up sending 2 bad cards back to the manufacturer for replacement and thankfully, full image recovery at no cost to me other than 4 months of waiting.

Then, I left an adapter I needed for Rebecca's camera back in our room (we were by the pool so Rebecca could swim). Too lazy to go back and get it, I decided those could wait. When I finally got a card I could copy over, the one from Ali's camera, my external hard drive wouldn't work so I was only able to get them copied over, not backed up.

By then, it was time to go have fun (the next post) and try again when we got back. Now, I'm sitting here with Image Rescue hopefully rescuing the images from my bum card (They always seem to be 4 gig cards - think I'll give up on those and just use more 2 gig cards). I'll know in about an hour. And, I'm plugged into an outlet so my external hard drive is working - guess it needs more juice than my laptop had left on its battery. So, I'll get those images backed up and when Image Rescue is done, I'll be able to copy over the images from Rebecca's camera since I now have the adapter I need.

The Black Stallion

It arrived at 6:30 to take us to the airport – our large black SUV from Boston Car Service. With Ali’s bike and our extra bag for Rebecca’s and my riding gear, we needed the big boy and I can always count on Boston Car Service to come through for me. With the price of parking at Logan, we figure we usually break even using a car service. Plus, with the long walks to the terminals, it is a lot more convenient than driving. And, I won’t use any other than Boston Car Service.

A couple of years ago, we had gone down to Virginia for a long weekend trip to Skyline Drive, taking Ali’s mum, Betty with us. When we got to Dulles Airport on Monday to come home, we learned that our flight back to Boston was cancelled and there was nothing available until late Tuesday to get us back home. A bit of a bummer – Betty was scheduled to fly back to London on Tuesday morning and of course, Rebecca had school and Ali had work. After a few long phone calls, Ali managed to find us a flight leaving from National (I refuse to call it the other name) but it was going to Providence so we needed to find a way home from Providence. Ali called the car service his company used at the time, another large Boston firm, but they didn’t have a driver who could pick us up on such short notice. So, I said, "Call Boston Car Service, I bet they do." And, sure enough, they were more than happy to send someone to pick us up. So, a good end to the story – we got a cab from Dulles to National, caught our flight, and made it home that evening.

Of course, since it was just a long weekend, I had driven to the airport to save some money, meaning I had to get to Logan to retrieve our car. I used Charlie’s car to take Rebecca to school (Betty had left early in the morning in a Boston Car Service sedan), then took a train into Boston and the Silver Line to Logan, wasting half my day getting the car back and of course, having to pay for an extra day of parking. So, lesson learned, unless we can get someone to drive us in, we’ll be using the car service even for our short trips!

Rounding up a Ranch

So after we decided that, yeah, a trip to a ranch would make a nice summer trip, I had to set about finding one for us. I knew it had to be in Colorado, so that made the task a little less daunting, but what next? We didn't really know anyone who had been to one, we didn't want to go on a cattle drive with Curly and I didn't know any travel agents who specialized in ranches, so how could I find someplace for us?

Well, of course, my first step was to google "ranch vacation." The first listing was for Ranchweb.com, which looked like a good starting place. I went to their interactive map for Colorado. Oh no, that's a lot of ranches - 45 or so!! Now what to do. Okay, let's figure out a way I can narrow them down a bit. First requirement, after horses - it has to have a swimming pool for Rebecca. When she isn't riding, she will want to swim since that is her number one favorite activity. And, of course, we have to be somewhere near where we might see those sheep. Ali doesn't want to ride a horse, he wants to ride his aluminum (aluminium for the Brits) steed, his Klein mountain bike, so we have to be someplace where he can do that. I decided we also wanted someplace reasonably convenient so we wouldn't spend half our vacation getting there. Since we can get direct flights from Boston to Denver, I decided that we needed to be within a couple of hours of Denver.

Ranchweb.com's search engine wasn't quite doing it for me - it wasn't narrowing the ranches down enough with the search criteria they provided so I went back to Google and tried some other searches. First, I tried "Colorado ranches" and the first place listed was the Colorado Dude and Guest Ranch Association, which sounded like a good place to look. Okay, it had a lot of the ones from Ranchweb.com but not all of them. It did at least let me use mountain biking as a search criteria, which narrowed their list from 30 to 14 ranches but I was worried that some ranches were missing from this site. I ended up using both Ranchweb.com and the Colorado site to visit web sites for the listed ranches that came close to having what we wanted. Only 2 really seemed to make the cut for us - Peaceful Valley and the Lane Guest Ranch. It was almost a toss-up. But, we chose Lane Guest Ranch for a couple of reasons - it was closer to the Rocky Mountain National Park, listed mountain biking as one of its activities and even had its own we could use, and they made a point of being vegetarian friendly - something that makes both Rebecca and me happy. So, we rented a 2 bedroom cabin (bunk beds for Rebecca, which she loves) with a hot tub on our porch. And, tomorrow we are off on our adventure.

Did I make the right choice? We'll see. But, we all agreed that this is going to be one great vacation - Rebecca and I have our horses, Ali can ride his mountain bike, and that area offers some pretty spectacular scenery. Add a pool, private hot tub, and hopefully some sheep or at least some other wildlife and we can't think of a better way to spend a week in August.

Why, Why, Why?

Why a blog? This, my first blog, is inspired by my favorite night photographer, Lance Keimig, who created a blog for his trip to Japan, and fellow Alamy stock photo contributor, Dennis MacDonald, who is sharing photos and musings from his trip "North to Alaska" (http://macdonaldnorthtoalaska.blogspot.com/). Oh, and of course, my family complains that they never get to see my photos so what better way to do it in this age. This way, they can ride along with us.

Why this trip to Colorado? Well, a couple of years ago, Rebecca asked if we could "go horseback riding in Colorado." Asked why Colorado, she said that she had just read an article about Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep in Colorado and wanted to see them. (Here is a Wikpedia article on Bighorn Sheep for those who are not familiar with them.) Good enough reason for us, so thus began the planning process last year to find "the perfect place" for us this summer. Ultimately, that search led to the Lane Guest Ranch.

Why the Lane Guest Ranch? Well, that is a whole story by itself so look for the next installment - Rounding up a Ranch.