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