Estes Park Colorado

Posted on April 17, 2021April 17, 2021 by Dusty Roads

From Diamond Resorts Destination Page

Estes Park Colorado

Good Morning Travel friends! Sorry I missed last weekend. It was just a busy 2 days. I’m one step closer to being travel ready. I got my first COVID shot. 2nd one coming up this week. I hear we will need a booster every year!

Well let’s get back to vetting Colorado locations, shall we? How about Estes Park next? That’s a familiar name. I think Estes Park is a fairly well known destination. I also think it’s a winter destination known for skiing. But just wait til you hear what the web has to say. Might as well start there.

Google for Estes Park

Photo from Wikipedia

Estes Park is a town in northern Colorado. Located as a base for the Rocky Mountain National Park, it’s home to wildlife including elk and bears, plus miles of trails. The park’s Trail Ridge Road winds past craggy peaks, forests and tundra. Nearby are the wilderness areas of Roosevelt National Forest. The Estes Park Aerial Tramway connects the town to the summit of Prospect Mountain for views over the valley. ― Google

Estes Park in Summer

Estes Park is a popular winter vacation destination but what can we do in the summer. Turns out, quite a lot. I found a link marked Extreme Estes Park from Trip Advisor. Loaded with hiking and private tours; looks like lots of adventures waiting. There’s a Rocky Mountain Jeep tour. (Jeep tours are always fun) . I like the sound of the Evening Wildlife tour in Rock Mountain National Park. It has 5 stars! Nearly every Summer Safari they see Moose cows and sometimes bulls, Elk bulls and cow herds with calves, Mule Deer, Bighorn Sheep on the distant mountains through the spotting scope, Yellow-bellied Marmots, American Pika, and a number of small cute critters only found in the Rockies like Least Chipmunk, Ground Squirrels, many different birds and some hawk & eagles.

Of course being a photography nut this tour caught my eye: Evening Private Wildlife Safari in RMNP
Here’s the description-For the Landscape option we can shot Sunrise at an Subalpine Lake, on the Tundra, or along the river of a Mountain Meadow. Wildlife like Moose, Elk, Mule Deer, Marmots, Pika, and on lucky days Bighorn Sheep can be captured.

All guests have access to our arsenal of Nikon pro cameras and lens like the D810 and 600mm lens.

I’ll need more than 1 trip to see everything I want to see.

Aye Calypso The Places You’ve Been To

Posted on February 22, 2020February 21, 2020 by Dusty Roads

Aye Calypso, I sing to your spirit

Calypso is still tied to the dock. I’m 15 minutes late but that’s on time by Island time. Racing to the gangway I am nearly knocked over by the force of the wind. These are no gentle Island breezes. It’s gusting and blowing like a hurricane. “We’re not going out in this are we? ” I call out. Tony, the first mate, waves a release at me and promises it will only get better. I’m skeptical. No captain in his right mind would take a boat load of tourists out in this kind of gale in Boston. By now I’m the last to board. I have to make a decision. To go or not to go, that is the question.

To ride on the crest of a wild raging storm

Ok so I signed the release, grabbed my gear and climbed to the bow of the 2nd deck. Almost immediately we cast off. Calypso is a beautiful catamaran. Her double hulls are built for stability. She has 3 decks as well as glass panels in the floor for those land lubbers that want to see what all the snorkeling and diving is about. The crew not only manages the ship, they act a servers too bringing around plates of fruit, muffins, warm cinnamon rolls and even egg and cheese croissants!

To sail on a dream on a crystal clear ocean

So they were not wrong! As soon as we cleared Ma’alaea Harbor and went around the point the wind died. We were heading toward Molokini and it had turned into a beautiful day. We had to come to an idle at one point while a mama humpback whale and her calf checked us out. If a whale comes within 100 yards of a boat it puts that boat into “whale jail” until the whale moves off. The trip was just getting better and better and we hadn’t gotten to Molokini yet!

The Road To Hana is a Very Scary Road

Posted on February 1, 2020February 1, 2020 by Dusty Roads | 2 Comments

The Road To Hana is a Very Scary Road

I know I’ve been neglecting adding posts lately but I have been working on things. I’m re-writing some of my earlier blog posts for a writing course I’m taking. I’d like to share one I just finished about a experience I had on the Road to Hana in Maui. Originally this was 2 blog posts from my trip in 2017. After taking the writing course I condensed it down to under 800 words and made it 1 story. So here it is. I hope you enjoy this revised version.

My Road to Hana Mishap (or how I scared myself silly on one of the most dangerous roads in the US)

My heart is pounding like a jack hammer. My hands are shaking and sweating. My whole world has shrunk to this place, this minute. How did this happen? How did I get myself into this situation. How COULD I let this happen!?

It’s a beautiful Hawaiian morning. Blue sky, a few fluffy clouds. Nothing to give me a hint of what was to come, a perfect start to a picture-perfect vacation in paradise. The scenery takes your breath away but that’s not why I’m having trouble breathing now. No, I’m sitting in my rental car, a jeep SUV, with the chassis balanced on a large rock; a boulder really. My left front tire is up in the air and my right fender is flush with a solid wall of dirt and clay. There’s a 100+ foot drop off to my left.

Don’t go on the Road to Hana the car rental people said. Your insurance will be void. My Insurance! What about my life? Right now its flashing before my eyes!

Be sure to turn around at mile marker 38 they said at the resort. Whatever you do, don’t go past Mile 38. I swear I never saw it. I saw whales playing off the coast. I saw green hills and blooming flowers. I did not see Mile Marker 38.

So now I’m parked precariously on my rock on a one lane dirt road that is barely clinging to the side of the mountain. I can see the nonexistent shoulder crumbling. There are about 20 cars behind me. They can’t move forward until I do. There are 2 cars trying to go down the same road I’m on. They refuse to back up. I can’t back up with 20 cars behind me. Driver #1 is screaming obscenities at me. I don’t know what to do. I’m as far off the road as I can get. If I close my eyes, I see my car, with me inside, plunging over the edge. Yup I’m about to become a statistic.A footnote tale of caution for tour guides to tell their guests.

People are starting to leave their cars to gather around. They shout instructions, wave their arms and offer advice. It doesn’t change the fact that there are 2 cars face to face on a one lane road. Something has to give and about that time it does. Driver #1 , his patience worn out, suddenly guns his car. Spectators scatter as Driver # 1 barrels past me. He makes it! As a final gesture of good will he flips me the bird on his way to intimidate the next driver in line behind me.

Driver #2 now creeps forward. The spectators urge him on. Ever so slowly he manages to force his car up to my boulder. His car is now leaning at a dangerous angle. His front bumper is only feet from my boulder, but his back bumper is still in the middle of the road. At that moment my car chooses to fall off its rock. With a crunch and a bump, I’m back on the road. There was no screech of metal so I cross my fingers that there’s no damage. No one is blocking my way now, but I still have to get around the rear of the other car. That will take me very close to the edge of the cliff. I look to the spectators.They wave me forward with encouraging words. I hope they want my success – not to witness a big splat. I hold my breath. I’m afraid to look to the left. I stare at the single lane ahead with the rear end of the car in the middle and then I’m past car #2.

I turn the corner and there, not 100 yards ahead of me is a pull out. There’s even a food truck. I pull in, turn around and fall out of my car on shaking legs. I can’t believe I made it. I’m safe- at least until I have to venture back the way I came.

Rockin’ the Park

Posted on February 9, 2019February 2, 2019 by Dusty Roads

Rock The Park

There’s a Saturday morning children’s show called Rock The Park that I just love. I’m just a kid at heart anyway. In this show Jack & Colton travel to different places and share their adventures. Most of the time the adventures are in a National Park. I love shows that either feature someplace I’ve been or someplace I want to go. I caught a double header the other day. The first episode was Yellowstone National Park and the 2nd episode was about The Big Island of Hawaii.

Akaka Falls

The Hawaii Show caught my attention when I heard the stars mention Akaka Falls. I’ve been there on multiple trips. It is one of my favorite waterfalls. To reach the falls you have to either hike a loop trail or take the stairs. The trail is only about .5 miles and takes you past 300 ft Kahuna Falls before ending at 442 ft Akaka falls. You can also take the stairs directly to Akaka Falls.This is one of the most beautiful Hawaiian waterfalls that I’ve seen and the easiest to see.

Diving with Manta Rays

After visiting the falls Jack & Colton went on a night scuba diving adventure with Manta Rays. I am no longer certified so I haven’t been scuba diving but I did go on a night snorkel with Manta Rays on my last trip. That was pretty brave of me or maybe stupid because my left hip was pretty much useless but aside from the safety factor this was a pretty awesome experience. We took a boat out to about 40 ft of water. There the Captain launched a lighted raft to attract plankton. Once it began to work its magic we entered the water.

Manta Ray

Just Floating with the Rays

Once in the water we held on to the raft and did a “dead man’s float”. It wasn’t long before graceful manta rays were approaching from the dark. They circled and swooped. One even swam up my body and flipped on its back. It was like being a part of a water ballet. The whole experience lasted about 45 minutes and then it was time to leave. That was when my hip became a liability. I was struggling to climb the ladder to get back on the boat. Our Captain rescued me. He simply reached down and gave me a tug. I popped out of the water and onto the deck in one easy pull. This was an amazing experience. One I highly recommend. My only regret is that I didn’t have a camera or “go-Pro” to capture the moments.

Vacation Planning

Posted on June 6, 2016June 6, 2016 by Dusty Roads

Anyone who has followed this space for long knows that my goal is to take a vacation in all 50 states. Obviously that means two or more new states a year or I’ll be 90 or older before I manage to complete that goal.

I’ve gotten a bit side tracked lately because with each upgrade to my time share they’ve given me a vacation that includes airfare. Bottom line is I keep taking the bonus vacations and have gotten off track from my goal.

So I decided to organize my thoughts and future plans.

July is a brief visit to Maine to try to capture an Iconic Puffin Photo. Its only an extended weekend. (and I’ve vacationed in Maine-Loved it)

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I have a vacation to Maui all scheduled, if not completely planned, coming up in November.

photo_road_to_hana_aerial

I’ve been to Hawaii twice before. Once to the Big Island and once to Oahu so this will be my 3rd visit to Paradise.

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In January my company will hold their annual convention in Las Vegas. I am seriously considering added a few days vacation on and staying at the Polo Towers. After all, my company is paying for my airfare. I’ve been to Las Vegas for vacation twice before but there are still things I’d like to see.

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