John and I had a nice day in the park. It’s incredible.

Unfortunately I came down with a cold. One of those sneezy, stuffy ones that really has knocked me for a loop. I have been toughing it out, but it did put a damper on the day for me.

We took the more southerly roads through the park today. On the advice of park hostess Linda, we went to Sprague Lake and hiked around it. We ran into a little snow, but not enough to justify boots (although I had bought some new warm ones in Estes Park). This area had once been a lodge owned by a gentleman named Sprague. It’s wonderful that the National Park Service is restoring the whole area to it’s untouched state.

After our hike, we enjoyed a nice picnic lunch.

The whole area is touristy, but you feel that people who would choose to visit the area love nature.

Here’s a view of Estes Park at the base of the mountains.

In the morning, we’ll head out. We’ll be driving over 500 miles tomorrow, overnighting in Lincoln, Nebraska. Tuesday we’ll go as far as Davenport, Iowa. Wednesday, we should be home.

This is an area we highly recommend. The beauty of it humbles you.