Estes Park A beautiful tourist town!  We spent three nights there.  The first day we wandered down to the interesting and very busy shops and browsed around.  Just look at this wonderful Christmas shop that is open all year around. Nancy refused to sit down on the hand-shaped chair --can't say I blame her! We had lunch at a beautiful restaurant and our table overlooked a small pond.  Suddenly a deer appeared on the opposite bank, grazing on the lush grass.  Dick wanted to photograph two geese and as he pressed the shutter, another duck came flying into view and thus he achieved this special photograph!   The three Chiefs .. But no Little Indians! Dick rocks!! That evening we were going on a "American Wilderness Tour".  Dick and Linda had been on the tour on previous occasions so they knew exactly what was in store for us!  Our luxury and very comfortable tour bus!  Not! Check out the smirks on their faces -- they knew we were in for a very rough ride up the mountain!   A man of many talents ... gentleman, driver, guide, chef, guitarist and lead singer!  Oh ... And a wanna-be Cowboy too! Top picture :  Had it been a clear day, we would have seen Denver Airport! Bottom pic : See the road we traveled?   Once on top of the mountain, we were freezing!!  We had a delicious BBQ and sang Cowboy songs That evening, the Hoppe Family arrived and after a good night's rest, we are up early on our way into the Rocky Mountain National Park, taking the scenic drive up Trail Ridge Road  The higher the elevation, the starker the landscape became   Here Nancy and I both experienced elevation sickness.  On top of the hill, is the highest elevation of the mountain pass.  Dick, Al & the boys climbed it ... I would have dropped dead had I tried! Cold and freezing!     The next day was spent shopping and relaxing ... And more shopping!  We visited Grand Lake and browsed through the quaint shops. I found this big bear relaxing on his bench in front of a chocolate shop!  That's about how we felt after touring for so long and eating so much! Linda makes a pretty picture peeping through the florist's window-box cart!   On our way to Denver, we stopped at the University town of Boulder. Everybody had a great time browsing and shopping