Our Last Day in Estes

Our last day in Estes had come. I was trying not to be sad and just soak it up. I feel like our family had bonded so much on this trip and it’s always at this point that you have to start thinking about packing up and travel plans home and what awaits you there. Of course it’s nice to get back to some things, but I knew I’d miss the carefree schedule, no cooking or chores, BJ around all the time, and just the four of us climbing mountains together. We decided to head back to Bear Lake that morning to hike to Alberta Falls. Of course the boys slept in again that morning, but we managed to make it just in time again even after longer construction delays. We loaded up again (After sunscreening the boys. I had forgotten on Monday and Blaine got a little pink in the face. Bad mommy.) and headed off. We had tried to switch packs so we could be with the other boy, but soon realized we preferred the other packs. So Blaine and BJ and Pierce and me it was. Alberta Falls was beautiful. It’s a huge waterfall and we got some good family and scenery pictures. I always wonder if the boys could tell it was something different and understand the beauty of it at their little age. I know the whole trip was so stimulating to them. It’s so fun watching them explore a new environment. They loved our cabin and it always reminds me of the importance of continually exposing them to new things even at the age of one. I realize now how bored they are with the first floor of our house. They had been so whiny and clingy before we left, although they were also getting over a cold. Blaine fell asleep on the way back again, but woke up to eat his quesadilla (kept warm rolled up in our thermos!) and they napped when we got back to the cabin. BJ and I sat at the river their whole nap reading and soaking in the  beautiful view. I even got a great nap in with the river flowing and a cool breeze. Best nap of my life I think!

After the boys woke we decided to squeeze in one more hike around Lily Lake on the other side of Estes. It was a pretty lake and we found a cool trail up the side of one of the mountains surrounding the lake. We hadn’t gotten very far when it started to sprinkle and look pretty threatening. We decided it wasn’t a smart parenting move to keep going at the top of a mountain carrying our children in metal on our backs with a storm moving in. So we regretfully headed back down, but got in some good tripod pics before we left.

Dinner that night turned into a charade. It was our last night so we wanted something a little nicer and Estes-y. Turns out that doesn’t really exist. We went by a tavern that had gotten great food reviews, but one peek inside confirmed it was really more of a tavern than a family friendly restaurant. We wandered around a bit more, but ended up back at the Trailhead Restaurant where we had eaten lunch our first day. We sat down feeling silly we hadn’t just started there. Beautiful views, decent food, Why not? Well, about 10 minutes without even being greeted or gotten drinks confirmed why not. It went downhill from there. They boys were tired of sitting and full of crackers. We finally got our food (gross burgers) and ate what we could and got out of there. Not a good last dinner experience. We realized that Estes just doesn’t have great dining options. We figured out that all the cooks and wait staff are mostly people who are either biding time until ski season or lost in life. We decided to head back to end things on the right note with one more ice cream cone. The boys loved it, but it got really windy and past their bedtime. They weren’t in bed until after 8, but had been so pleasant. They really amazed us yet again with their flexibility and overall good moods. There were plenty of fussy moments and lots of distractions with crackers and every toy we could find, but they did so well overall. We are so proud!