ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK - DAY TWO

I never dreamed we'd be hiking in snow in mid-May

Did you know?  From Mexico to Alaska, for 2,700 miles the Rocky Mountain chain is the world's largest mountain barrier.  The highest major highway in North America tops out at 12,183 feet above sea level and the Alpine Visitor Center here at the park is 11,796 feet.   The Park holds 72 named peaks above 12,000 feet and today we hiked an elevation over 9,000 feet.  The trail was snow packed with an elevation change of about 700 feet.  The thin air makes it difficult to breathe and I was huffing and puffing in no time but we managed 2.2 miles.  Just as we were a few minutes from the car it started to sleet and we high tailed it to a lower elevation.

What a view

The snow is just starting to melt at this elevation

The sun came out and we had a quick lunch before taking another trail which promised to be much easier but ended up being more than I bargained for.  We hiked 5.4 miles before getting back to the car.  Ryan said it was a nice stroll and I say it was one of our longest hiking days ever.  It was worth every agonizing step because the views were spectacular and the wildlife surprising.

This Clark's Nutcracker swooped down and stole Ryan's granola bar from his hand

We saw two prairie dogs playing together .. so cute

Sighting this moose was the biggest surprise of the day

Don't these Canadian Geese make a lovely couple?

I was hoping to spot a yellow-bellied marmot - he was sunning himself on a rock

I won't be doing a 7.6 mile hike again for a while but just think how strong our lungs will be when we get back down to a normal elevation.

Thanks for stopping in.

P.S.  A Himalayan Salt Brick is used for baking, sauteing, grilling, chilling, curing and serving on.  It is antimicrobial which means it inhibits the growth of bacteria and helps to preserve food.