We took a drive up to Estes Park, and here are the pictures I took. It took us about 1 hr. 15 min. to drive from our Ft. Collins KOA Campground up to Estes Park.
A few excerpts from Wikipedia:
A popular summer resort and the location of the headquarters for Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park lies along the Big Thompson River.
Estes Park had a population of 5,858 at the 2010 census.
Before Europeans came to the Estes Park valley, the Arapaho Indians lived there in the summertime and called the valley "the Circle." When three elderly Arapahoes visited Estes Park in 1914, they pointed out sites they remembered from their younger days.
I
n the 1850s, the Arapaho had spent summers camped around Mary's Lake, where their rock fireplaces, tipi sites, and dance rings were still visible. They also recalled building eagle traps atop Long's Peak to get the war feathers coveted by all tribes. They remembered their routes to and from the valley in detail, naming trails and landmarks. They pointed out the site of their buffalo trap, and described the use of dogs to pack meat out of the valley.
Whites probably came into the Estes Park valley before the 1850s as trappers, but did not stay long. The town is named after Missouri native Joel Estes,[9] who founded the community in 1859.[10] Estes moved his family there in 1863. One of Estes' early visitors was William Byers, a newspaper editor who wrote of his ascent of Long's Peak in 1864, publicizing the area as a pristine wilderness.[11]
In 1873, Englishwoman Isabella Bird, the daughter of an Anglican minister, came to the United States. Landing at San Francisco, she came overland to Colorado, where she borrowed a horse and set out to explore the Rocky Mountains with a guide, the notorious James Nugent, aka 'Rocky Mountain Jim'. She wrote a memoir of their travels, including the breathtaking ascent of Long's Peak, where she was literally hauled up the steep pitches "like a bale of goods."[14]
In 1903, a new road was opened from Loveland through the Big Thompson River canyon to Estes Park, increasing access to the valley. In 1907, three Loveland men established the first auto stage line from Loveland to Estes Park with three five-passenger touring Stanley Steamers. The following year, Mr. Stanley built nine-passenger steam busses and opened a bus line between Lyons and Estes Park.[20]
Today, Estes Park's outskirts include The Stanley Hotel, built in 1909. An example of Edwardian opulence, the building had Stephen Kingas a guest, inspiring him to change the locale for his novel The Shining from an amusement park to the Stanley's fictional stand-in, the Overlook Hotel. Olympus Dam, on the outskirts of the town, is the dam that creates Lake Estes, a lake which is the site for boating and swimming in Estes Park. There are some hotels on the shore, including the Estes Park Resort.
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| It always amazes me what little dirt is needed to grow trees and shrubs |
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| That is rushing stream inbetween the mountain and the roadway in the background |
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| Deep within, there are people who live here. |
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| Here you can see how majestic the mountains are when compared to the parked car. |
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| Coming into Estes Park |
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| The Town lies below |
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| Pictures of the small Town streets filled with tourist shops |
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| This Store I loved. I took some pictures. The Colorado Home Collection; 231 Moraine Ave., Estes Park. www.coloradohomescollection.net |
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| I love this bench! |
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| Looking down an alley leading to a Shop |
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| After a hour or so of shopping, dark clouds move in, and we head back home to Ft. Collins |
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