On the Road Again!

We really enjoyed Denver, but today it was time to say farewell and having packed and visited 'The Corner Bakery', we 'checked-out' and headed on foot to Avis, to collect our car. The guys at Avis were helpful to a degree equal only to that which those at Budget (Seattle) had been 'unhelpful' last year! To cut a long story.....within minutes we took possession of the keys to a brand new Chevrolet Impala, complete with 'free' Xirus-XM radio! Pulling-out into Denver's one-way traffic system the GPS kicked-in and guided us safely back to the hotel to collect our bags and then it was 'next-stop Estes Park! On the way we stopped-off at a Safeway store to pick up a picnic (and use my hard-won Safeway loyalty card!). Mission accomplished, we drove into the Park, acquired an annual ($80) pass, and made or way up the Ridge Trail to Alpine Point.

This drive features amongst the top scenic byway routes in the US and the mountain views were spectacular (complete with snow!).

There was plenty of wildlife to be spotted too.....particularly Elk and Marmot!

At Alpine Point we stumbled into a really nice Aussie couple who had been staying at the same hotel as us in Denver and who were en route to Alaska.....we talked for ages and it was late-afternoon when we finally set-out for Cheyenne. Heading north we finally arrived at our hotel around six in the evening. The air-conditioning system was blowing a gale in our room and we had to enlist the Manager's help to tame it. We had dinner at Albany's, a local eatery which came highly recommended and which had been around for seventy years. Albany's failed dismally to deliver against expectations......having sent one steak back, Pat then discovered that her baked potato was probably one selected from the first batch ever to have been baked there! On a lighter note we saw and achieved a lot today and the following track just seems to be appropriate, especially having listened to a lot of music from 60's today!