An early start - at least in my world

I am not a morning person. On Koenig Standard Time, the hours for sleeping run from approximately 2:00 or 3:00 AM to 11:00 AM. Clearly this poses a challenge with the way days are currently structured. I do try to follow that schedule on weekends and vacations.

Today was an exception. I did stay up until 1:00 AM or so, but I also managed to awaken early. This was my day to spend in Rocky Mountain National Park. I decided to get an early start. I succeed. Even with spending time for breakfast and having to return to the hotel to pick up my National Parks Passport, I made it into the park by 8:30 AM (which probably isn't all that impressive for others).

For a couple of hours, the park was reasonable empty. I drove the Trail Ridge Road to the Alpine Visitor Center, stopping often for pictures and to do a bit of hiking. By the time I made my way back - around 10:30 or 11:00 AM - traffic had picked up considerably. But still it was an enjoyable day - short of wildlife - but an amazing diversity of eco-systems - incredible views. Not sure my photos do the park justice - not sure they show up here - but I took a bunch.

Walked the streets of Estes Park again in the late afternoon. Picked up Leavings by Wendell Berry. Very impressive. I had read some of the poems before, but there are some awesome ones.

Found Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets on TV.  They were young. Clips from Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part II are being shown. It looks good. Will have to figure out how to see it before the Trail takes me back to Manhattan. Patience not being one of my strong suits.

Tomorrow back to Greeley for the memorial service for Steve Brown.

See you along the Trail.