30 June - 2 July
... is a pretty town, a short drive from the Rocky Mountain National Park. It has a lake, views of the mountains, lots of shops (including a really nice bookshop) and a lovely river walk which goes all the way through town. We drove (well Tony drove and I navigated) our monster car (a Jeep SUV) from Denver and we got here early afternoon to the Econolodge. There must be about 40 motels in Estes Park, and we chose the Econolodge. It sounded good on the website, especially since it had views of the lake. It was clean enough, but had this odd smell... We could see the lake if we stood on tiptoe and peeked out of a small slot window in the back wall. There was nothing econo about it, either - I think they charged us a lot more than the online quote. We were so whacked from the journey that we didn't have the energy to do anything about it, like ask for our money back and look for somewhere else.
We were here for three nights, and we did some walking in the park. I'm going to put the photos on another entry because I can't work out how to put a photo anywhere other than at the beginning of a post and this wifi connection is so slow....
Beautiful and wondrous as the park is, with waterfalls and lakes and so on, the main impression of the three days we spent here is extreme discomfort. Jetlag plus high altitude plus encroaching age-related decrepitude equals misery. There's the disrupted sleep, for a start - waking up at 4 am etc. Everything I've read about mountain sickness says that any existing ailments are likely to be exacerbated. OK. What this means in real life is that the vaguely troublesome (at sea level) sinus condition becomes a from of torture, and just about the only think you can think about. How can your nose be producing gallons of snot per hour and simultaneously be completely clogged up so it's impossible to breathe with your mouth shut. Where does it all come from? And how can it keep on coming, for days and days and days. It didn't stop till we got to Utah...
A short walk in the evening to Alberta Falls (about a mile - but up a very steep hill) takes an hour and a half, stopping every few yards, gasping for breath. Knees creaking. Lungs heaving. Head thumping. And it wasn't dehydration because it would not have been possible to drink any more water than I did. I feel so old and decrepit.
Tony keeps saying, it's the altitude, but that doesn't help much. Next day we walk to Emerald Lake via Nymph Lake and Dream Lake. Tony is feeling quite chipper, and I feel like my bones are made of lead. It's about two and a half miles, 900 feet elevation gain - it took TWO HOURS, and we only did little stops at the lakes (they were really crowded - lots of people and not a lot of space). I'm in despair. I feel ancient. Is this how it's going to be from now on? Get me the power scooter and the oxygen tank NOW. Instal the Stanalift before I get home. The only place I'll ever be able to walk again is Holland.
The scenery is beautiful: soaring snow-capped mountains, clear blue lakes, pine trees, shrubs and flowers that all smell wonderful. Some amazing birds - an especially startling bright blue one called Stellar's Jay. (We know this because Tony happens to be standing next to birdwatching lady expert, and she told him).
It took us an hour to get back down. I took some paracetamol which at least did for the headache for a few hours, but didn't improve the sinus situation. Shiatsu point pressing on the head helped temporarily (I put this bit in for Helen....).
The other thing is that it is very expensive here, and not just because the pound is so week. Also there is lots of mental arithmetic to do to work out how much stuff costs. You take the price - say $27.99, and you add tax (which can be anything from 9% to 12% depending where you are) and then you have to multiply by 7 to get the cost in £s.
Day three and I'm feeling better but it's Tony's turn to feel like crap. I learn to drive the SUV by going round and round the car park at the motel and driving into town, doing left and right hand turns and manoeuvres in traffic and reversing into parking spaces. At least they give you lots of room to park.
I'm actually writing this on Saturday 17th July, in Moab. This is taking ages. I'm not sure I'm going to ever catch up with myself. I will post this and then put some photos on, hopefully....
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