On Sunday, Sept. 15th we drove from Rifle, Co to Walden, CO, over three and a half hours. Some on a scary secondary mountain road with very few guardrails and bumpy in many places. I didn't like the road between State Bridge, CO and Kremmling, CO, and neither did Dad who was driving.
Encircled by mountain ranges, the North Park area of Colorado is a secluded and pristine region that boasts that it is the Moose Viewing Capital of Colorado. These beasts are often spotted browsing among the willows and brush along the many rivers, creeks, and wetlands in the area.
Along with moose, antelope, deer, elk, bighorn sheep and black bear abound. Great flocks of migratory birds pass through annually and many types of fish thrive in the rivers and streams.
On Monday, Sept. 16th we drove 30 minutes to the Moose Visitors Center in State Forest State Park near Gould, CO. There Mom took a picture of Dad standing next to a full-sized stuffed Moose so you could gauge how big they are.
We left the visitors center and drove a short distance to the Ranger Lakes trailhead which is the trail the rangers recommended to us. We saw several small lakes and met some very nice people on our hike but had no luck in viewing any moose.
We finally gave up and were headed back to Walden, when out of the forest by the side of the road popped a great big bull moose right in front of us. He hopped a fence like it wasn't even there, stopped in the middle of the road, no more than fifty feet away, and faced us for a portrait.
We are staying a few days in a nice little house outside of Walden, CO, very near the Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge, at an elevation of over 8,000 feet.
On Monday, Sept. 16th we drove 30 minutes to the Moose Visitors Center in State Forest State Park near Gould, CO. There Mom took a picture of Dad standing next to a full-sized stuffed Moose so you could gauge how big they are.
We left the visitors center and drove a short distance to the Ranger Lakes trailhead which is the trail the rangers recommended to us. We saw several small lakes and met some very nice people on our hike but had no luck in viewing any moose.
We finally gave up and were headed back to Walden, when out of the forest by the side of the road popped a great big bull moose right in front of us. He hopped a fence like it wasn't even there, stopped in the middle of the road, no more than fifty feet away, and faced us for a portrait.
A few miles down the road we encountered a Golden Eagle sitting on a telephone pole closely watching a roadkill badger for an opening to have a snack.
The wildlife refuge is a mosaic of habitats from wet meadows to upland sagebrush and features a wide variety of wildlife. A rich diversity of wildlife includes moose, beaver, muskrat, river otter, ducks, geese, songbirds, elk, mule deer, pronghorn antelope, prairie dogs, ground squirrels, hawks, and eagles.
There we found some friendly white-tailed prairie dogs cavorting around the edge of the road and posing for pictures. These creatures are smaller than their cousins the black-tailed prairie dogs we have seen before.
On Tuesday, Sept. 17, we awoke to warnings of imminent rain. So we took a ride out into the high desert and took a hike before the rain came, then went home to eat lunch and do some planning for the next part of our Great Adventure.
Tomorrow we are moving closer to Rocky Mountain National Park to start exploring that grand location😊.
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