Rocky Mountain National Park ………

I don’t know about you, but for me it just seems really difficult to return home from traveling and to make that adjustment to home life.  Having recently returned from a photo outing in Colorado, I have been trying to get back into life here in the “flat lands” of Kansas City.  It seems it takes me awhile to adjust  – how about you?  Lots of daily stuff to take care of, catching up on things you missed or left undone.  Maybe it’s just the fact that I’d rather still be traveling?  Maybe it’s Post Trip Depression? (I’m going to have to do some research on that topic.)   Who knows.  Anyway, I have finally gotten to a point where I can now slow down and reflect a bit on my trip.  Also, I can now begin to look at, and review, the many photos from the outing.

Generally I travel on my own, preferring the independence and freedom to come and go where and as I please.  So my most recent trip was a bit different for me, as I joined a group of fellow photographers on a four-day Colorado Photography Safari.  I was fortunate enough to be with a group of really great folks. Everyone got along well – none of the personality or conflicting agenda issues that can arise on group trips.  I settled in and mostly tried to “go with the flow”, and I must say it was very enjoyable.  My thanks to the great photographers that I traveled with.  I’m looking forward to doing it again.

The scenery in the area is breath-taking.  (Made, at times, more so by the cold wind which I mentioned above!)  The park reminds you of just how big our country is and how lucky we are to be able to enjoy all the beauty that nature has to offer.  Mountains, valleys, elk, deer, birds, rivers, waterfalls.  Yep – it’s good to get out of the city!

We spent some long days shooting – and I do mean long – as in arriving at our first shooting site prior to sun up and staying at others until past sun set.  At the end of the day we headed down into Estes Park, the small community on the eastern edge of Rocky Mountain National Park.  It’s a great little town, full of interesting shops and restaurants.  The local elk population seems to have the right of way here.  You see elk just about everywhere in town – traffic is often stopped as elk wander across the road ( A word of caution – they don’t seem to pay any attention to traffic signals).

At the end of a long shooting day in the cold it was great to warm up, enjoy some good food, and swap stories and experiences.  We were lucky to find two fine eating establishments in Estes Park.  One night we gathered at MaMa Roses’s(website)  and another at Poppy’s Pizza & Grill (website).  I highly recommend both.

 Overall, it was a outstanding trip. Great scenery and sites, great people, and great food.   Now that I have adjusted to my return home it feels like it’s just about time to start planning my next trip!