Fall Sunrise in Estes Park, Colorado
Beautiful colors, elk bugling, cool, crisp mountain air, local coffee and some newly released ColoradoCool beanies....what more can you ask for? One thing nobody asks for, an insane amount of traffic. Certain roads in RMNP were closed Saturday the 22nd of Sept (the day we were up there) because traffic had gotten so bad. So...how do you go about scopin that epic Colorado scenery without dealing with all that? GET UP EARLY. We rolled in Estes Park this morning CoC'd up from the feet up just before daybreak ready to take it all in. The early wake up call was well worth it.
We rolled up towards the entrance of RMNP just as the sun broke onto the landscape. It was just bright enough to see a massive bull struttin' his stuff along with a big herd of females, all looking primed to hit the town. If you have never been to Estes Park during the Elk mating season you totally have to scope it out, it's insane. Bulls are everywhere, either with a herd of females or on their own looking to spit a little game and get their own herd going. They are in town as well as up in the park, just all over the place. Man this first bull we saw...you would have thought he was decked out in ColoradoCool Apparel with all the attention he was getting! He had quite the group of females rolling with him and you could tell he was feelin hisself. Even still, I could tell he was a little jelly of me as we rolled by and he saw my new ColoradoCool Carousel Knit... he's going to be ordering one for sure. Unfortunately, the lighting wasn't quite good enough for great photos yet and we were lookin to make our way up Trail Ridge Road, so we moved on. Can't stay in one place for toooo long in this situation, the crowds are coming!!!
For real though, as bad as this dude looks, imagine him rockin' a ColoradoCool Knit or a Colorado Flag Landmark Bandana around that massive neck....would be epic. If that bull had some ColoradoCool Apparel, it would be game over. We got gear featuring all aspects of Colorado, he was all about it!!
We began the drive up Trail Ridge Road, first making a pitstop at the Hidden Valley parking lot to hit the facilities and to see if any elk were hiding (haha-get it?) in that area. Sure enough, there was a lone bull kickin it up there on his own. While the scene of a single bull grazing isn't quite as intense as a bull mobbin around with a herd of females, its still pretty cool nonetheless. I hopped out, my ColoradoCool Landmark Flag Hoodie (available on the site-limited quantities!!) keepin me just warm enough to turn and run if this loner was grumpy enough to make a charge at me. I was a little worried my Carousel knit would be a little flashy for this guy. Not to be judgy, but he was off brooding on his own and there was a possibility he wouldn't be diggin my vibe.
While I think I was right about the Carousel not being his style, I was all wrong other than that. This bull was mad chill, he just wasn't into the whole macho bugling scene. He was more of a soul mate kind of guy, looking for a bestfriend, which I totally respect. However, I def could see him rockin the newly released San Juan Wrap beanie or maybe even the Highlight beanie. The San Juan Wrap incorporates the San Juan Mountain Range (including the amazing Mt. Sneffels) into a really sweet design, but its not as loud as the Carousel. Being heather gray with black mountains, its a little more subtle for sure. The Highlight Beanie would be a good option for him as well. With the Colorado Flag C single stitched into a blacked out cuff knit, its just a little more subtle but still real tight. Def this dude's style. We hooked him up with a promo code, wished him luck finding the right lucky lady, and we moved on.
The views cruising up Trail Ridge Road were gorgeous. The Aspens' vibrant yellow leaves popping off the landscape beautifully. It reminded me of the Colorado Flag "C" and how epic it looks on all the ColoradoCool products we have incorporated it into, just so sweet. Anyways, the scenery on TrailRidge road is amazing at the worst of times...with these extra colors exploding into the scenery....its straight epic. I think we voiced out loud four or five times how grateful we are to be living in such a cool place with easy access to all this beautiful Colorado scenery.
Trail Ridge Road takes you up above treeline to that Colorado tundra, so obviously there aren't any fall colors to see up there. However, the views are so sweet that we weren't about to turn around once we rose above treeline. We had to keep it ColoradoCool and keep chugging up to Forest Canyon Overlook. Up here your getting up just past 12,000 ft in some areas - Elevation:Totally- and the view of the Rockies seems to go forever. Would HIGHLY suggest getting up here for a sunset during the summer-- insane. One time we spontaneously went up there to watch the sunset after dinner...there was a couple from Michigan up there and a group of people from Africa. This was what they had come across the world to see...we had decided to get up there like an hour and a half earlier....talk about spoiled.
Rockin the "San Juan Wrap" knit up at Forest Canyon Overlook (RMNP)
We had taken in a bunch of amazing sights and were still mobbin out of town around 8:30, able to slip out without getting caught in any traffic at all. Straight surgical sight seeing son. We even had time to stop at Kind Coffee (a nice local spot with a delicious dark roast I thoroughly enjoyed) and say peace out to a few friends before heading down the canyon.
For real, if you've never been to Estes this time of year you really gotta check it out! Trust me, I wouldn't enjoy it with all that traffic either, so just get up early and get after it!! Appreciate you all reading, if you have any questions about the blog, Colorado in general or any ColoradoCool Apparel...don't hesitate to holler at us!
Cheers!!!
