Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain National Park is located just outside Estes Park Colorado, which is more or less on our route from the Mount Rushmore area to the Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. It was a busy time of year there and we had no reservations but purely by luck scored a cancellation on one of the best camp sites in Moraine Campground, which is at 8,500 feet elevation.

The photo above is of the view from our site - just beautiful. A herd of elk frequents a meadow just below the site so we can watch them and listen to their calls from our camp chairs. I am hearing the bull's bugle as I type this.

The Aspen are getting their Fall color now, which adds brilliant splashes of yellow to the landscape.

The Elk herds in the park are much larger and more active than the ones we saw in Yellowstone. In one area near the campground there are three large herds, each with a dominant bull with from 20 to 40 cows and young ones, and several bachelor bulls trying to capture a share. That keeps the dominant bulls busy defending their territory. Here are a few photos of them. The bull in this group is a "6 by 6", meaning he has six points on each side. He was one of the largest in the area.

The dominant bulls are constantly being challanged by others for the rights to mate with the females. They meet all challanges with charges and bugle calls, which are awsome to hear. Most such events end with with the other bull retreating but some end in fights and occasionally the serious injury or death of one or the other.

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