Colorado Trip Days 1 & 2: Loveland/Estes Park

December 15, 2025

Colorado Trip Days 1 & 2: Loveland/Estes Park

Thankfully Denver is a somewhat short plane ride from PDX, meaning about 4 hours. We opted to arrive late morning. We wanted to take advantage of as much time as we could. By the time we arrived (10:45), got off the plane, got our baggage and rental car we were on the road around noon.

As we drove towards our first destination, we spied a Buc-cees. Since we had never been to one but had heard so many things about them, we decided to stop. WOW!!! It's probably a good thing we don't have them where we live. I could've went nuts in there. So. Many. Things.

From there we continued to Loveland, where I had plans to stop at a coffee shop owned by someone we know. Feel Love Coffee is worth the stop. A neat vibe to the inside and great coffee and food offerings.

We contacted our airbnb (Stoney River Lodge) to see if we could check in a little early. It was ready so we stopped there to drop our bags, reorganize things and then head out for the afternoon. It was clean, comfortable, reasonable, and the manager was very kind. It is an older roadside hotel that has been updated in many areas, but it is still older. It was still very comfortable. We were only staying at each location one-two nights so it didn't need to be fancy. After all, we were only going to be sleeping there. This one came with a grill outside the room, it sat along a river/stream, that ran along the main hwy, but it was still fairly quiet. We would stay here again. I can't believe I didn't take pics of any our lodgings.

We stayed 2 nights in this area with our main goal being to visit the Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park. There were plenty of other areas that would be worth seeing as well, but we were packing a lot in.

We did notice a bit of effects from elevation. My husband had a headache for probably the first several days (I did not), and we found at times we were out of breath quicker, though that subsided after several days.

Where we ate/Coffee Shops: We decided to not eat out every meal. We ate out once a day, and then the rest of the time we either snacked on what we had in the car or grabbed something small while out and about. I will often ask for recommendations for coffee shops/restaurants on local FB pages, but I will also go online and check them out for myself.

Feel Love Coffee in Loveland. Great coffee! We didn't try any of the food items but boy did it all look good.

Kind Coffee in Estes Park. There are many coffee shops in Estes Park, but this was a really good one. Cozy and a great space to sit outside along the river.

Lonigans Irish Restaurant in Estes Park. Hubby had a rueben sandwich and I don't remember what I had. I know I had a great mocktail, but don't remember what that was either...haha! It was a good restaurant.

We also stopped at the Safeway in Estes Park and purchased items that we could keep in the car to snack on. We didn't want to waste time leaving to find food. We just wanted to use the most of our time.

What we did:

Walked through the shops in Estes Park: I am a lover of shops of all kinds. I don't care how many times I've been in the same type of shops. Estes Park has some neat shops worthy of visiting. Next to finding great coffee shops, I love finding bookstores to visit, new or used. I visited MacDonalds bookstore in Estes Park. There were a lot of local books and authors highlighted. On this trip, my goal at each coffee shop and bookstore were to purchase a sticker, and/or a "stamp" from each location. I have a bookstore passport book to review bookstores and a spot for a store stamp. I also purchased this coffee shop journal, as well as this one, to review coffee shops and hopefully put the stickers from each one in.

We had hoped we'd see the infamous elk walking through Estes park, or lounging out in public, but no such luck.

Visiting the Rocky Mountain National Park: The park is approximately 415 square miles which is about 265,800 acres. There are over 350 trails and many peaks that are over 12,000 ft high. This park is stunning and there is so much to see. We dedicated most of our time exploring here. We got out and hit a few trails, though we didn't venture far. We stayed til after dark a few nights to enjoy the stars and hear the elk. What an experience. If you are traveling during a peak season, be sure to do your research as far as time entries go. You can also camp in the park and it is open 24/7.

Trail Ridge road: Trail Ridge Road is the highest continuous paved road in North America reaching 12,000+ feet in elevation. It spans 48 miles and crosses the Continental Divide. Thankfully the road was open when we went. Just two days prior it had been closed and there was still some snow in certain areas. There are several spots to pull off and take photos and the views are breathtaking.

Bear Lake Road: This is another popular corridor within the RMNP with access to many hiking trails. Bear Lake Road is a 9.2-mile long paved road. It's elevation climbs from about 8,200 feet above sea level to about 9,475 feet. This also had a timed entry. We spent time observing a herd of elk before heading to explore a nearby trail and then driving the remainder of the corridor, stopping at Sprague lake. Sprague lake has multiple picnic tables, and a great trail that loops around the lake. It is an easy .8 mile loop and is easily accessible.

Highlights in this area:

Landscape and foliage: The colors were perfect. So many gorgeous yellows and oranges, with some reds thrown in. The mountain peaks are stunning.

Wildlife, specifically elk: We didn't realize it was rut season for the elk, we were just told that fall was a great time for wildlife. We were NOT disappointed. Being in the national park and experiencing this time was incredible. It was busy but we experienced amazing moments. The areas we spotted the elk the most were in the Bear lake corridor and a few spots along Trail ridge road. We also spotted magpies (which I didn't realize were in this area). Several deer and of course chipmunk and squirrels were spotted as well. I would have loved to see a marmot, but they eluded me.

Poised and waiting....there were so many photographers out with huge lenses...I almost regretted not renting one. Next time. The sight of so many elk and the sound of their bugling was amazing! A little eerie at night, but still pretty cool.