The Lord's House, to the Donut Haus, to No one's house we go...

Today was another great day in Estes Park. This day started with Mass at Our Lady of the Mountains Catholic Church. This is one of my most favorite churches and something I look forward to with each visit to Estes Park. OLM is a small parish (400 families), that ministers to thousands of visitors each summer. The priest, Fr. Gregory, is from Eastern Europe - Poland we think. At each Mass, Fr. asks the visitors to identify themselves and where they are from. The visitors who have traveled the furthest win a prize. This morning, Susan and I won!

After Mass, we headed to the Donut Haus (picture coming soon). Last year we decided to stop, but they had a problem with the ovens and were closed. This year, we hit the jackpot. They were open and we took a sampling back to the condo. The donuts were really good. One of the fun things about Estes Park is that most of the restaurants are local owned - no chains.

Once we finished the donuts, we hit the road and headed to the Wild Basin trail head. We decided to hike to the Calypso Cascades. This hike is listed as a 3.6 mile round trip with a 700' elevation gain. This was a great hike. The trail parallels the North St. Vain Creek. The scenery is amazing. The sound of the water rushing in the creek was a treat too. We made it to the cascades and decided to hike the additional .9 miles to Ouzel Falls. One of the most interesting sights on the trail was the portions of the forest that were destroyed in a fire in 1978. There are a lot of fallen trees, but many of the dead trees are still standing. Growing in their midst are a whole new generation of trees. It was fascinating seeing an area of the forest regenerating. We enjoyed Ouzel Falls and took some time to catch our breath and enjoy the view. At 2.7 miles one-way, we decided we'd hit our max and headed down hill.

We finished our day at Smokin' Dave's BBQ and Taphouse. This is a new restaurant to Estes Park and it was some of the BEST BBQ I've ever had. They also had an outstanding wheat beer - Easy Street (Odell Brewing Company). Great taste and served like a wheat beer should be served...40 degrees and partly cloudy!

The best part of the day was being on the trail with Susan. When we're on the trail in the mountains, Susan's smile is bigger, and she lights up. I'd hike a hundred miles to see her with that smile. This fall trip, is a special time of renewal for both of us.