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Elk in Estes Park, Colorado 2019, with Colorado Traveling Ducks

It would not be fall for us without a day trip to Estes Park, Colorado.

Estes Park, Colorado

Estes Park is the eastern entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park.   There are a lot of elk in the park, and all over this area of Colorado.   In the fall, mating season brings the elk out of the mountains, and many spend time in the parks and golf courses of Estes Park.   We love to see them.   As we enter Estes Park we stop for a photo by the city sign.   The mountain views from this lookout are beautiful.

Mountain view from lookout

We continue into town, park, and walk along the river to the shops.

Creek

Having spent a lot of time in this small park, we can say it is a great place.   Of course, we love the water wheel.

Water wheel

And the shops beside it.   Last year we purchased singing bowls from the Himalayan store.   That is the last store by the water wheel.  They still sing and we still smile when we listen.   Walking along Elkhorn Boulevard, we purchased a couple pair of very soft slippers.   Then our normal stops at Laura’s Fudge Shop.   The sign says they have been spoiling dinner since 1970.   Moms have been coming here since the early 1970’s.   So, it really is delicious.   Fudge, toffee, candy, caramel apples, popcorn, ice cream and more.   Yum.   Then to The Taffy Shop.   Moms have been coming here just as long.    But, let’s find the real stars of today’s trip.   Often we see many elk on the lawn of The Stanley Hotel.

Elk herd at the Stanley

The Stanley Hotel was the inspiration for Stephen King’s book, The Shining.   Driving a couple miles toward the entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park, we see more young animals.

We are on the wrong side of these guys

They seem to be looking the wrong direction.   In town, often a herd is in the park near Lake Estes.

Elk in the park

Aren’t they magnificent?   Today we found this bull elk on the golf course.

Bull elk on golf course

And a few more elk lounging on the golf course.

Elk lounging on golf course

These elk are wild and very large, but they are rather accustomed to humans.   However, we do not get too close.   They are wild animals, it is mating season, and they can be startled.   So humans and ducks watch and admire the elk, but do give them a lot of space.   Today we are going home through Big Thompson Canyon.   This is a beautiful canyon with many private cabins, many rental cabins, bed and breakfast, lodge, shops and year round residents.   Parts of the canyon are rather wide to accommodate small settlements, and parts are rather narrow with steep mountain sides.   Often mountain goats are on the side of the mountains.   But today we stop for cherry treats.

Colorado Cherry Company

Colorado Cherry Company is a favorite.   We ducks relax on the chairs and pose for a photo.

Great store.  The Cherry Tree

Inside mom tries a couple bites of pie.   She settles on a cherry rhubarb slice of pie.  It is delicious.   Her favorite jam is dark cherry jam, so that comes home, too.

Pie for dinner dessert tonight?

I bet we have this slice of pie for dinner dessert tonight.   I hope so.   We went for the elk, but did come home with extra things also.   We, Zeb and Soapy Smith Duck, love these day trips.   We hope you enjoy day trips in your area.

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Zeb the Duck Travels the Cache la Poudre Scenic Byway

Autumn in Colorado is beautiful.   Today let’s drive one of Colorado’s scenic byways.   From Denver we drive north to Fort Collins then the scenic byway through Poudre Canyon and into Waldon, Colorado.   The Cache la Poudre River flows through Poudre Canyon.

Poudre la Cache River

This is a beautiful canyon.   We drove through this tunnel.

Tunnel through mountain

Tunnels are fun to drive through in our mountains.   We love the Cache la Poudre River.

Cache la Poudre River

Mom, I am almost cut out of this photo.   Watching and listening to water is very soothing for ducks and humans.

Cache la Poudre River

The only purpose for this blog post today is to show you how beautiful Colorado is this fall.   Our drive started at a rather low elevation in Fort Collins, just under 5,000 feet (1,524 m).   So leaves had not yet started to change colors.   But we go into the mountains and over Cameron Pass at 10,276 feet (3,132 m).   The leaves change colors at higher elevations first.

Gold aspen in Poudre Canyon

We love our golden aspen.   And we love the colors along the Cache la Poudre River.

Fall colors by river

And yet another photo of colors on the mountains.

Autumn in Colorado

Finally I, Zeb the Duck, am back in the photo.

Zeb with aspen leaves and mountain

These beautiful leaves are duck yellow.   The green and red add variety and I love the mountain shape here also.   I told mom we had enough photos of aspen turning gold, but around every curve in the road, we had to stop to take another photo.

Autumn in Poudre Canyon

So much beauty here.   Coming out of the mountains, we enter North Park.

North Park

A valley between two mountain ranges.   Remember last time I told you we have North Park, Middle Park, and the famous South Park.   Here is the town of Walden, Colorado.

Walden, Colorado. Moose Viewing Capital of Colorado

Walden is the Moose Viewing Capital of Colorado.    Northern Colorado is not overly populated and the roads are not crowded.   We thought we may see moose, but this is the only moose sighting today.

Our only moose sighting today

As we left town, about an hour later we saw antelope and later a deer.   Moose must come out closer to sunset.   Maybe next time we will see moose.   But it was a beautiful drive.   We hope you are enjoying fall colors in your area.

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Zeb the Duck Finds Gold on the Mountains

It is autumn in Colorado.   Let’s go looking for gold on the Rocky Mountains.

Kenosha Pass

I found some.   The aspen trees that cover our mountains on Kenosha Pass.

Kenosha Pass

While I cannot spend this gold, the beauty makes me smile and appreciate Colorado.   Just over the Continental Divide, we stop, turn around, and capture one more photo.

Crossing the Continental Divide and looking back

We love our golden aspen trees.   Over the pass is South Park.

South Park

Yes, this is really called South Park.   And for you fans of The Simpsons TV show, the writers were referring to this area.   In Colorado, between two mountain ranges running north and south, we have North Park, Middle Park and South Park.    The aspens here, at lower elevation, are also turning.

Colors of South Park

Isn’t this a beautiful time of year?   Continuing through South Park, we arrive in the town of Fairplay.

Street in Fairplay, Colorado

This town is almost two miles high.   Denver is one mile high.   This historic courthouse was placed on the Historic Register in 1974.  At that time, this was Colorado’s oldest working courthouse.

Historic courthouse in Fairplay, Colorado.  Zeb the Duck on the gazebo railing.

A new, larger courthouse is now used in Fairplay.   This gazebo is a great place for a picnic or a snack.   This is Colorado, so we need a moose.

It’s Fairplay. Here is a moose

I didn’t find the walking, breathing moose here, but this statue is nice.

View from back of a Fairplay, CO bank

Beautiful autumn leaves viewed from behind a Fairplay bank.    Returning home, we took the same road.   At Kenosha Pass we admired this lake.

Tranquil lake at Kenosha Pass

And the two moose that were having a drink.   Unfortunately a tourist ran toward the moose from a trail, to get a better photo, but the moose apparently felt threatened and ran.

Frightened moose

This is a not too good photo of a retreating moose.   We are following the North Fork of the South Platte River.

North Fork the South Platte River

We love rivers and the sound of moving water.   In Bailey, Colorado, we visited the Coney Island Boardwalk.

Coney Island Boardwalk hot dog stand in Bailey, Colorado

This hot dog appears to be adobe, serves hot dogs, and has the perfect location.   There is a seating area near the “hot dog”, and we loved the mountain scenery behind this seating area.

Behind Coney Island Boadwalk seating

We like this area, but did not eat there today.   It was a sunny, warm day so we sat at a picnic table next to the river.

Beautiful place to eat

This hot dog has beer mustard.   Not really sure what that is, but the mustard has spots in it.  Of course, mom added ketchup.   We enjoyed our lunch and the break sitting by the river.   We hope you are enjoying the changing colors near you.

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Meeker Classic Sheepdog Championship with Colorado Traveling Ducks

Meeker, Colorado in located in the northwest part of our state of Colorado.

Meeker, Colorado

Sheep are raised in this area, along with other livestock and crops.   Each September, Meeker hosts sheepdog championship trials.   Most of the sheep dogs are border collies and these dogs are smart and work very hard to herd the sheep to the proper fields and areas.   Let’s see how this works.

Meeker Classic Sheepdog Championship Trials

A small amount of bleachers are available, but spectators are encouraged to bring folding chairs.   We did.   From the seating area, 5 sheep are trucked 550 yards (503 meters) down the field.

Starting for sheep and dogs.

The sheep are here.   Two men on horses are also there.    On command from the owner, and contestant, the dog runs down the field to begin bringing the five sheep back to the owner.   In the above photo, the black spot behind and to the right of the sheep, is the border collie, or sheep dog.  The dog herds the five sheep down the field, toward the owner and spectators, through the first blue gates.

Through the first gate.

Not done yet, the sheep are herded further toward the humans.

Here come the sheep

Now the sheep are being taken near the dog’s owner, and closer to us.

Sheep getting closer to us

I really like seeing these sheep.   The sheep go around the human dog owner, and then through two more gates.

Herd sheep to pen

Now, the sheep are herded to a pen, and they are finished.   Another dog, an event staff dog, takes over and takes the sheep out of the field.   The sheep are finished for the week.   This competition last almost a week.   The preliminary runs are Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.   At least 40 dogs compete each of those days.   On Saturday the best performing dogs compete in the semi finals.   Sunday is the top race with 12 dogs competing for the championship.   During the preliminary runs, 875 sheep are used.   Another 500 sheep will be used for Saturday and Sunday’s competition.   After each dog run, more sheep are trucked to the beginning point.   After watching several dogs and sheep, we wandered among the venders.   We met this nice lady with two retired sheep dogs.

Retired sheep dogs

We love the dogs. The nice lady was walking these retired dogs and her husband was competing with their working dogs.

Aren’t these dogs wonderful?

Before we ducks joined our human family, mom had a black and white border collie that looked just like this one.  We liked these sheep.

Retired sheep. Cover to protect them from our high altitude intense sun

They were resting now, the cover over their pen protects them from the intense high altitude sun.   But, back to the venders.

We love the venders

So many choices.   Today mom just wanted lemonade.

Lemonade. We saw it being made.

We watched the lady cut and squeeze the lemons.   Then she added strawberry puree.   We even found small pieces of strawberries in our lemonade.

Funnel cake Yum!

Another favorite, a funnel cake.   When we left for the day, the parking lot had enough, but not too many cars.

Nice crowd, but not too crowded.

We were there on Wednesday.   We really didn’t want to be there for the championships and all the larger crowds.   We were trying to learn about the sheepdog event.   The owner uses a whistle to give the dog commands.   We liked that the sheep were only herded one time during this competition.

Aren’t these sheep fun to watch?

This was interesting, and maybe next time we will go for the championships.

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Rifle Falls Fish Hatchery with Zeb the Duck

Rifle Falls were wonderful, but mom said that is something else we might like to see.   Leaving the falls, I loved this mountain.

Love the red layer of rock

Isn’t the red layer of rock interesting?  Driving along the road, we saw this mailbox.

Love his mailbox sign

I think the black silhouette with the bright orange is so festive.   Here we are.

Rifle Falls Fish Hatchery

This is Rifle Falls Fish Hatchery.   There is a picnic area very close to the parking lot.   And I hear water.

Riparian Zone

This is a Riparian Zone.   Vegetation along rivers is always pretty and I, Zeb the Duck, naturally love rivers.   Come on humans.

Let’s cross this bridge

Let’s cross this bridge.   This stream has beautiful cascades.

Continuing up path

I love it.

Million Dollar Biological Digestive System

This is a Million Dollar Biological Digestive System.   I told mom to just put a photo of the sign here rather than write about it.   Isn’t this amazing?

This vegetation in our semi arid climate?

The plants are so lush and green.   This looks more like a tropical area than a semi arid climate, like Colorado.   Further up the path is wonderful.

Further up the path

Hearing the tumbling water is so calming.   There are so many cascades here, falling over rocks, tree branches and the river bed.

So many cascades

But this a fish hatchery, but we see no fish.   Far up the trail, past a private house, is a large building.   Inside the building there are areas for different size fish.   Eventually when large enough, the fish are released into ponds and streams.   Unfortunately, the building for the fish hatchery was not open for visitors when we were there.   But seeing this river and vegetation was definitely worth coming here.

Bright green moss

See how deep green the moss is on the rocks.   While Colorado is beautiful, we do not have many locations that seem this tropical.   Well, humans think it is time to leave.

So hard to leave

It is really difficult for a duck to leave all this water.  We love Rifle, Colorado.   The waterfalls first and now this river with many cascades.   This must be duck heaven.    But we have another place to visit, so let’s drive on.

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Zeb the Duck Visits Rifle Falls State Park

I love waterfalls.   Mom said we will love Rifle Falls State Park.

Let’s go to Rifle Falls

Here we are.   Turning in, paying fee, parking, and then a short hike to Rifle Falls.

Rifle Falls

I love these.   There are three falls here.   Isn’t that great.   And mom, I’m getting wet here.   But the water spray feels good on a warm, sunny day.   To our left there is a path with flagstone steps.   Up we go.   Now we are near the top of the falls.

Close to the top of the waterfall

Different view looking from here.   There is a lot of calcium in the rocks here, so the the rock wall is lighter color and much softer than granite.   The water has caused cracks and crevices in the rock wall and also formed some caves.

Caves and red tint to rock wall

We also like the red color to the right.   Minerals make the rocks so pretty.   I’m learning that I like caves.

Caves

And here I am, inside a bigger cave.

I’m in a cave

I wonder what animals live here when I, Zeb the Duck, am not here.   The path is going down now, toward the camping areas.

Nice path

You can see this is a nice, easy trail.   We turn around and head back to the falls.   But, look at this.

Caterpillar

On a tree we admire this caterpillar.

Next to the caterpillar, on another tree, we like this animal home or nest.

Caterpillar with trees. Nests?

Not sure what lives here, but it is an unusual form.   Always so much to see and learn.    Back near the top of the falls, I like this view.

Falls. Zeb getting wet again

I am on the grass, but the photo is dark where I am.   Can you find me.   Again I am enjoying the wet spray from the falls.   Back down to the base of the falls, we take a path to the right this time.   Love the water.   But caves are great also.

Larger cave

I’m relaxing in this larger cave.   A great shelter if the weather gets bad.

Looking out

Inside the cave, looking out, I love all the green vegetation.   We were just here a couple days ago, so often in the fall and end of summer things look brown and dry.   But this is beautiful.   Back to the bottom of the falls.

Beautiful Rifle Falls

One last photo, from a different point.   Don’t you just love waterfalls?   Closer to the camping area and parking lot, we liked the picnic area.

Picnic area

Everything you could want for a picnic.   A table with a cover, for rain. snow, or intense mountain sun.   A charcoal grill if you want to cook.   And, my favorite, the river is behind the grill.   Dining music is provided by the river.  Did anybody bring food??   I bet you would love Rifle Falls also.

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Zeb the Duck Meets Leonardo da Vinci

We all know Leonardo da Vinci as the painter of Mona Lisa and The Last Supper, but there is so much more.    We went to the Denver Museum of Nature and Science to see the temporary exhibit about Leonardo da Vinci.

Leonardo da Vinci at Denver Museum of Nature and Science

If this exhibit comes near you, you really should see it.   Many of Leonardo da Vinci’s notes have been found and preserved.

Leonardo’s hand written notes

This bicycle was built from notes found in his papers.   However, he did not draw the sketch.

Bicycle

We now know that the graphite used in the sketch was not discovered until after his death in 1519.   Perhaps this was drawn from memory by one of his students?  Here is an early odometer.

Odometer

This measures the distance traveled.   The wheel rotates, moves a vertical gear, causing the horizontal wheel to move one notch and releases a pebble into the box.   The distance is calculated by multiplying the number of pebbles by the circumference of the wheel.  Cars and self driving cars were also in Leonardo’s mind.

About car

This may well be the first self driving car.

car

Many things were made of tin.   So, he invented the Rolling Mill.

Rolling Mill

Used to produce sheets of tin, the concept is still used today without major variations.   Leonardo sought to master the anatomy of the human body.

Drawings of human anatomy

He was the first to discover atherosclerosis, hardening of the arteries.   Three and a half centuries later his drawings set the style and form for anatomical drawings in the textbook, Gray’s Anatomy.   While Leonardo loved observing and inventing, he did need money to survive.   So, he designed weapons of war for the wealthy in Milan and Florence.   This is his steam cannon.

Steam Cannon

Steam power was used to project missiles from a cannon.   No gunpowder was required, and the cannon was easily moved over battlefields.   The assault ladder.

Assault ladder

This ladder was portable and could be lengthened or shortened.   The incline was adjustable for different angles.   There is a crank below the wheel.   Perhaps this was the forerunner of the modern machine gun.

Forerunner of modern machine gun

Three sets of ten shells could be used at one time, for a total of thirty shots.   While on the move, a bridge may be needed.

Bridge

This bridge could quickly be erected from small tree trunks found on the edge of rivers.   Nothing else was needed and the bridge constructed ton made it very strong.   And beyond war, the birds were a subject of interest to Leonardo.

Flying machine

This was his idea for a flying machine.   The wings were movable, similar to wings of a bird.   A few of da Vinci’s paintings (reproductions) were on display.

Lady with an Ermine

Lady with an Ermine was featured, the original in Krakow, Poland.

La Madonna Renois

Also La Madonna Benois, the original at the Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.    A film was showing about the Last Supper and the restoration process.

Last Supper

As you can see, the painting was over an archway.   This painting was completed in 1498.   Now restored, the painting has survived over 5 centuries.  The painting is in Milan, Italy.   An entire room was dedicated to Mona Lisa.

Mona Lisa

We learned much about the restoration, the materials used for paint and colors, but let’s talk about eyelashes and eyebrows.   We have always been told Mona Lisa had none.   Nobody knew why.   But, perhaps she did originally have them.   During restoration evidence was found to show she may have had eyelashes and eyebrows.   So, where did they go?

Eyebrows and eyelashes??

These are the three main theories.   We will leave it to you to decide what you think.   The original Mona Lisa is at the Louvre in Paris, France.   As if that wasn’t enough for Leonardo to accomplish, let’s not forget costume designing.

A designer

These costumes would look great in theaters today.

Designed for the theater

Leonardo da Vinci was born in 1452 and died in 1519.   While the world now recognizes his genius, he apparently did not feel very accomplished.   These words are said to be Leonardo da Vinci’s own words.   “I have offended God and mankind because my work didn’t reach the quality it should have.”  We really enjoyed this exhibit and hope when it comes to your town, you will visit.

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Last Day of Road Trip for Colorado Traveling Ducks

We should be home today, but the weather in Denver is definitely not as nice as it is here in northern Montana.   So, we get another day of road trip vacation.   We love it!   Our National Parks do not allow dogs to go on trails, so we are not in the park today.   The dogs may bark or try to chase the wildlife.  A dog trying to chase a bear, moose or elk may not end well.   We are following the river along the southern boundary.

Driving along southern boundary of Glacier National Park in Montana

Now humans, ducks and Chloe, the Colorado Traveling Dog, can all enjoy walking by the river.   We saw the turn off for a boat ramp, and had to get to the river.

Boat ramp. Middle Fork of the Flathead River

This is the Middle Fork of the Flathead River.   Back closer to the road we looked through the trees and wanted to get to this part of the river.

We want to walk on those rocks

But the river bank was rather steep.   This thick vegetation was green and beautiful.

Dense forest

Not a group to give up, we did get down the embankment to the river.   Chloe followed the humans and now is frolicking and exploring.

Chloe by the river

Soapy’s mom walked along the river looking at the different types of rocks.

Soapy’s mom looking at rocks

We spent most of the day wandering along rivers.   Another stop at Dairy Queen, then off to Bozeman, Montana for the night.   Our moms said we could drive from Bozeman to Denver the next day, but it would be a long drive.   Not much stopping.   When we left the motel in the morning, the weather had certainly changed.

Stormy sky leaving Bozeman, Montana

Leaving Bozeman, we really didn’t want to stop much and walk along trails.   Those storm clouds look serious.   From Montana, we drove into and through Wyoming.

Stormy through Montana and into Wyoming

The sky stills looks stormy.   We had some sun, some clouds, and of course, some rain.   So, humans….Why are we heading home today?    But it is OK.   The sun will shine soon in Denver and we are only an hour away from the Continental Divide and our 14,000 foot mountains.    We loved our trip, but we love Colorado also.

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Hello Montana. Colorado Traveling Ducks Return to the United States

I, Zeb the Duck, and my fellow Colorado Traveling Ducks, Soapy Smith Duck, and Eider Duck, loved our road trip.   We loved visiting Alaska.  We appreciated the beauty and friendly people in Canada.   But it is always good to get back home.   While not near Colorado yet, we entered the United States and are now in the state of Montana.

Entering Montana, USA

Entering Montana just east of Glacier National Park, we are in the Blackfeet Nation.

Entering Blackfeet Nation

Such a beautiful area.   This was late May so the snow covered mountains greeted us.   We appreciated these metal sculptures.

Metal sculptures

This, Chief Mountain, is 9080 feet ( 2768 meters) above sea level.

Chief Mountain

While we were admiring Chief Mountain, a Montana State Patrol car pulled over to talk to us.   Yes, mom was a little nervous.  Why do humans get nervous when police cars stop to talk to them?   He was so nice.  He just wanted to tell us to take the first right turn ahead and we would see great scenery and better views of Chief Mountain.   We took the advice of the officer.   He was right.   This is Chief Mountain.

Chief Mountain

Continuing, we soon entered Glacier National Park.

Glacier National Park

Driving on the road, the mountains were beautiful with a sunbeam shining through the clouds and trees and steam from the road rising to meet us.

Beautiful

Isn’t the world a beautiful place?   Driving and admiring the mountains, we entered Waterton Glacier International Peace Park.   Glacier National Park is in the USA and Waterton National Park is in Canada.

Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park

Our countries have good relations so the two parks are the International Peace Park.   These snowy mountains fascinate us.

Snowy mountain

This is late May and the weather is getting warmer.   As the mountain snow melts, we begin to see small streams and small rapids.

Snow is melting

Now we have arrived at another customs station.

US Canada Customs station

We do not want to return to Canada tonight, so we turn around and admire more scenery.

Chief Mountain with lake

Chief Mountain is a great backdrop for this lake.   But we also encountered these horses grazing.

Horses

This gray horse is grazing close to the road.

Horse

He seems more interested in the grass than he is in us.   Hey humans, it is getting late and we have not seen any motels that are open.   Many will open this weekend.   Monday is Memorial Day, the official beginning of summer traveling season.   Driving further we can’t resist one more photo of the Rocky Mountains.

Evening mountain view

Ok, now to get serious and look for a motel.   We spend the night in Browning, Montana.   Next time we will show you more of Montana, during the day.

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Sasquatch, Giant Beaver, Huge Sundial as Colorado Traveling Ducks head back to USA

I, Zeb the Duck, don’t like what I’m hearing from the humans.   Again, we have to hurry to get back to Colorado.   But, of course, we ducks will insist on a few stops.

Sasquatch at Sasquatch Crossing

Here we are at Sasquatch Crossing.   Sasquatch is in front of his restaurant.   Too bad we already ate.   Still heading towards the United States, but still on the Alaska Highway, we stop for Muffler Man a little north of Fort St. John.

Muffler Man north of Fort St. John

We stopped for the night at Fort St. John while heading north.   As you may remember, there was snow.   We had snow every day while heading north.   It is nice now, so Chloe took us all for a walk.

Walk time for Chloe and her mom

She needs exercise, and so do all of us.   Back with Muffler Man, we ducks sit on his shoes and on the top of posts.

We are all here with Muffler Man. And his really big axe

Can you find us?  We have arrived at Dawson Creek, the official southern end of the Alaska Highway, or AlCan (Alaska Canada) Highway.

Beginning of the Alaska Highway in Dawson Creek, B.C. Canada

From this point there are a couple choices of roads to arrive in the USA.   The most scenic way isn’t safe yet.   The lakes are still frozen and the roads are icy and closed in places.   Another trip to Canada’s parks and beautiful lakes in the mountains will be needed.   We continue east and stop at Beaverlodge, Alberta, Canada.

World’s Largest Beaver in Beaverlodge, Alberta, Canada

We saw this giant beaver last year and we just had to stop here again.   We stop for the night at Grands Prairie at the Stonebridge Hotel.

Stonebridge Hotel, Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada

The hotel was nice, comfortable and clean, but the complimentary breakfast was incredible.   Definitely the best complimentary breakfast ever.   A huge buffet, white tablecloths, selections of fresh cut fruit, pastries, assortment of cheeses and cold cuts.   Variety of yogurt, cereal, boiled eggs, and two types scrambled eggs.   Warming trays of bacon and sausage.   Bagels, assorted breads and a waffle station.   And even more that we forgot.   We don’t usually describe our food, but this was a fabulous complimentary buffet.   The Stonebridge Hotel in Grand Prairie certainly deserves recognition for this.   And the employees were so efficient and so nice.   A great hotel experience for us.    In the morning we stopped at the Chamber of Commerce and Visitor’s Center.

Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada

This is a huge sundial.

Giant sundial

The sundial is tall and casts a shadow on or between posts to show visitors the time.

Ducks on post. Posts for time with sundial

Here we are on the post for 12:00.   The brick circle of cement identifies Grande Prairie AB (Alberta) Canada.

Grande Prairie, Alberta, Canada

We love this sundial.   But it is time to head south again.   Those humans have commitments in Colorado in a few days.   So off we go.  And I’ll tell you now, we only made a few fun stops between Grande Prairie and the USA, but they were delicious.   A couple stops at Dairy Queen for Blizzards.   Canada has flavors that we don’t have at home.   We had to try as many as we could.   Our moms really loved the Oh Henry Peanut Butter Blizzard.   Just heavenly.   But no photos.   Those humans want no evidence of these Dairy Queen stops.