Rocky Mountain High Road Trip

We loaded up the car in Austin on a Tuesday morning with too much gear and not enough snacks. By Thursday we were at Rocky Mountain National Park watching elk graze at 10,000 feet. Highlight: Trail Ridge Road, the highest paved road in the US. We pulled over every mile because the views kept getting better. Black Canyon of the Gunnison was the sleeper hit — fewer crowds than the famous parks but jaw-dropping all the same. We camped on the south rim and watched the Milky Way arc over the canyon.