No riding today - after 2500 miles I'm taking a break for a day or two. We spent the morning washing the bikes and cleaning them up from the dust storm on Friday. In the afternoon we drove to Ft. Lupton to meet Steve, Gina, and Jayden to go to the Rocky Mountain Wildlife Conservation Center. There we got to see a wide assortment of wild animals, all of whom have been rescued from less than ideal situations - tigers rescued from cages at gas stations, lions and bears taken from dingy, roadside circuses, and other animals confiscated by the government or by police. The orientation taught us that there are more tigers in captivity in Texas than there are left in the wild - very sad.
On the drive into the compound we got a good look at some of the black bears and grizzly bears in their vast compounds. We got a better look at all of the tigers as we walked up the ramp to the viewing platform. Most of them were relaxing in the sun or hiding in the shade, but one decided to jump right into his pool of cool water and stayed there for the whole time we watched. We also got to see some serval cats and spotted leopards, and we also saw Eddie, a black leopard who was featured in Animal Planet's show "Growing Up Black Leopard." That's how I had heard about this place before. There were also some coatimundi, but they were too far back in a section we couldn't see well.
There were a number of lions in several different multi-acre enclosures. One male and female pair of lions lay resting directly below us, obviously well fed, and at one point the male stood up and began to roar for a minute or so, but then flopped back on the ground to relax some more! The center also houses 3 packs of wolves, only one of whom is clearly visible from the viewing platforms - they all began to howl at the same time, an amazing thing to see and hear. My nephew Jayden was fascinated, and at 17 months knows the sounds that most of the animals make and knows what they are when we point them out.
After we finished our tour, we stopped in Hudson, CO at a city park for a picnic lunch/dinner. Since this was only the 2nd time I've seen Jayden, I was captivated by him and his extensive vocabulary. He is able to repeat words that he's only just heard for the first time! His daddy tried to give him a bread-and-butter pickle chip, which he promptly spit back out like an ATM machine dispensing cash, but he toddled around saying "pickle, pickle" afterward. When we finished eating, we took Jayden over to the swings and daddy pushed him while he giggled wildly. He also tried out the slide, which he liked too, but quickly pronounced it "hot" at the bottom from sitting in the sun. Overall a very enjoyable and relaxing day. Tomorrow we'll spend in Broomfield at Steve and Gina's so I'll get to spend some more time with Jayden then.
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