Category Archives: Vacation Home

How to Make Hummingbird Nectar

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The hummingbirds at Fish Creek Estes Vacation Home in Estes Park, Colorado, are very happy to visit if you provide them with nectar, which is easy to make even if you’re only three years old. Just find an adult and a saucepan, add 1 part sugar to the pan and 4 parts water. Heat it for a few minutes, and stir it until the sugar is dissolved. Let it cool.

If you’re going to be there for a week, you might want to use 1/2 c sugar and 4/2 c sugar (do the math… 4 half-cups of sugar equals 2 cups!) and put the extra in a jar because you will need to fill the feeder more than once.

1 part sugar…
4 parts water…
Heat and stir until dissolved

 

Wait patiently while it’s cooling. Sing Mr. Rogers’ (or Daniel Tiger’s) song if you want to. “Let’s think of something to do while we’re waiting, while we’re waiting…” Maybe you could check to see if there are any elk behind the house yet (they usually appear late afternoon or early evening). You could also check on the golfers or get the binoculars and look at the mountains and clouds. (The binoculars are there for the guests to use, but be sure to put the lens caps back on after you use them, and then put them away in the case and back on the table under the map of Rocky Mountain National Park for the next person to use.)

 

When the nectar is cooled down enough, the adult can help you fill the feeder and you can put it back up and wait a few minutes… eventually one hummingbird will show up, and then more will come! Sometimes if you’re really lucky you’ll see a whole bunch! (Check out this nice video of hummingbirds visiting after the feeder was filled).

October, 2015

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Our kids took their kids out for a few days in late October and thoroughly enjoyed themselves inside and out.

Hike at Gem Lake and a walk near the house (new bike lanes have been created!):

Enjoying “indoor time,” including the new chairs that swivel in toward the couch or out toward the view:

November 2015

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I initially thought Estes Park was pretty much a summer place but we are discovering that every single season is wonderful here! The mountains are just beautiful dressed in green, brown or white and there’s always plenty to do.

There’s been a lot of progress along the creek behind our houses. The 2013 flood relocated the creek about 40 feet further from the house so now we have a bigger “back yard.” The temporary sewer pipe is gone and the creekbed has been cleaned up and planted.

We took our usual walk around Lily Lake (and the trail that goes a little above) and the views on this crystal-clear day were beautiful. The freezing of the lake had created some beautiful designs.


We hear the path to town is due to begin reconstruction this summer and we will be thrilled to have that back. And we’re delighted with the new chairs that swivel in toward the fireplace or out toward the view.

 

July/August 2015 Adventures

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Once again we have been taken by what a great spot this is for spending time with family and friends! In addition to our daughters, we were thrilled to be joined by a niece and her fiancé, who live in Paris. It’s a true testament to the awesomeness of Estes Park that they enjoyed themselves so much. With three generations here at the same time we used both indoor living areas (upstairs and downstairs) and the three outdoor areas (deck, lower porch and front porch) to their fullest more than usual.

More coloring
We didn’t realize we had such a nice dancing area…
Near dinnertime
Watching the hummingbirds
Learning how to use binoculars
Sharing binoculars with Papi
Binoculars
Games on the table
Helping clean off the water after a rain

The temperatures and weather allowed us to have most of our lunches and dinners on the deck. The quality of ingredients at the local Safeway are surprisingly good and we had some old favorites as well as trying some new things. Pasta and baked goods don’t do as well in the mountains but plenty of other things work just great, especially on the grill. We discovered that risotto behaves very nicely at altitude and pizza on the grill is AWESOME.

Leftovers on the deck
Shrimp curry with cilantro
Learning how to make pizza dough
Teamwork – the pizzas are ready for the grill
Checking the pizzas
This one was so good
And this one
This one was SO good!
A superb Mexican lunch (a touch windy on the deck)

We had to refill the hummingbird feeder almost every day! It was such fun to watch those miraculous creatures. 🙂

Our hikes were mostly to old favorites (Lily Lake, Gem Lake, Lawn Lake up to where it crosses the creek) and some of the group went cycling most days. Joe brought his ukelele on their trip so we were serenaded several times at home AND on one of our hikes. 🙂 Lots of people on the trail commented that they loved it as they passed by.

We love games and we played lots of them (Word Thief, Sorry, Carcassonne, Catan, cards, Midnight Party).

The view toward Longs Peak from the deck makes a great backdrop for pics.

Construction on Fish Creek Road is proceeding! We had a great time checking on the machines and workers every day. It’s fascinating to watch those guys do what they do (and we are so grateful they are fixing Fish Creek Road!). The creek and walking/cycling path to town should be starting in the spring of 2016.

Early June, 2015

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A short but sweet visit in June, 2015. We never get tired of this view or these skies!

Lily Lake regulars
SO many elk…
This guy loved the new grass by our patio
Discussing the progress on the creek with our neighbors

Elk Visit

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One of our favorite things about the location of our vacation home in Estes Park is the fantastic wildlife we get to see from the deck. The elk on the golf course across the creek, with the mountains in the background, is such a treat. A recent visitor caught these beautiful photos of a herd crossing the golf course.

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