The mountains were pretty impressive from a distance.
The kids were fascinated as we drove though the city of Loveland and saw a couple "dispensaries" (ie. Marijuana stores).
Honestly, I was surprised that we didn't see more of them. There were none, for example, in Estes Park. There were a lot of t-shirts and things like that about pot, but for the most part it wasn't significantly more than you would find in any souvenir shops in other places around the country. The kids both wanted to bring back their friends a little pot from Colorado so we found this at Sgt Peppers Music.
Other impressions?
Breathtaking views. Honestly, Colorado is one of the most beautiful places we have ever visited. Beautiful sunrises and sunsets. Great mountain views. Coming from one of the flattest places in the country, it was really cool to wake up every morning and watch the sun rise over the mountains each day.
campground sunrise
evening sunset in campground
Having fun with panoramic while looking at Longs Peak, the tallest in RMNP
Mikah enjoying the amazing view
one view from Trail Ridge Road 
What does it all mean? Afternoon storms. These occurred almost every day and never lasted long, but were always very powerful and ominous looking. They brought big lightning and thunder along with towering clouds. One day we had hail. It might be in the 90's and then a storm would roll in, and it would suddenly be in the 50's. You really had to dress for a range of weather each day.
Lots of wildlife. Our first week especially, there were daily appearances of wildlife in the campground. And by in, I mean within feet of us.
deer outside camper in the morning
One day we came back from a morning hike and everyone was milling around relaxing. I looked at Lilly and saw her jaw drop open as she noticed a huge elk sitting quietly in the shade just about 20 feet away.
hey there, big fella 
a lady channels her inner National Geographic In addition, we saw big horn sheep, moose (including a baby), and the funny yellow bellied marmots. What we didn't see (thankfully) were bears and mountain lions, though we know they are there.
Interestingly, we also saw tons of humming birds. Here's one that found its way into the rock shop and couldn't find its way out.
Snow! We were also surprised by the amount of snow that was still in the mountains in June. The campground hosts told us there were 17 foot snow drifts that you could see on the Trail Ridge drive through Rocky Mountain National Park. I have to admit, I was skeptical. I mean, who can imagine 17 FEET of snow?
I can imagine it now!
Great hiking. Like the weather, this varied a lot. There were hikes that reminded me of Oak Openings at home. There were total lung and leg burners that climbed and climbed leaving you ready to wave the white flag. (I was able to avoid the worst of these, but that's another story). We did hiking almost every day and barely scratched the surface of all of the trails there. For those that like to hike, they were very well marked and almost always well described in the maps and books in terms of their length and difficulty. Our favorite hike was the Emerald Lake hike. It was moderate in terms of difficulty. The toughest (and most fun) part was dealing with the slippery nature of the snow covered trail.
This destination hike was definitely worth the effort. The view at Emerald Lake was spectacular. It made a great spot to rest and have a snack before the hike back. We enjoyed watching the chipmunks darting around looking for a handout.
Active Coloradoans. If you aren't the outdoorsy type, Colorado is probably not the place for you. People there are generally very fit and do a lot of things outdoors. In the summer they to hike, jog, bike, fish, and rock climb among other things. We saw road bikers doing the Peak to Peak trail, up and down steep windy roads - uh, no, thank you. We also saw a lot of younger people hiking with large pads that looked like mattresses on their back to do bouldering, which is just a type of rock climbing.
RMNP is a busy place. With all it has to offer, it's no surprise that millions of people flock to this area each summer. The park had a great shuttle service that would take you from one of the lots to many of the popular trailheads in the park. This became necessary as the parking lots for the trailheads would fill quickly. The trails themselves were also very busy with other hikers as well. There are plenty of places to hike where its not filled with other people, but most of the really scenic ones had lots of travelers.
All in all, Colorado, our family gives you a two thumbs up review.
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