Taking Risks In Rocky Mountain National Park
Place: Rocky Mountain National Park
State: Colorado
Closest Cities: Estes Park, CO, Denver Colorado
Time of Year: July 2024
How we got there: Airplane, Road Trip
Colorado is a state with special significance to me. My side of the family lives there, I met my husband, Cesar there, I got married there and 2 or our 3 children were born there. Cesar and I have driven all over Colorado and would you know it, we had never been to Rocky Mountain National Park! My only excuse is that raising kids got in the way and when they were old enough to enjoy a visit to RMNP, we had moved to Arizona. I was surprised that my brother Marc and his wife Stephanie had never been either especially because they live just 3 hours away, but then again priorities are different when raising a family! This year we made RMNP at priority!
Our trip started with a plane ticket to Colorado Springs to meet up with Marc & Stephanie. We would be making the rest of the journey by car or rather my brother’s super cool truck which has been our mode of transportation on our last few national park trips! You can check out those trips here: https://dawntillduskaz.com/how-we-explored-glacier-national-park-in-5-days/ and here https://dawntillduskaz.com/overzealous-in-zion/ and here https://dawntillduskaz.com/the-best-days-in-bryce-canyon/ and here https://dawntillduskaz.com/conquering-capital-reef-national-park/!
After hearing that they had recently opened a Buckee’s in Colorado we opted to pass up our exit and make a quick stop at this crazy convenience store. It was just north of Denver in Johnstown, CO. If you have not been to one, then put it on your list! They pride themselves on clean bathrooms and BBQ but they are also know for a massive amount of gas pumps (116 in all). It really is worth a visit! We picked up breakfast sandwiches and headed on our way.
With the stop at Buckee’s, we would need to enter the park from the Fall River Entrance which is about 4 miles west of Estes park. This is not the most popular entrance, but it is great if you just want to drive Trail Ridge Road which was our plan for the afternoon. RMNP now has a timed entry system, so in addition to your park pass or America the Beautiful card, you will also need a timed entry pass. You can get one for yourself here: https://www.recreation.gov/log-in?gad_source=1&gclid=CjwKCAjwqf20BhBwEiwAt7dtdc0Y2Vr8ZXWOhkk8Q2fTSru09elFA8QotKpV7IJYXpvSb9voSfB8XhoCEeYQAvD_BwE or use the Recreation.gov app. There are two types of timed entry permits available: Timed Entry and Timed Entry + Bear Lake Road. Bear Lake Road is the most popular area of the park and can get pretty crowded so when choosing your time to enter, pick a time as early as possible! Today we just had a regular timed entry permit and that would give us access to Trail Ridge Road and the Alpine Visitor’s Center.
Our first stop was at the Fall River Visitor’s Center to talk to a ranger and get a feel for what is worth and what we can skip. I had read that the one way dirt road called Fall River Road was a must do, but the ranger talked us out of it saying its a bumper to bumper slow drive where you suck in dust the whole way. The unpaved road ends at the Alpine Visitor’s Center and I was secretly sad that we didn’t do it! I really like to check off everything a park has to offer however I have to be realistic and know that we cannot do everything! Our first picture in the park at the Fall River Visitor’s Center:
Trail Ridge Road is the highest continuous paved road in the United States. It is 48 miles total and the elevation tops off at 12,183 feet! Our next stop was Many Parks Curve where we got our first real look at the views we would be enjoying the next few days!
We walked around the boardwalk and climbed on some rock formations for another view.
Next was Rainbow Curve where we talked to a ranger about the elk in the area. We had yet to see any at this point! We learned all about how the discarded antlers are very beneficial to the small wildlife living in the park. They are good sources of calcium, potassium and protein and this is why we should never remove antlers from the park. The one Cesar is holding is not from RMNP!!
Continuing on Trail Ridge Road we started to notice that the trees were thinning. We were entering the tundra. So expansive! You can see forever it seems! Forest Canyon Overlook is a good place to stop to see the views as well as some wildflowers. The peaks along the Continental Divide and green valleys are visible from this viewpoint. You can definitely tell that we were gaining in elevation as the tundra opened up and the wind kicked in.
Soon, snow patches became visible and we got our first elk sighting! Our last stop before reaching Alpine Visitor’s center was the Lava Cliffs Overlook.
You could see Trail Ridge Road behind us as it winds through the tundra.
Alpine Visitors Center sits at about 12,000 feet and we thought this would be a good place to start to get acclimated to the altitude. Altitude sickness is a very real thing here in the Rocky Mountains and we tried to follow all the tips that would keep us well such as staying hydrated, taking it easy on the first few days, and not drinking alcohol! We had heard from fellow hikers that a beet root supplement would be helpful so we tried that as well!
There was lots going on at the Alpine Visitor’s Center! It is the highest visitor’s center in the National Park Service and well worth a visit! We noticed dark cloud looming overhead so we thought we should hike the Alpine Ridge Trail right away. It’s nickname is Huffer Hill for good reason! This is a .6 mile incline with steps straight up to the lookout which sits at 12,005 feet. Its a great first hike to get your heart pumping and get you excited about what’s to come! The pika, which is a small guinea pig like creature, made it’s appearance!
As we took in the breathtaking views, it started to sprinkle and the sky got dark! As we hurried down the stone steps, the clouds let loose!
We made it back to the visitor’s center right as the storm drenched everyone! We took refuge in the gift shop and café. I had read that the café serves these amazing cinnamon rolls and I had to get one. Unfortunately, they had sold out for the day but I found out who supplies the famous rolls and made a note to stop by that shop later in our trip.
Afternoon thunderstorms and rain are very typical in RMNP and it is recommended that you do your activities as early as possible to avoid being caught in the storm and having to cancel something you had your heart set on. This will prove to not always be the case as you will find out later in this post! Storms can happen anytime of day here!
As the rain poured down, we decided to go check out our Airbnb that we had booked for the next 4 nights! The closest town to RMNP is Estes park and our Airbnb was just down the road from Estes Park in a small place called Allenspark. We exited the park through another entrance called Beaver Meadows and this is where we found our national park sign. A picture in front of the sign is a must even though my brother Marc would rather skip it!!
Here are the picture of our super cool cabin in the woods and the view of Long’s peak from the porch!
Our room had a deck and there was an amazing starry night sky on the one night we didn’t get rain!
Day 2 was the first real day of hiking. We had a Bear Lake Corridor permit for 5am-7am meaning we could enter anywhere in that time frame but not after 7am. This proved to be harder than we expected! Not because we couldn’t get up that early (we are early birds) but because there is a huge line to enter RMNP everyday. We entered through the Beaver Meadows entrance and must have waited in line for 30 mins. Who knows why they only have one booth open during this time. Once through the main gate, we took a right toward the Bear Lake Corridor when we had to show our permit again. Not wanting to fight for a parking spot, we parked in the very first lot at Holloway Park and took the shuttle bus to Bear Lake.
Today we would try to keep it light by doing trails with little elevation gain just to get acclimated! Our plan was to visit all the lakes in the area and there are many! I just loved all the trail signs and I will share many of them as we go! What was great about this hike was that you get a reward of a beautiful lake every mile or so. What was not so great about this hike was there were so many people. The easier the hikes, the more traffic you encounter!
Bear Lake would normally be the first lake you come to being only 256ft from the parking lot, but we bypassed it and went on to Nymph Lake. If you are looking for a smooth, tranquil spot, this is your lake! I just loved the lily pads!
A little ways up the trail was Dream Lake. It is quite a dream to look out over this lake tucked in the forest.
It started to sprinkle a bit as we passed The Loch and hiked passed waterfalls, wildflowers, patches of ice and over wooden bridges.
At the fork in the road we turned left toward Lake Halyaha as the rain formed mud under our feet. This uphill detour was worth it for the views we got to enjoy. The wind started up and our rain jackets came out. This was an out and back trail so we would need to backtrack to get to Emerald Lake.
Back at the fork in the road, we headed right this time to Emerald lake.
Emerald Lake would be our snack spot. We had to do some rock scrambling to reach a great spot on the water to sit and relax. The wind was strong here so we didn’t stay as long as we had planned.
Emerald Lake was the end of the trail and we had some more exploring to do so we backtracked again all the way back to Bear Lake. By this time in the morning, the crowds had arrived and it was grueling trying to pass a conga line of slow hikers going in both directions. When we made it back to Bear Lake we stopped for a glimpse before continuing on toward Bierstadt Lake.
The trail to Bierstadt Lake was completely absent of hikers except for us and we were able to take in the beauty of the new growth all around us.
Bierstadt Lake turned out to be one of my favorites! I’m not sure if it was the mountain range spanning across the background or the little duckling family, but it was something special!
From here we hiked down the hill to the Bierstadt shuttle bus stop for a ride back to our truck. We hiked 10 miles total and now we were really to get cleaned up and head into town for some dinner.
Estes Park lies just outside the Beaver Meadows entrance to RMNP. Every evening we ventured into town for dinner and a little window shopping. We had Mexican food at Ed’s Cantina & Grill, BBQ at Smokin’ Dave’s, burgers at Penelope’s Old Time Burger & pizza at Antonio’s Real NY Pizza where a robot delivered our food!
Of course, my favorite part was dessert! We tried the famous taffy from The Taffy shop which has been there for 89 years! Don’t be fooled by the copy cat franchise taffy shops. They aren’t as good! We also had the homemade Danish waffle cones made fresh in the store window! YUM!
Day 3 is the day that gave this post it’s title! We ended up getting way over our heads and may not have made the smartest decisions! We started our day very much like the day before arriving early at the Bear Lake Corridor. This time though we were able to get a parking spot at Glacier Gorge Trailhead where our hike to Sky Pond would begin. Little did we know that we would not make it all the way to Sky Pond!
Just under a half mile in we reached Alberta Falls.
The trail started to get steeper and we noticed that most people turned around after reaching Alberta Falls. Hiking to Sky Pond is adventurous and it seemed that not too many people were up for the challenge. The trail was so beautiful with its wooden bridges and stone stairways.
The photo below shows the storm looming in the direction we were headed. This should have been a warning however our weather app assured us that there was only a slight chance of rain. Storms only happen in the late afternoon right? Wrong!
Not long after, grapple started falling followed by rain and we had to take cover.
Once the rain started to lift, we continued our journey. There was nothing telling us to turn around at this point. We knew we weren’t far for the infamous waterfall that we would have to scale to reach Sky Pond. This would be the highlight of our hike we thought! When we reached Timberline Falls, the sleet started. We hiked over patches of slick ice and through a deep snow trail to reach the bottom of the falls. This is where we should have turned around. There was another couple ahead of us and they were trudging ahead so we followed and began the scariest climb of my life. Now in normal circumstances this waterfall climb would not be scary but on this day the wind was strong and sleet was blowing horizontally right into our faces. We got drenched and the gloves on my hands were soaked. I don’t think I have ever been that cold in my life! The fear kicked in and tears started to roll down my face. The fear of freezing to death or being washed away with the flow of the falls took over. When we reached the top it was a white out. We couldn’t see Mirror Lake and the wind was so strong we had a hard time staying upright. We knew then that this hike was over and that we would not reach Sky Pond today even if we were within a mile.
Slow and steady we descended using the snow chutes as a slide.
The hike down was cold and I was pretty grumpy. Luckily, Stephanie had some handwarmers to defrost my hands. We were soaked to the bone but we made it back unscathed expect for my phone which had a little accident!
Hopefully, if you are reading this, you learned a lesson about how quickly Colorado weather can change! Be prepared with lots of layers and turn around if weather turns. Your life is way more important than checking a hike off your list! Unfortunately for me, my bad luck didn’t end there. After our charcuterie picnic by the river we headed back to the cabin for a shower. I was frozen to the core and thought a warm shower would help! One minute into my shower the water went cold and melt down number 2 of the day followed!
Day 4 would totally make up for the day before! We choose a unique hike across the open tundra to the top of Mount Ida! Our hike started at Milner Pass 4 miles past the Alpine Visitor’s Center. The trail to Mt Ida would run along the Continental Divide.
Not a cloud in the sky as we started our uphill incline into the juicy wet forest. Once we were above tree line, it opened up onto the tundra and we could see for miles!
The wind was intense the whole way, sometimes knocking us off balance. We stopped to put on headbands to cover our ears but otherwise we were warm enough. We scrambled over slabs of rock and beautiful wildflowers and even a little snow as we gained 2400ft of elevation. We thought we were in marmotville with marmots running every which way!
When we reached the summit we were invaded by hungry marmots! When we refused to feed them they resorted to licking our backpacks and shoes for salt! They sure aren’t afraid of people!
Check out the fantastic views from the top of Mt Ida!
This was quite an accomplishment!
On the way down we spotted big horned sheep on the hillside. They knew just where to graze to keep out of our way! We couldn’t get a good picture of them! This felt like the longest hike ever when every corner we turned it just opened up to another long never-ending path! I enjoyed the low-lying wildflowers and tried to keep my mind on them and not the long way back!
What a relief when we finally saw the trees and the forest ahead. By this time, Cesar was starting to feel a little altitude sickness probably from the quick descend! We were in a hurry to get down as we were pretty exhausted!
On our way out of the park, we got a show of elk relaxing in the meadow as if they just hiked 10 miles to the top of Mt Ida!
This would be our last day in the park, but remember that I mentioned the famous cinnamon rolls? Well we did not forget about them! Bright and early the next morning we headed into Estes Park to visit Cinnamon’s Bakery who supplies RMNP with their delicious cinnamon rolls! We also tried their pecan sticky bun! Well worth a visit! Arrive early because they sell out fast!
Well that concludes our risky visit to Rocky Mountain National Park! There is still so much more to see such as Grand Lake but that is for another day! Hope you too can can have a memorable experience at RMNP! Check out some of our other alpine adventures: https://dawntillduskaz.com/how-we-explored-glacier-national-park-in-5-days/ or https://dawntillduskaz.com/mount-rainier-in-a-flash/
Please remember to hike responsibly and leave no trace!
