Photo:
Massimo Catarinella / CC BY 3.0
Rocky Mountain National Park is the Colorado high country at its most accessible and its most sublime, a realm of glacier-carved peaks, alpine lakes and vast tundra where more than a third of the park sits above treeline. Trail Ridge Road climbs past 12,000 feet, letting almost anyone stand in the alpine world, while a lifetime of trails and summits waits for those who want to walk into it.
The park spans montane forest and meadows, subalpine lakes ringed by spruce and fir, and a huge expanse of alpine tundra above the trees, all crowned by the Continental Divide and Longs Peak. Glaciers hung these valleys with cirques and moraines, and the wildlife is a highlight, elk bugling in the meadows, moose in the willows near Grand Lake, bighorn sheep on the crags, and black bears in the forest.
Summer through early fall is prime, when Trail Ridge Road is open, the high trails are clear, and the September elk rut fills the meadows with sound. Snow closes Trail Ridge Road much of the year and lingers on high routes into summer. Winter brings snowshoeing, quiet valleys and a very different, colder park at the lower elevations.
Estes Park is the main east gateway and Grand Lake the west, linked over the crest by Trail Ridge Road in season. A timed-entry reservation is required in the busy months, and a free shuttle serves the popular Bear Lake corridor to ease parking, but a vehicle is needed to reach the park and move between areas.
Drive Trail Ridge Road into the tundra, hike to jewel-like lakes such as Emerald, Dream and Sky Pond, and watch wildlife in Moraine Park and the Kawuneeche Valley. Strong, acclimatized hikers tackle the long, exposed route up Longs Peak, backpackers head into the wilderness, and winter visitors snowshoe and ski the lower trails.
Altitude is the great equalizer here, ascend gradually, hydrate, and watch for altitude sickness. Afternoon thunderstorms build fast, so be below treeline by early afternoon to avoid lightning on the exposed tundra. Weather can turn cold and snowy any month, rivers run cold and fast, and this is bear and moose country. Store food and keep your distance.
A park pass and, in the busy season, a timed-entry reservation are required. Check the current system and book ahead. Wilderness camping needs a permit, and popular trailheads fill before dawn. This page is a general overview, not a live conditions report; always confirm current conditions, reservations and road status with the National Park Service before your trip.
Set this declination on your compass, then align it to the map's north lines; it is the angle between true north and magnetic north, refreshed each year.
