Rocky Mountain National Park - Trail Ridge Road Part 2

If you're planning on visiting Rocky Mountain National Park, one thing to always keep in mind is the weather. The conditions along Trail Ridge Road can change quickly and dramatically. The road is the highest paved road in the country, and reaches an elevation of over 12,000 feet. Even in the summer, it can turn very cold and even start snowing. You should always bring warm clothes with you, like a jacket or hat.

Which is really good advice - I just wish I had taken it. It was a warm and pleasant 75 degrees in Estes Park that day, and I was wearing just a t-shirt and some shorts. But I was in a hurry to leave for the park, and forgot to change and to bring any warm clothes. I realized the error in my ways when I got out of the car at the Rainbow Curve Overlook and noticed a steep drop in temperature. Whoops!

So I headed further up Trail Ridge Road, stopping at a few of the overlooks. Some dark and dramatic clouds clung to the sky over the mountains:



The road climbs higher up, passing through forests of fir and spruce. But then you hit the tree line, the point at which the elevation and conditions make it too difficult for trees to grow. The road enters the alpine tundra. Which at first looks just like a barren, rocky landscape.



But if you look closely, you'll see that this isn't some desolate area devoid of life. The alpine tundra is home to over 200 species of tiny plants and flowers that manage to eke out an existence in the harsh conditions. It's amazing that these plants thrive here - the temperatures remain below freezing all winter, and wind speeds can exceed 150 miles an hour. The growing season in the summer is only between 6-12 weeks long. The tiny yellow flowers growing here are called alpine avens (I think?), which provided a nice foreground to some cool light developing in the sky.



I got in the car, cranked up the heat, and drove onto the next overlook called Rock Cut. The thermometer in the car showed the temperate outside was 41 degrees. It had started raining, the wind blowing and swirling the rain drops around. The overlook sits at an elevation of 12,100 feet and I was definitely feeling a little short of breath at the altitude. But the views were awesome from there.







And this was part of the view from the Lava Cliffs Overlook (elevation 12,080 feet).



Driving west from Lava Cliffs, you'll soon pass over the highest point of the drive where the elevation reaches 12,183 feet. Luckily it had stopped raining, and it warmed up a little (a balmy 48 degrees!). The next stop was the Gore Range Overlook, which sits at an elevation of 12,048. The views from here are spectacular, with the poetically-named Never Summer Mountains off in the distance. In the foreground you can see a little pond that is called an alpine tarn.



It wasn't very crowded here, just a few cars in the parking lot. Everyone else visiting had managed to think ahead and was wearing layers of warm clothing.







From here you also have great views of Long's Peak - the tallest mountain in the park with an elevation of 14,259 feet.







I got back in the car to warm up, and then turned around and made one last stop at the Forest Canyon Overlook. The overlook sits at an elevation of 11,716 feet and is reached by a short little walk up this path:



From here you have a vast view of Forest Canyon, Hayden Gorge and Gorge Lakes. The V-shaped valley below was carved out by a 1,500 foot-thick glacier.





And one last shot from the night from the Forest Canyon Overlook.



After that it was time to get back in the car, crank up the heat, and head back towards Estes Park. Just a fun little reminder to anyone reading this who is thinking about driving up Trail Ridge Road - don't be a fool and forget to bring some warm clothes...

 

 

Rocky Mountain National Park - Trail Ridge Road Part 1

The next day we went back into the park and visited a few places like Hidden Valley and the Alluvial Fan. But it was bright and sunny with nary a cloud in the sky so I didn't take too many pictures. We then headed back to Estes Park, where we met up with my cousin Eric (he moved to Colorado and was nice enough to drive over to visit).

But that evening some clouds started to build up over the mountains, so I hurried back into the park to try to get some pictures before sunset. I drove up Trail Ridge Road, which has been called the "Highway To The Sky." The road starts out near Estes Park and then runs high up in the mountains for 48 miles. It runs above the tree line to elevation over 12,000 feet, which makes it the highest paved road in North America. The views along the road are phenomenal and luckily there are many pull-offs and overlooks along the way. This one was at the beginning of the drive, not too far from the park entrance.



And then I stopped at another pull-off, with this view looking towards Morraine Park and Eagle Cliff Mountain.    



I was really focused on taking pictures (pun intended) and didn't notice that I wasn't alone. I put the camera down and looked over and realized I was just a foot or two away from this bird. It was perched on a sign, and also seemed to be taking in the view as well (or wondering if it could eat me?). I admit I was startled when I saw the bird, and may have let out a little squeak when I saw it was so close.



I got a few pictures of it, then went back to the car to grab the infrared camera.



The bird was still there, so I started taking pictures it again since it was being so nice to model for me. I started talking to it, calling it a "pretty bird" and thanking it for letting me take its picture. After our one-sided conversation, I turned around and was startled again to see a woman standing nearby watching me interact with my new bird friend. I smiled in a way that I hope conveyed "I'm not crazy!" and then got in the car. She started taking pictures of the bird as I drove off.



The next stop was the Many Parks Overlook. The overlook gets its name because from here, you can see many parks (like Morraine Park, Horseshoe Park and the Upper Beaver Meadows). You can also get a view of Longs Peak, the tallest mountain in the National Park with an elevation of 14,259 feet.



The overlook sits at an elevation of 9,691 feet.



The overlook actually does sit on a sharp curve in the road.





Then Trail Ridge Road starts really gaining elevation as it climbs higher up the mountains. I stopped again at the Rainbow Curve overlook, which sits at a height of 10,875 feet.



It's a great view - one of the best in the Park (in my opinion). From here you can see Horseshoe Park, Deer Mountain, the Alluvial Fan and the Mummy Mountain Range.



And it was here that I realized I made a pretty big mistake. I left Estes Park in a hurry, and in my haste I forgot to change clothes. I was still wearing shorts and a t-shirt, and did not think to bring anything warmer to wear. There was already a significant drop in the temperature compared to Estes Park, but surely it wouldn't get too much colder, right? Stay tuned for Part 2 of our Trail Ridge Road adventure, same Bat-Time same Bat-Channel to find out what happens next!

(Spoiler alert - yeah, it got a lot colder out there above the tree line)

Rocky Mountain National Park - Morraine Park

Later that evening, Jonah and I headed back into the Park. It was after 6:00 so we didn't need a timed entry pass for Bear Lake Road, and there was a lot less traffic than earlier in the day. We stopped again at Morraine Park, and walked to a spot along the Big Thompson River. My hope was that we would be able to catch some good sunset light and maybe some alpenglow on the mountains that tower over the valley.



It's a little confusing that we are in Morraine Park, which itself is part of Rocky Mountain National Park. But up here, park is used as a term for any "high-altitude, open valley or meadow." Morraine Park was formed by the movement of ancient glaciers. Before it became a National Park, this area was home to a large resort and golf course. Only the old resort's lodge still remains, and the land was allowed to revert back to its natural state.





The Big Thompson River begins inside Rocky Mountain National Park, at a place called Forest Canyon. It then flows through Morraine Park and then out of the National Park, through the town of Estes Park and eventually flowing into the South Platte River.





There was a little bit of alpenglow, but we didn't have a good view of it. It hit on some of the distant mountains on the other side of the valley. And there was not really any cool sunset light either. But it was a great place to spend some time that evening. The sound of the flowing water, mixed with the wind blowing through the grass in the meadow, was relaxing and peaceful.







We were even joined by a mule deer, which walked over to the river to get a drink and was then surprised to see people standing nearby. It was kind enough to stand still long enough for a few pictures, before it turned tail and bounded back into the meadow.

Rocky Mountain National Park - Bear Lake Road

Estes Park sits at an elevation of about 7,500 feet (compared to Little Rock, which sits at an elevation of about 350 feet or so). So the next day we were already feeling the effects of elevation sickness. I had a pounding headache, so when we left to go to Rocky Mountain National Park we stocked up on Tylenol and lots of water.

This is our second visit to Rocky Mountain National Park. Our first visit was in 2022, but we were only there for one day. So this time, I was eager to be able to see more of the park. We managed to secure one of the timed entry passes for Bear Lake Road, which is one of the most popular areas of the park. Our timed entry was from between Noon and 2:00, which was the earliest entry I could get (I logged on the website on the day they were made available, and the earlier entry tickets had already been taken). 

There is a good reason why this is the most popular area of the park. Bear Lake Road is only about ten miles long, but it passes by several lakes and trailheads. The first place we stopped was at Morraine Park, a wide valley filled with a meadow and the meandering Big Thompson River. We stopped at a pullover and walked down to the river, which here was a fast-moving stream.



It was a scenic spot, with the towering mountains rising above the valley.



We decided that this might be a good spot to return to later that evening, when there might be some nice light around sunset.





We followed the road all the way to Bear Lake, and somehow lucked into actually getting a spot in the parking lot. We then did the short hike that runs along the length of the lake. It was really crowded with people, but it was a nice stroll with some great scenery.







It was bright and sunny, so the light was a little too harsh for pictures.



We got back in the car and made a few stops at some of the other pull-offs. This was the trail at Hollowell Park.



By this time, the elevation had gotten to the kids and they weren't interested in stopping at every single overlook and pull-off in the park. But we stopped at one last overlook that had this great view of Horseshoe Park.

Welcome To Colorful Colorado

The next morning I went out and checked on the car, hoping that the tire hadn't really been leaking air or that it had magically fixed itself overnight. Alas, it did not. It was completely flat. This was on a Sunday morning in rural Kansas, and I was nervous that there wouldn't be any places around that would be open and could fix the tire. But after some calling, we found out that the truck stop in Oakley could look at it for us (which was nice, since they usually just handle truck repairs).

The maintenance guy at the hotel was kind enough to pump some air in the tire, enough for us to limp over to the truck stop. Elliott (who is still obsessed with cars) wanted to tag along, thinking that the truck stop would be more exciting than a hotel room. Which I don't think it was as exciting as he thought - we ended up in a tiny waiting room where the only entertainment was a TV showing Fox News. Fox was showing some of documentary about Wall Street, talking about its history dating back to Alexander Hamilton and going all the way to the 9/11 attacks. A trucker, who was also waiting there, decided this was a good moment to begin talking about how he thought the 9/11 attacks were faked using remote control air planes. So yeah, probably the hotel room would have been a more exciting place to spend the morning.

Luckily we didn't have to wait too long, and the tire was fixed and we were good to go. We went back to the hotel, loaded up the car, and then continued on. We crossed over the state line into Colorado, who greeted us signs saying "Welcome To Colorful Colorado." The landscape of eastern Colorado is flat, but the drive starts to pass by some hills as it heads further west. We were eager to get to the mountains, but I did exit the freeway one time to get some pictures of this neat old barn (it worked out because the kids were wanting snacks anyways).





And next to the barn was this little dirt road, heading off toward some fields.



We then headed further west, heading towards our destination of Estes Park. We were staying at the YMCA Of The Rockies, a massive complex of cabins and lodges situated right next to Rocky Mountain National Park. It's a good place to stay, especially if you're traveling with children. There are a ton of kid-friendly activities there, and it is located just minutes from the entrance to the Park. This is the view from a fishing lake there, just before sunset.



That evening I went into Estes Park to get some groceries. Estes Park is a charming little city (population around 6,000). It's a touristy town, but nowhere near as tacky and overcrowded as Pigeon Forge. Probably the most prominent building in Estes Park is the historic Park Theater. The movie theater was built in 1913, and it is the oldest single house motion picture theater in the country that is still in operation.



It was showing Toy Story 5 while we were there, with future showings of Minions & Monsters and The Odyssey.