Rocky Mountain National Park 2013

In early June we headed up to Estes Park for our second hiking trip to Rocky Mountain National Park.  We hiked 24 miles with a total of 3,290 feet of elevation gain this year!  It was a wonderful spiritual and physical journey and I am already looking forward to our next challenge!  Please enjoy some of the pictures from our trip!

Cheers!

Kaye

 

 

We stayed in a BEAUTIFUL condo at Mary’s Lake Lodge (http://www.maryslakelodge.com).  Our unit was completely remodeled and even had  a hot tub on our deck overlooking Mary’s Lake.  I can’t say enough great things about our stay there!

Welcome to Rocky Mountain National Park where elk greet you at the gates.

We started the week off with a 7 mile early morning hike to Bridal Veil Falls.  This was our second most difficult hike of the trip.  The final 1/2 mile of the accent is quite challenging due to large boulders to climb over and the trail becomes hard to follow.  Bridal Veil Falls is quite amazing but I honestly didn’t think the 7 miles round trip were quite worth the work.  I didn’t find the trail had a lot to offer in comparison to many other hikes we have done.

Bridal Veil Falls…

That evening we took a leisurely stroll around the very scenic and iconic Bear Lake.  This 1 mile loop is mostly flat and has great views of Hallett Peak and Longs Peak.  This  trail has an elevation of 9.475 feet and was still snow covered in some parts.

We ended the evening observing the elk in the meadow.  The amount of elk in this area is astonishing.  I was so fascinated watching them graze and play.  They are really remarkable and fun creatures to watch.

One of my favorite pictures..

Wild turkeys…

We planned on an easier day for our second day but we felt good so we decided to go for our personal best goal……Fern Lake.  This trail has an elevation gain of about 1400 feet and was 9 miles round trip (1.4 extra because we had to park so far away!).  This trail gains about 1,000 feet is the final 2 miles and was the most physically demanding trail yet!  On our trek to the trailhead we encountered a small snake.  It was less than a foot long but I screamed so loud you would have thought I’d seen a bear. The Fern lake trail does not dissapoint.  The miles go by fairly quickly with so much to looks at. You can still see the evidence of the fire in a few parts along the trail.

You first encounter the Arch Rocks within about 1.5 miles.  These large rocks fell from the top of the mountain at some point and are fascinating structures to walk through.

Throughout much of the first part of the hike you get to listen to the rushing waters next to you before reaching The Pool.  The Pool is where you get to see swirling patterns of white water from the Big Thompson.

After reaching the pool you begin a steep walk up to Fern Falls.  This beautiful waterfall was the perfect place for a quick break.  We met some really fun people in this area including this comical group.  It was instinct to offer to take hikers pictures in front of the waterfall.  As I was taking pictures I thought that perhaps I could just hike up and do this for a living! 🙂

After our break we began our final accent to Fern Lake.  The reward at the top was worth it.  This very large lake is surrounded by a breathtaking, panoramic view of McHenry’s Peak.  I found myself taking deep breaths in just realizing the magnitude of it all.  There is something to be said for working so hard to see something so beautiful.  In this case, the picture doesn’t even come close to what it felt like to be standing there in this magical moment.

Our third day was spent taking in some easier walks around very popular trails.  First up was Lily Lake.  We opted for the more challenging route to get a better look of Longs Peak.  This trail was quite boring except for the great view of Longs.

On our way to our next stop we took in some scenic views along Fall River Road and saw this beautiful bird, The black-billed magpie.  He was not afraid of people and was very talkative.

Our next stop was the Alluvian Fan which is a sprawling waterfall and full of beautiful natural landscaping.  It is very easy to get to and a gorgeous site to snap some pictures.  If you look closely, you can see people standing next to the falls to get an idea of just how large it is!

Our day ended at Sprague Lake.  This is another very easy 1 mile hike around a very pretty lake that has great views of Longs Peak.

Our final day of hiking was a 4 mile sunset hike up to Beirstadt Lake from the Bierstadt trailhead.  This was a decent  climb of almost 700 ft in just 1.2 miles.  This trail is very scenic because for most of the trail you are along the ridge with spectacular views of Longs Peak.  Once you get to the top you walk about .5 mile and out of know where is a gorgeous view of Longs Peak.  The reflection of the mountains in the still water was just amazing.   We were the only ones up there and it was a great end to another remarkable hiking trip.