19 replies to this topic

[mountainhop]

Hi! I'm from Virginia and coming out to Estes Park for a wedding next weekend. I have a free day Sunday and wanted to see a bit of Rocky Mountain National Park via a short hike. I'm pretty affected by altitude changes and get in Friday so will have about 48 hours to adjust but don't want to do anything to strenuous (nothing over 3.5 miles) b/c I know that won't be long enough to really get used to it. I also can't figure out what roads will be closed in RMNP and thereby what hikes will be accessible. I looked on the website for RMNP and Gem Lake looks good (maybe a bit short but hard to tell w/ 1000 feet elevation change). Does anyone have any suggestions for a great shorter hike (looking for views) near the Estes Park entrance that will be accessible next weekend? Thanks!

BTW, if it helps, I'm 28, in relatively good shape (work out and do some hiking out here).

[mountainhop]

well, on second thought, I could probably do 5 miles as long as it's not too high of an elevation. Don't want to miss out on awesome hikes b/c of short distance!

[Qbert]

Drive up Bear Lake Road to Bear Lake and hike to Dream Lake.
You may be out of breath, but take it slow an I think you'd be fine. You'll have two nights sleeping in Estes by that time.
Oh, and go easy on the open bar at the wedding!

Gem Lake is a nice hike, but doesn't give you the RMNP experience in my opinion.

Welcome to the forums.

**I realized I wrote this without really thinking about the weather. I have no idea what the trail conditions and temperatures are right now**

Edited by Qbert, 07 November 2010 - 11:38 AM.

[hahn23]

The hike to Dream Lake and maybe up to Emerald Lake would be the best sample of RMNP. HOWEVER, the trails above 9000' are snowpacked and icy. So, at the bare minimum, use YakTrax. It's not really optional. We have snow in the forecast from Tuesday through Thursday, so the best thing that could happen is a snow event with a foot of snow (or more). Then, it would be a delight to snowshoe to Dream Lake, and on to Emerald or up to Haiyaha.

Even the hike to Gem Lake would have snowpacked conditions and ice in shaded areas.

All roads are open, with the exception of Trail Ridge Road (TRR) being only open to Many Parks Curve. Old Fall River Road (OFRR) and TRR are closed for the season. The road to Bear Lake is always open, unless we have a snow event of more than 48", which is not in the forecast until sometime in March. And, btw, the park is never closed, although the park service stops taking entrance fees between 5 PM and 7 AM (it varies).

Current conditions at Bear Lake, starting to freeze over, as shown below:

Edited by hahn23, 07 November 2010 - 12:02 PM.

[Rhonda]

I agree that hiking to Emerald, or at least Dream Lake, from the Bear Lake trailhead would be ideal for views. Also, take a walk around Bear Lake, there are some wonderful views from the opposite side that people miss if they don't walk all the way around, it's a nice little warm up hike, I think it's a mile or less around it. After all these years, it is still my favorite view in the whole park, and so accessible. No excuse not to see it.

Hope you have good conditions for hiking to Emerald. You can rent snow shoes in Estes Park.

[mountainhop]

Thanks so much for the advice. This looks like a great hike... definitely going to invest in some YakTrax (and rent some snowshoes if needed). I can't wait to get out there!

[Aaron]

Mills Lake (click here) [2.5mi one way/700ft elev gain] - The Loch Vale (click here) [2.7mi one way/940ft elev gain] - Bierstadt Lake (click here) [1.6mi one way/255ft elev gain]

Those are just a few off the top of my head. I love those hikes and those give a good taste of the park. The Loch is pushing it with the criteria you listed but may be worth considering. The hike up to Dream or Emerald lakes is great too.

Nymph - Dream - Emerald is probably best all around for someone that's never been to the park. It's a must see and a hike that will hook you into coming back for more....or at least wanting to.

--Aaron

[Marvman]

Be prepared to develop a new need you have to feed. Rocky has that effect on folks. It's like the east coast mountains, but on a much grander scale. I'm still enthralled, and don't plan on ever getting over it.

Marvman

[Brian]

I would agree with Richard about needing some form of traction device for icy trails but IMHO - save your money and buy Kahtoola Microspikes instead of YakTrax... much more durable and versatile for late shoulder season mountain walking.

[dianeh85]

Cub Lake has just a little elevation involved and is pretty spectacular. Lots of elk on the trail, have seen coyote there and there has been a moose spotted there also.
Nymph, Dream and Emerald are absolutely spectacular So many options, so little time! The hikes suggested are all pretty easy. Have a great time!

[DrCloud]

Uh, even with traction devices, many of the hikes in the vicinity of Bear Lake described here don't come close to being "easy" for someone who's never been in RMNP or similar terrain before, particularly this time of year. Don't get this poor fellow in trouble, folks.

The Bear Lake trail itself does qualify as easy, however, so using it as a starting point and then trying something else could work. HPH

[Aaron]

Yeah, it's pretty subjective. All we can do is to give him our suggestions based off the criteria we were given. We can continue to throw stuff out if he needs more suggestions that are easier than what we've offered.

--Aaron

[Igloo Ed]

There be dragons.
Have you walked on ice, Mountainhop? I know Virginia gets snow and also has mountains.

[hahn23]

Brian, on 08 November 2010 - 04:36 PM, said:

I would agree with Richard about needing some form of traction device for icy trails but IMHO - save your money and buy Kahtoola Microspikes instead of YakTrax... much more durable and versatile for late shoulder season mountain walking.

Yes, those are definitely superior. Excellent suggestion.

I just heard the weather forecast, which is for snow between Tues and Thursday night. Then, good weather on Friday & Saturday. Snow returns on Sunday afternoon. So, it's likely there will be enough snow to snowshoe by the weekend, which is much safer than trying to navigate the packed snow and icy trails. I'll report back on Friday about the snow received. It's coming.

[mountainhop]

Thanks for the advice. I'm hoping for snow to cover the ice b/c I haven't done too much hiking in icy terrain. If there's not enough snow for snowshoes I'm sure I'll be fine, just take it slow.
We don't do too much hiking in icy conditions out here but hopefully with the traction devices it won't be too bad. If it is I guess I'll just turn around (but that would be awful... it would have to be pretty bad to make me turn back since I'm so excited). I've definitely got tons of warm/ waterproof gear so that is one battle I think I'm winning.
Hopefully I won't get too addicted to RMNP... flights out there don't come cheap!