22 replies to this topic

[zzcoop]

I don't usually overthink my itinerary when we head to Estes, but I usually like to have a short list of possibilities in mind for hikes. This year's excessive snowfall has no doubt had some impact on that, and I just want to get a little insight on whether or not any of these are in any way still doable. Bear in mind, I'm a fair weather snow wuss, and I don't plan on renting show shoes or anything like that if I don't have to. Not this year anyway. (Also, because it's summer, for crap's sake!) Basically, each year I like to have a general idea of what we'll be doing for short and easy family hikes (the kid's a complainer), early solo hikes to get out and shoot sunrise while the girls sleep, and longer solo day hikes while the girls shop, ride horses or whatever. The list (created before the reality of Snowmageddon and the crippled Mills bridge had set in, as well as assuming TRR will be open) is as follows:

Family:
- Big Meadows
- Lily Mountain
- Lake Irene
- AVC to Milner Pass

Solo:
- Mills and beyond
- Haiyaha
- Ute Crossing to UBM
- Timber Lake
- Flattop
- Odessa Loop
- Lone Pine
- Wild Basin (TBD)

Some of these may clearly be an obvious "no-go," but I want to be sure and put the list up as-is. Still being a relative "newbie" to the park and not being familiar enough yet with the trail conditions when high snow is a factor, I'd hate to make too many assumptions and talk myself into (or out of) anything. And if anyone has any similar, yet less snowy, alternative recommendations, by all means roll those eyes and slap me across the head with 'em.

Thanks, gang! I love you all.

Edited by zzcoop, 05 June 2011 - 03:33 PM.

[Bill 007]

Consider Cub Lake for the family. It was almost snow free 2 weeks ago and the lily pads were starting to peak. "Mills and beyond" may still be pretty snowy & icy and I heard there may be a problem with the bridge. Wild Basin will probably be okay to Calypso Falls, but will get funky and deep beyond that.
Have a blast no matter what!!!

Bill

Edited by Bill 007, 05 June 2011 - 06:43 PM.

[zzcoop]

I thought about that, Bill. Ally tends to peter out after a mile or so, but each year she gets a little more willing. May just give that a go and let her set the pace.

And we'll definitely have fun. No doubt about that. Just being there is all the vacation I need. If all I did was sit at the cabin all week flicking boogers into the Big Thompson, I'd deem the vacation a smashing success. Any hikes, no matter how far, are just icing on the cake.

[Swimswithtrout]

When are you coming out ?

In this day and age of Global Confusion, we've gone from record breaking snow to near record breaking heat. Estes Park is under a Flood Alert until Wed for what will likely be the worst flooding from "natural" causes we seen.

Personally, I like the snow on the trails and off trail routes. It makes the steeps much easier.

[zzcoop]

I guess a date would've been helpful, eh? We'll be there from June 11-18. A week earlier than our usual timeframe. And our cabin is located right on the Big Thompson, which will no doubt be running higher than we've ever seen it.

[Rhonda]

I would think the snow from the AVC to Milner Pass would be very snowy, which might not be bad at the beginning on the tundra but might be a little hairy at the end without snowshoes. Also....snowshoes are not that bad! Go ahead and rent some!

[Midmccoy]

I can't really give any advice about snow and trail conditions because I avoid the snow so you can call me a major snow wiss. But I thought I would chim in about a couple of hikes you have listed.

Lake Irene~ This is a neat spot when you are not wanting to do a lot of hiking, and when my kids and I checked it out there where not a lot of people there so even better. There is a trail that goes down below the lake and its pretty cool too but keep in mind that all that going down means a lot of going back up when you are done. (my kids, aka wimpy hikers, where not to happy about that part of the trail) Wish I coudl coment on the snow issue here but I would only be guessing in my thoughts that its up pretty high therefore should still have a lot of snow.

Big Meadows~ We did this last year as our family hike and I really enjoyed it. Over all I would say its pretty easy compared to a lot of the other hikes in RMNP when you have the wimpy hikers to consider, At the time I had a 2 year old (who did a lot of her own hiking on this trail), a 8 year old who HATES even the workd hike, a 10 year old who is not very excited about hiking, and a 13 year old who LOVES to hike as well as us older folks aka Mom and Dad who enjoy a great walk on the park, and we all enjoyed this hike pretty well, except for the 8 year old but like I said she is not a fan period. The Meadow is pretty cool and the distance is just right I think. My best guess on the snow would be that this hike would be a good choice to avoid the snow because of it being lower.

Timber Lake~ What a great hike! I think this is my favorite hike so far in the park, but I have not done a whole lot yet so I hate to say I have a favorite. My son, the 13 year old and I did this hike a couple years back and I just loved it. Very few people and so so pretty. The first part of the hike is in the trees so to some kinda boring but I like that kind of hiking so I loved it. We did this hike in July a few years ago and there was some snow near the trail and around the lake. I would think this would be hard one to do because of the snow at this time of year and with the high snow amount. When we did it we lost the trail a few times near the lake because the snow covered the trail but it was not to hard to find our way. I am thinking it would be a LOT harder right now in these conditions but again just my best guess.

I notice from the list you have several West Side hikes on there so I thought I would suggest a couple. You may have already checked these out and I don't know the conditions of them but since I have kids and most of our hikes and such are with the kids thought I would just pass them along.
Coyote Valley... always neat and very easy, flat, and a good possibility of Moose being along the trail.
Holzwarth Rach... very cool for the kidos and I LOVE the river along that area.
East Inlet.... Another area I love with so much along the way, you can just check out Adams Falls and go to the first meadow, which is very cool and pretty, or hike on as far as you want to go.
Colorado River Trail.... another neat one and you can just hike a ways down this one and turn around and come back. My kids liked it and found it pretty easy hiking. Another good Moose spotting area.

Ok I could go on and on but I already put way more into this post than you probable want to read. And you probable know most of this already.

[jflo]

Coop, if you haven't already, you might want to check out a book by Lisa Gollin Evans entitled "An Outdoor Family Guide to Rocky Mountain National Park"

I enjoy reading this just from her descriptions of the trails. It was very helpful to me... just my

[mwilson]

I would think that the Bridal Veil Fall trail would be pretty free of snow. That's one we haven't done in a long time, but I really liked it. We need to put it on our "redo" list. I hope you have a great time in the park.

[zzcoop]

You guys rock! Thanks for the suggestions so far. And Amy, we did Adams Falls and the Coyote Valley loop as two of our family hikes last year. Those were right up Ally's, well… alley. Saw a nice herd of bull elk grazing right in front of one of the little bench areas along Coyote. Pretty sweet. Could've watched them all afternoon. They were almost as large as the herd of mosquitos that kept grazing on me the whole time.

[waterrat]

Big Meadows is a nice hike, but be warned the trail will be sloppy and wet in many places that early. At least, it has been when I did it in June.

I don't know how far Ally is up to going, but going up the Red Mountain trail (offshoot of the Colorado River Trail) you criss cross the mountainside, turn a corner and then walk down into a narrow gully teeming with waterfalls/cascades before crossing and heading onward and upward. It's called Hells Hip Pocket, probably half a mile or so before you get to the Ditch Road. I'm not sure how snowy that trail would be, but the cascades would likely be roaring at this time of year. Even on a hot day that little place is cool, borderline cold this early in the season. My last trip up there was the year the Ditch blew out (2003?), and it was running full force. Around 4 miles round trip from the Colorado River Trailhead if I'm remembering right.

[zzcoop]

Some good timely info rolling out here.

[jflo]

zzcoop, on 06 June 2011 - 08:17 AM, said:

Some good timely info rolling out here.

Awesome Coop!!!

[zzcoop]

That page definitely falls into the "so obvious I never thought to look there" category.

[HighPlainsMedic]

zzcoop, on 06 June 2011 - 08:45 AM, said:

That page definitely falls into the "so obvious I never thought to look there" category.

hehe... who'd a thunk it? I hadn't thought about it either...