Running for 48 miles end to end, starring wildlife from all ecosystems of the Rockies, and offering breathtaking views of the beloved national park. From Estes Park to Grand Lake, this drive will surely keep you awake. Views on every turn, at the Alpine Visitor Center you will surely learn! Trails and lookouts galore, Trail Ridge Road you’ll surely adore.
OUR DAY AT A GLANCE:
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Estes Park Side
Time for an awesome day at Trail Ridge Road. Wait, how did we get here?
If you remember I said we originally planned to leave to see the sunrise at Bear Lake, meaning that we’d have to wake up around 3 AM. Well, when you sleep at midnight it’s a little impossible to do so.
Waking up at 6 am, I realized that I was 3 hours late! I guess I was raging over myself, which is why my dad had to calm me down. He came up with a plan in which we’d go all over Trail Ridge Road today, and even stop by on trails along the way. Watching some videos and reading articles on places we’d stop along the way, we were set on our journey. Arriving at the Fall River Entrance of Rocky Mountain National Park around 7 AM, we weren’t required to get a Timed-Entry Pass (9AM-2PM reserved entry), so my dad purchased a 3-day entry pass for $35, and we went.
The guides at the entrance station told us to take a right at the stop sign towards the end of the road, and then take a right on a “T” intersection in between the roads. It was a little confusing, but we eventually found a way and stopped by a guided group observing a meadow. My dad asked the guide if we were on the right road, and where we had to go from there. She politely said that our path was correct and advised my dad to stop at every viewpoint and stay to enjoy the views from there. People are really kind in Colorado! Every place we went, we were always greeted with smiles!
As the road rose, thick and green forests of beautiful pines were a common sight. It was a movie-like scenic drive, and we hoped to see wildlife on the way. And what an early sighting! 7:25 AM, 10 minutes into our drive behold a deer! Excited to see what awaited us, we continued down the curving road.
The first lookout was quite a sight. Pine and rock formations surround us and a vast breathtaking view of the mountains around and meadows below. I loved what I saw and we got back into the car to see more. Many other viewpoints passed by, making us take many more stops too, such as Many Parks Overlook as well as the Rainbow Curve Overlook.
There are too many words to describe the beauties we saw on the first half of Trail Ridge Road (Estes Park Side). It started to get chillier as we went higher and higher on the road, and before you knew it, we were at the Alpine Visitor Center.
Alpine Visitor Center
Rocky Mountain National Park’s Highest Visitor Center was what we were pulling into. Finding parking in the full lot, I considered that we were pretty lucky today. As we headed inside to escape the cold, I could only admire the views. We were over 11,000 feet above sea level and the oxygen levels were a little lower too.
Inside the warm, wood building, the rangers were all busy answering questions about the area. My sister and I got in line to wait our turn and asked if we could be Junior Rangers. The ranger smiled and handed us our booklets and badges, saying that we could complete the booklet in our own time later. We took the pledge and boom, we were official RMNP Junior Rangers. My sister and I decided to finish our booklets, and as we did, there was a little ranger activity going on.
Wolfs vs Coyotes! Taking a quiz on pictures, we got most of them right. The difference between the two is that Coyotes are smaller than wolves but have a sleeker body, narrower snout, smaller paws, and larger pointed ears than wolves. Additionally, Rocky Mountain National Park inhabits coyotes only, so if you ever think you saw a wolf in the Rockies, you now know it was a coyote. The ranger presented everyone with a professionally preserved coyote pelt. We got to feel the paws, the snout, and the fur of the coyote, getting a more hands-on feel of what a Coyote really is. Thankfully, it was just a pelt though. Otherwise…
The visitor center had a compact but effective layout, with a ranger front desk, a small gift shop behind that, and on the other side of the building an information room. Outside from the back was a patio area where you could get amazing alpine views.
Finishing our booklets, we went outside to meet our parents on the patio. The views were just mesmerizing.
Alpine Ridge Trail
After heading back into the car for lunch, we decided to climb up the Alpine Ridge Trail. According to my counting, this climb was 223-225 steps and 2-3 flat slopes long. Yeah, I know it’s not exactly precise, but that’s what I counted. Some kid said he counted only 125 steps, so I think I’m close to the real count.
Views of the surrounding snow-capped mountain peaks were just amazing. The alpine tundra ecosystem was fenced off, but the small plants looked really pretty. The reason it was fenced off was because the vegetation took a long time to grow in the tundra, partially because of the growing conditions as well as because of being packed by snow for most of the year.
Another summit down! We were on the top, getting spectacular views. My parents felt the oxygen change, but I was pretty used to Pikes Peak, so this wasn’t much. Infographics along the way taught me about oxygen levels, and how to prevent altitude sickness. Here’s the gist of it:
- Take plenty of rest along the climb
- Stay hydrated
- If you feel that you are altitude-sick, simply go lower to a lower altitude
Coming down from the climb, we decided to stand over the curb on a scenic view, when I suddenly saw: ELK!!! Racing over for closer observation, our family had fun looking at the elk. At first, they were sleeping, but after a while, I started singing about the elk and how he should get up, and soon enough we got to see the male lift up his head and pose for a picture. Now I don’t know if I am an animal wizard or not, but I don’t know how that elk sensed my calling. What a sighting. Time to head back onto the road.
After resuming our drive, then was a long curved turn that went downward to a forest area, into the subalpine region, right to the Continental Divide! The Great Continental Divide is a high and continuous mountain ridge range that separates drainage either West to the Pacific or East to the Atlantic. It was a cool feeling to be at the center of a dividing line. The area was also home to Milner Pass, so explored the area, going a little up the Ute Trail to rest around a lake, and after using the restrooms, we were back on the road again. Speaking of the restrooms, there were cool Bear Proof Trashbins made specifically for RMNP that could only be accessed by humans as they either couldn’t come within a bear’s reach or fooled the bear itself.
Check out a cool panorama we got of the Continental Divide here.
To Grand Lake, we go!
Grand Lake Side
The scenic drive continued, but after a while, we saw burnt trees. More and more, with goldish-yellow grass on the bottom. There was a green patch in the middle, and a couple of visitors standing by. Hopping out to see what it was, my sister and I walked over and asked. An elderly lady helped us discover a family of 4 MOOSE!
Presenting Wildlife Photography: MOOSE PHOTOSHOOT!
After we passed the Kawuneeche Visitor Center, we were officially in Grand Lake, CO. We took a stop to see what was in Grand Lake by the Grand Lake Visitor Center. My dad and I went inside, and we were greeted by the ranger, who told us about Grand Lake, kindly gave us maps, and invited us to the fireworks show tomorrow at Grand Lake. I also got to know about the Grand Lake Fire. The fire, which started on Oct. 14, 2020, scorched 193,812 acres which is about 302 square miles, in Grand County, charring various areas in Grand Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park, and the edges of Estes Park. I guess that explains the charred trees.
Leaving the visitor center, we decided to check out Grand Lake for ourselves. I became the guide with the Grand Lake map, telling where to turn in the small town, eventually getting us to arrive at the lake. The crystal blue water shined with the sun over in the sky. As we drove around, my mom saw a Rocky Mountain National Park entrance.
Turns out there was a trail there that started near Grand Lake. Setting out on the East Inlet Trail, we ventured off to see Adams Falls. It was a 2-mile round trip on a forest-like trail, with leafy trees and pines separated by a rocky path. A clearing opened up to a bumpy area surrounded by trees, with the sound of rushing water. There it was, Adams Falls!
Venturing around, my parents and sister went down into a greenwood area down close to the fall, while I ran up the trail to get more views of where the fall started from and how it progressed down to the roaring waterfall it was. After getting on top of a rock, I chilled out in nature, waiting for my family. Apparently, they didn’t show up, so I almost slipped down the sand side but surely got back to my parents in one piece. It was much more beautiful as you got a close-up view within 10 feet of the actual waterfall.
All The Way Back
Setting out onto the trailway back, I was ready to see the beauties of Trail Ridge Road again. It wasn’t too long before we were out and back on the track. Getting into the car and heading back from where we came from.
Forest Canyon Overlook
Along the way came the Forest Canyon Overlook and Trail, which my dad and I decided to adventure out into. This was a place to get clear views of the Alpine Tundra and surrounding mountains of the area. It was a short walk down to the viewpoint, but the area was really windy to go around. There was a rock structure you could sit around in the center to look at various views from up high.
After a quick walk around the windy trail observing the mountain area and the tundra vegetation in the cold, it was time to warm up and head back. Crossing the Alpine Visitor Center Again, I knew that we were close to the finish.
Today, I saw it all. The visitor centers, the charred trees, the pine forests, the mountains, the peaks, the viewpoints, the alpine, the wildlife, and more! What a drive. I guess it makes sense how Trail Ridge is an All-American Road, with all the enchanted views it offers. We thought we’d go to Bierstadt Lake, but it was too late for that, and plus, everyone was tired.
Once we were back at our hotel, I was really happy about how my dad thought of the idea of exploring the All-American Road and grateful for all the fun we had. After dinner, it was time to sleep early. Wanna know why? So that we could actually make it to Bear Lake this time. Well, time for me to hit the sack. If you want to know what happened, check out my next post!
Recommendations & Takeaways
If you’re preparing for a hike in the Rockies, I’ve got some terrific recommendations and valuable takeaways to enhance your experience!
- Your Trip:
- Hotel Stay – We stayed in Rocky Mountain Hotel and Conference Center, Estes Park, CO. I recommend it for any group. It offers free breakfast, parking, and cable TV.
- Eat a filling breakfast before you leave from your home/hotel
- Depart early so that you can reach the national park earlier and make it to Bear Lake without a TimedEntry+ if you missed it.
- Plan how your hiking day.
- Gear up well, and call in for the latest weather condition reports.
- Be prepared for low oxygen as well as frequently changing weather conditions
- Keep some food and other essentials in a bag with you.
- Stay with your group
- Enjoy the view!
- Hotel Stay – We stayed in Rocky Mountain Hotel and Conference Center, Estes Park, CO. I recommend it for any group. It offers free breakfast, parking, and cable TV.
That was it for our driving adventures around the All-American Road! I hope you enjoyed reading my blog post and are inspired by our experiences and plan to make a visit to Rocky Mountain National Park in the future!
As always, share your feedback, and comment on this post on what you think about all the views we saw and areas we explored Leave a like on this post if you think I did a good job, and subscribe to my blog for more!
The Kartik-Sphere 