During the last million years, enormous glaciers pushed across the North American continent dragging huge boulders beneath them. The violent force ground and pulverized stone, carving out the vast canyons and the majestic terrain of Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park. With numerous high peaks, 78 of which exceed 12,000 feet, hillsides of wildflowers, grazing wildlife and a multitude of mountain lakes, this park is hiker's heaven.
High Times
Two hours northwest of Denver, Rocky Mountain National Park's easily accessible trails are often busy, but luckily there are many to choose from, of varying lengths and difficulty. Many of the easier trails lie in the Bear Lake Corridor, some of the best from Bear Lake itself and Glacier Gorge. Because of the high altitude of the park, which ranges from 8,000 to over 14,000 feet at the top of the highest peaks, the Bear Lake area is good for hikers to acclimatize.
Bear Lake Corridor
There are numerous trails starting at Bear Lake. All Glacier Gorge trails can
be accessed from Bear Lake as well. The trail to Emerald Lake is an easy 3.6 miles round trip, with an altitude gain of only 605 feet. To and from Emerald you also pass by Nymph and Dream Lakes with the trailhead beginning at Bear Lake. Other good hikes from this area are Mill Lake, 5.6 miles round trip, and The Loch, 6.2 miles round trip, which also passes by Alberta Falls.
Summit Hikes
Once a hiker feels adequately adjusted to the altitude, summit hikes are always a welcome challenge. Deer Mountain is a moderate hike of 6 miles roundtrip, and with an elevation gain of 1083 feet, a picnic lunch is welcomed at the summit of 10,013 feet Flattop Mountain, which starts in the Bear Lake area, is more of a challenge. Rated as strenuous, the 8.8 mile round trip has an elevation gain of 2,849 feet, topping out at 12,324 feet
Longs Peak: The Ultimate Hike
The first successful climb of Longs Peak was in 1868, led by Major John Wesley Powell, the one-armed civil war veteran. With a 16 mile round trip, the trail to the summit starts at 9,400 feet to reach the peak elevation of 14,255 feet Considered by many the ultimate hike within the park, you must start early to ensure that you reach the summit and are back off the top of the mountain, and below treeline, before the afternoon thunder and lightning storms begin moving over the peaks.
Gear and Safety
The conditions in the mountains can often be unforgiving. Without proper acclimatization to high elevation, the hiker can experience headaches, sickness or even acute mountain sickness, pulmonary edema and death. Thunder and lightning storms are not worth risking. In an average year three people die and 13 are injured in Colorado alone. Watch the skies. Start hikes early, wear boots for long hikes, carry snacks and plenty of water, warm layered clothing, and always have good rain gear.
References
- Lightning Deaths: Colorado
- "Longs Peak"; Glwn Kaye; 1982
- "Medicine for Mountaineering"; James A. Wilkerson, M.D.; 1985
