Colorado's Rocky Mt NP

Just to level set your expectations, I was in the beautiful lodgepole pine forests in the Valley on the west side of RMNP in the early 1990's. There was tons of wildlife. In my return trip in 2008 I observed the entire forest of the valley has been destroyed. I would later learn this was the work of the pine beetle that had been destroying allot of forest out west. Nothing was left but stumps (I think allot of the dead trees were cleared out after they died).

In the 2008, the eastern side of the park was relatively unscathed.

The Ypsilon, Chapin, Chaquita hike is a good one for summer after fall river road is open.
Other great hikes in RMNP are thepreviously mentioned flattop, Hallet peak hike.
Also anything out of Lawn Lake for an over nighter. We did Mummy Mt in early 1990's.
Both trips I wanted to hike Long's peak but in early July each time it was still "technical" with afternoon T-storm probability pretty hi for the days I had targetted. So I have not done that yet.

I stayed in Estes Park in 2008, very nice town that reminds me of Lake Placid in many ways.

I have not been there but I bought books on and hear great things on the Indian Peaks wilderness to the south of RMNP.

Have fun !

One more easy hike:

Roger Toll was a former superintendent of RMNP who was sent on a mission to the Big Bend area of TX to see if that area was suitable for a National Park. On the way back he was killed in an auto accident. They named a peak after him in Big Bend (which I climbed) and something else in RMNP.

No, not the Toll Gate! The Toll Memorial is near the high point of Trail Ridge Road.

The west side of the park is greener generally (wetter) though there is more pine beetle kill as others mention. This year is shaping up to be on the dry side, so this may matter. Last year we had snow on July 4, this year it's almost 80 and the snow may be gone by Memorial Day unless there's a pattern change. And there are way more moose on the west side too (more green stuff to eat)- my wife who never ever saw a moose on our many trips to Maine when we lived in MA saw seven in one trip over Trail Ridge Road last year, all on the west side of the park!

I also second the Indian Peaks wilderness for a less crowded alternative.

And I third the idea to get up early (5 AM) and get back down below treeline before 1 PM, unless you postpone till September. Enjoy the thunderstorms from someplace sheltered.

Enjoy.
Weatherman

Question about Colorado back country roads ....

Are 4WD SUVs really needed for a lot of the back country roads in the Rockies, in pursuit of CO 14ers, for example? DougPaul, I noted your 2WD comments ....

Dennis C. said:

Are 4WD SUVs really needed for a lot of the back country roads in the Rockies, in pursuit of CO 14ers, for example? DougPaul, I noted your 2WD comments ....

Click to expand...

I am certainly not an expert on BC roads in CO, however I have read to the effect that 4WD is required to access trailheads on a number of them.

My 2WD comment applied only to Fall River Road at the time I was there. I'd check with the Rangers to find out its condition before driving it.

Doug

I was on Fall River Road this past September with a Nissan Versa 2 wheel drive. No problem at all. That is really some drive. Like hiking with your car. Very cool! We got a very early start, drove over to Grand Lake and back Trail Ridge Road. Took all day with many, many photo stops of course. Got Back to the east side of the park as darkness was setting in.

2 comments. A4wd is nice to reach alot of trailheads, unless you have a rental you dont care about, but clearance can be a issue on many access roads, I have a tacoma and can get anywhere but a few roads that i refuse to try. Afternoon thunderstorms, my hikes have me on the summit by noon, no exceptions, once youve been pulverized by golf ball size hail, while the lightning striking around you has all your hair standing up, its a easy call.

DougPaul said:

My 2WD comment applied only to Fall River Road at the time I was there. I'd check with the Rangers to find out its condition before driving it.

Click to expand...

ROCKYSUMMIT said:

I was on Fall River Road this past September with a Nissan Versa 2 wheel drive. No problem at all. That is really some drive. Like hiking with your car. Very cool! We got a very early start, drove over to Grand Lake and back Trail Ridge Road. Took all day with many, many photo stops of course. Got Back to the east side of the park as darkness was setting in.

Click to expand...

I was thinking a bit more about Fall River Rd:
IIRC, it is dirt and gravel, so unless it gets washed out or deeply rutted, my guess is that it can be done with 2WD most of the time. Don't know--maybe it even gets regraded every now and then...

It was a pretty drive with a number of stops along the way. There was/is a pamphlet (available at the visitor's center) describing some points of interest.

Couldn't find the pamphlet online, but I did find some descriptions and a history:
http://www.rmnp.com/RMNP-Areas-OldFallRiverRoad.HTML
http://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/old_fall_river_road.htm
http://rockymountainnationalpark.com/pages/old_fall_river_road.html
lcweb2.loc.gov/pnp/habshaer/co/co0300/co0304/data/co0304data.pdf

Doug

What Sierra said, and Fall River Rd is a bit different as it is better maintained than a lot of dirt pass roads (more traffic, and Park staff don't want to go up there to tow cars).

Clearance is usually the issue if roads are dry (so high clearance 2WD often OK), but if wet or snowy you need the extra traction. Wet soil here is much more slippery than in the East.

Generally, though, you should listen to guidelines out here... if the sign says you really need 4WD, you do. Being stuck 25 miles from a town is more of a PITA than getting stuck 8 miles from a town.

My continuing thanks for all the advice.

I've been cruising around some blogs and forums regarding pine beetles, roads to trailheads, etc. etc. A previous trip to the San Juans taught us much about thunderstorms and rocky roads. Also to have a Plan B and a Plan C.

Kudos to all you travelers!

I put a few pics out on Picasa - Old Fall River Road and Flattop Mt - both definitely recommended. The Road has some "interesting" turns - where it was rutted, some cars were bottoming out.

A really pretty hike is Sky Pond. You pass the Loch and Lake of Glass on the way in - not too much elevation gain, but you're starting at 9K ft. Enjoy every minute of your trip!

https://picasaweb.google.com/gram123456/RMNP?authuser=0&feat=directlink

Dennis C. said:

Are 4WD SUVs really needed for a lot of the back country roads in the Rockies, in pursuit of CO 14ers, for example? DougPaul, I noted your 2WD comments ....

Click to expand...

The tougher a vehicle and the braver the driver, the closer you can drive to some - the best example is Ellingwood/Blanca/Little Bear where vehicles are strung out for several miles on the roadside as it gets worse with only modified CJ-types making it to the end. Others like Longs Peak have paved access to the best legal trailhead so anything will do.

audrey said:

One that looks good is a 3-fer: Chapin, Chiquita, and Ypsilon in the Mummy Range, trailhead on the Old Fall River Road.

Click to expand...

I've done this hike and can say it is a fantastic day-hike. Ypsilon is spectacular, there are marmots on Chiquita and there are elk everwhere. A good warm-up hike that isn't mentioned is a hike up towards Longs Peak to Chasm Lake which is at the foot of the spectacular cliff making up Longs diamond face. You get to see the route from there to the summit also. I also recommend the Twin Sisters which has some of the best views of the RMNP and Longs Peak anywhere. Have fun!