Rocky Mountain National Park  – Day #1 (6/5/24)

Reservations are required for park entry, and ours were made before we left New Bern.   Up at 6:30 a.m., we were in line well before our 9 a.m. reservation time.  Our first stop was at the Many Parks Curve, where a beautiful walkway along (and sometimes over) the cliff’s edge enabled spectacular views of the valley below and the mountains, including Long’s Peak – at 14,259 ft., it is called the King of Mountains in RMNP.

We continued our drive up the Trail Ridge Road, with our next stop at Forest Canyon Overlook (11,716 ft. elevation).
This Marmot didn’t want to be photographed, though Doug did a great job despite the Marmot’s reluctance to show his face.  It was so cold at this overlook that I returned to the truck after just a few minutes.
Continuing our drive to the highest point on the Trail Ridge Road
After passing the Lava Cliffs at the highest point along the road (12,183 ft.), we reached the Alpine Visitor Center, only to find it was closed.  It is the highest facility of its kind in all of the National Park Service.
The Continental Divide crosses the Trail Ridge Road at Milner Pass (10,758 ft.).
(A couple from Ohio kindly offered to take our picture.)
The Colorado River starts at La Poudre Pass Lake, near the Continental Divide.  We decided to see a little bit of the river, so we drove to the parking area at the Colorado River Trailhead.
There were many signs indicating the flooding that had occurred prior to our visit to the park.
The bridge problem at Lulu City was obviously not going to affect our half-mile walk to the Red Mountain Trail Junction.
Along the way, we saw this hungry moose.
The river does not look very big at this point.
We continued our drive, stopping at the Bowen-Baker trailhead, where there was also a picnic area and restrooms.  On the above list of High Country Hazards, High Altitude is mentioned.   Yes, that was a problem for me, so any “hiking” we did was at stroll-stop-and-go speed.
A sign like this at a picnic area causes one to eat very quickly.
Here’s Doug looking at one side of the muddy Colorado River.
I took this shot on the opposite side of the bridge.

Our last hike of the day was to Adams Falls in the Grand Lake area of the park, which meant we had to exit the park near the Kawuneeche Visitors Center, drive through the little town of Grand Lake, then re-enter the park at the East Inlet Trailhead back in park boundaries.

Getting ready for the short hike to the falls
What a beautiful way to end our day in the park!

After leaving Adams Falls, we re-entered the park and retraced our route to see the breathtaking scenery one more time.

Guess who we saw on our way out of the park?!
We stopped at Mama Rosa’s Restaurant on the Big Thompson River for a cold drink and appetizer to see if we might want to return for dinner on 6/6 to celebrate 43 years.  The appetizer was delicious, the menu and wine list looked good, so we reserved a table for the next night.

9 thoughts on “Rocky Mountain National Park  – Day #1 (6/5/24)”

    1. Thanks, Kathy, for your nice comments on the pix and your anniversary wishes. When we had the boat, the big day coincided with a tropical storm – 3 times! 🙂 This one was much calmer, though Mother Nature still had a big part in it. 🙂 XO

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  2. Thanks for sharing the beautiful pictures! Can’t believe all the snow! Supposed to be in mid-90’s here today! Hope you had a very Happy Anniversary & many more!

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    1. Thanks so much, Laurie! We were told that the roads in those higher elevations were just opened a week ago. We drove through the high desert yesterday, so we’ll be sharing those 90’s with you and Ray. Thanks for your sweet anniversary wishes.

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  3. Happy Anniversary! And beautiful pictures again! I remember hiking with Kaylen and my nephew and the altitude did create an issue!! Continue those safe travels!!!

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    1. Thanks for all your nice comments and wishes, Betsy! I am way behind on the blog – too much exploring, plus complicating factors putting iPhone pix together with mine on android. We so appreciate you and Bob following our travels, despite my tardiness between posts. 🙂

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  4. Marty, Marty, Marty…..here we thought you were the adult supervision and yet we see Doug among all that snow and colder altitudes and he’s not wearing his big boy pants!

    Beautiful scenery, but I’m most jealous of you seeing moose. We’ve tried and always miss them.

    Weather looks great.

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    1. Ahhh, after 43 years, I’ve learned to choose my battles (I think). 🙂
      We seem to attract wildlife right in front of our vehicle (Moose in Newfoundland, and now a Bighorn Sheep missing us by 3 feet in RMNP). Care to ride along with us??!! XO

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