The Rockies stretch all the way from Canada to New Mexico. They are probably at their most majestic in Alberta and British Columbia then as you move south they become lower around the Yellowstone Caldera. Moving further south into Colorado, they rear up again to rival the majesty of the Canadian Rockies and it is here that you find the highest point along the length of the Rockies, Mount Elbert at 4,401 metres (14,440 feet) high. Parts of the Colorado Rockies suffered considerably during the gold rush era, but the northern area remained relatively untouched. To preserve this wilderness, a 1075 square kilometre (415 square mile) area was designated a National Park in 1915.
Emerald Lake
Continuing on past Dream Lake (above) at an elevation of 3,072 metres (10,080 feet) you come to another small mountain lake, Emerald Lake. Despite the wind disturbing the surface, the green waters of the lake are visible in the picture. The 5.8 kilometre (3.6 mile) round trip hike is well worth doing, but do remember to allow for the altitude which makes the 184 metre (605 foot) elevation harder work than you would expect especially if you have not been in the Rockies long enough to acclimatise to the altitude.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Beaver Ponds in Hidden Valley
Beavers are the largest rodents in North America and they live in areas where there is permanent water and a supply of woody plants. They are best known for building dams across streams to form ponds like this. They dig burrows at the edge of the pond or make lodges of logs, timbers, and sod in the deeper part of the pond. Surrounded by water, the lodges protect the beavers from most predators. Inside the lodge has one large room that houses the beaver family accessible only by underwater passages. While there was plenty of evidence of the civil engineering activities of these rodents, on the day that we visited the beavers themselves were keeping a low profile.
View across Moraine Park from near Beaver Meadow entrance
Estes Park is the the town closest to the Beaver Meadow entrance and even in the town you are at an elevation of 2,293 metres (7,522 feet). The park goes much higher with the Trail Ridge Road reaching an altitude of 3,713 metres (12,183 feet). The lower parts of the park around Beaver Meadows and Moriane Park are kept open all year, but the Trail Ridge Road across the park is closed by snow normally from mid October to June. There are more than 100 peaks in the National Park the highest of which, Longs Peak, rises to 4,345 metres (14,255 feet).
Arrowhead Lake & Mount Ida from Rockcut Overlook
This is one of the best views from Trail Ridge Road. A series of mountain lakes nestle below the mountains over the other side of the valley, but only Arrowhead Lake (to the right of centre) can be picked out in this picture. Behind the lake, Mount Ida rises to a height of 3,926 metres (12,880 feet).
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Dream Lake
Dream Lake is a small mountain lake at an elevation of 3,018 metres (9,900 feet). On a good day no doubt it can match the mirror-like reflections found in the Canadian Rockies, but on the days that we visited the wind was not in a co-operative mood.
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Poudre Lake, Milner Pass
Never underestimate the weather in the Rockies. Our first attempt to see Rocky Mountain National Park in 1988 ended at a ‘road closed’ barrier in a blinding September snow storm at the Milner Pass, elevation 3,279 metres (10,758 feet). A couple of weeks later we were a little luckier but there was heavy cloud at the pass. In September 2008 the weather was glorious and we had the opportunity to appreciate Poudre Lake that sits just by the Milner Pass.The pass is the Continental Divide, so Poudre Lake drains eventually into the Atlantic, but the other side of the pass drains to the Pacific. We planned to go through Rocky Mountain National Park again in early October 2018 only be be thwarted once again by unseasonably early snow.
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© Mike Elsden 1981 - 2025
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