2017 Western Trip - Day Ten

Today and tomorrow (Friday and Saturday) are our days to complete our tour of national parks by concentrating on the Rocky Mountain National Park, north and west of Denver, straddling the continental divide.  The Rocky Mountains are part of a chain that stretches from Alaska to Mexico, and the Rocky Mountain National Park, established in 1915, is perhaps the most picturesque.

The main pass through the park is still closed because of snow so we drove from Frisco, CO up to the west entrance of the park. At the visitors' center was a great video giving an overview of the region and the history of the park. The video noted that back in the early part of the twentieth century there was a growing concern for the preservation of places of natural beauty, so that future generations could enjoy them, which brought about establishing the national park system.  It's disheartening to see the present trend toward opening such protected areas to commercial exploitation.

At the visitors' center we discovered to our delight that parts of the closed roadway had been opened that morning. It was now possible to drive up as far as where the continental divide crosses the highway.  Of course we had to make that trip.  The highway was often steep with hairpin turns, and in places wet with the melting snow.  But on the way we were able to see a small herd of elk grazing in the alpine meadow. At the top, the snow was still abundant, but we had accomplished our goal!

Back down the mountain, we found the trail head for a short hike to Adams Falls, near the town of Grand Lake. A little steep at first, we had to take our time in the 10,000 foot altitude, but found the falls to be just as advertised - impressive, filled with the volume of water from the snow melt. Further along the path we found a variety of wild flowers to enjoy.

We finished our day traveling back around the south end of the park, with a side trip to visit the little town of Rollinsville, CO.  That excursion then led to the Boulder Canyon Gorge, one of the most scenic drives in all of Colorado.  We are now settled in Fort Collins, near the entrance to the east side of the park.  That's what tomorrow's report will be all about.