Rocky Mountain National Park Vacation - Question

[throwittoblythe]

My family and I have booked our vacation to Estes Park, CO, for early August. We are spending a week there and the plan is to spend most of the time at RMNP.

Does anyone have recent experience with the timed entry system? My concern is how much of the park we can realistically expect to have access to given the high demand, parking, etc. You can get into the park without a timed entry pass as long as you arrive before 9AM which is no problem for us. We are staying 5 minutes from the entrance and I'd like to be there no later than 7:30am most days.

You can only get into the Bear Lake area without a pass if you arrive before 5am which is impossible for us. So, we need to get a pass to get to that area.

My questions are:
1) How hard is it to get a timed entry pass to Bear Lake? I see the passes open up for our time frame on July 1. They also hold another 40% back until the night before so there's another opportunity there.
2) How bad is parking in the park? I see they have a shuttle system for the Bear Lake area. What about in the non-Bear Lake area?

Any other things to be aware of or consider? Our plan is to get there early, hike in the morning, have a picnic lunch and do additional hiking before leaving in the afternoon.

 

[AuH2O]

My family and I have booked our vacation to Estes Park, CO, for early August. We are spending a week there and the plan is to spend most of the time at RMNP.

Does anyone have recent experience with the timed entry system? My concern is how much of the park we can realistically expect to have access to given the high demand, parking, etc. You can get into the park without a timed entry pass as long as you arrive before 9AM which is no problem for us. We are staying 5 minutes from the entrance and I'd like to be there no later than 7:30am most days.

You can only get into the Bear Lake area without a pass if you arrive before 5am which is impossible for us. So, we need to get a pass to get to that area.

My questions are:
1) How hard is it to get a timed entry pass to Bear Lake? I see the passes open up for our time frame on July 1. They also hold another 40% back until the night before so there's another opportunity there.
2) How bad is parking in the park? I see they have a shuttle system for the Bear Lake area. What about in the non-Bear Lake area?

Any other things to be aware of or consider? Our plan is to get there early, hike in the morning, have a picnic lunch and do additional hiking before leaving in the afternoon.

I'm of limited help since it was pre-COVID and timed passes, but we took our kids there. Even then Bear Lake parking was difficult getting there before 7, so I think shuttle is probably the best option.

I'm curious what congestion is like nowadays. We would go on some of the trails around 7 and be about the only ones on the trails, do some of the longer in and outs (Cub Lake, Mills Lake). Passing Alberta falls in the morning we were about the only ones. After we went to Mills Lake and finally got back to Alberta falls heading home it was absolutely swamped.

We did manage to find parking entering from Estes twice, and once entering down at the Ouzel Falls entrance south of Estes. If I went back I think I'd anticipate shuttling if entering from Estes, but that's just from stories of increased attendance since we were there.

 

[BCClone]

If you go in the morning it shouldn’t be a big problem for parking. The late group is awful.

 

[throwittoblythe]

I'm of limited help since it was pre-COVID and timed passes, but we took our kids there. Even then Bear Lake parking was difficult getting there before 7, so I think shuttle is probably the best option.

I'm curious what congestion is like nowadays. We would go on some of the trails around 7 and be about the only ones on the trails, do some of the longer in and outs (Cub Lake, Mills Lake). Passing Alberta falls in the morning we were about the only ones. After we went to Mills Lake and finally got back to Alberta falls heading home it was absolutely swamped.

We did manage to find parking entering from Estes twice, and once entering down at the Ouzel Falls entrance south of Estes. If I went back I think I'd anticipate shuttling if entering from Estes, but that's just from stories of increased attendance since we were there.

They instituted the timed entry system immediately (or even during) COVID because parking was being overwhelmed. They had so many people coming in and people were parking on the roads and blocking travel.

They have a shuttle that goes from Estes where you park outside the park and ride the shuttle in. They also have a park & ride shuttle within Bear Lake where you park at a central lot inside the park and the shuttle will take you to various trail heads.

Shuttling in from Estes isn't an option for us since we plan to bring our lunch into the park and don't want to lug that around all day. I'm hoping to be able to get a spot in the Bear Lake Park and Ride with the early group and ride the shuttle around that area. That way we can return to our car and get our food for lunch. Our kids are young (10 and 6) so we're not doing anything extreme hiking-wise. We want to see the really pretty areas but we aren't going to get up at 3am to do it, either.

One thing I did discover is there are some stables inside the park. If you book a ride with them, it automatically comes with a Bear Lake pass. So, that guarantees us at least one day in Bear Lake. But that's $110/person for the riding so obviously not something you would do just to get the pass.

 

[JM4CY]

You want a pass. Do whatever you can to get one as early as possible. Some of the best hiking is off that parking lot, but there are other gems around the park that are underrated and won't be such a cluster. Been there a ton.

 

[BWRhasnoAC]

It's beautiful but annoying with all the people.

 

[1SEIACLONE]

Bear Lake is packed with hikers, so finding a parking space there without a pass is very difficult, the rest of the park its not bad finding parking, except at the highest point visitation center, it can be a challenge there also, but you will find parking as people are not hiking from that point

 

[psycln11]

Last went in 2021. Timed entry was just beginning. Log-in ASAP to get the times/days you want and plan the rest of your trip based on when you can get into the areas you want.

Parking at Bear Lake and any of the trailheads in that area is brutal unless you go early. I even saw some families that went there and had breakfast in the parking lot, tailgate style, while waiting for the shuttle busses to start.

Where are you staying? We stayed at YMCA of the Rockies and walked into the NP from a trail there to a parking lot/shuttle bus stop and went to bear lake from there.

Besides our hiking trips, daughters did a couple of trail rides, we did a white-water trip down the Colorado, and son and I did a fly-fishing experience.

We loved the hikes from the Wild Basin Trailhead (Ouzel Falls) on the east side of the park south of Longs Peak. Fewer crowds on the trails, but you still had to go early to get parking.

 

[JM4CY]

Bear Lake is packed with hikers, so finding a parking space there without a pass is very difficult, the rest of the park its not bad finding parking, except at the highest point visitation center, it can be a challenge there also, but you will find parking as people are not hiking from that point

This. Go early to avoid parking issues but also to deal with less people on the trails, especially at Bear Lake.

 

[throwittoblythe]

You want a pass. Do whatever you can to get one as early as possible. Some of the best hiking is off that parking lot, but there are other gems around the park that are underrated and won't be such a cluster. Been there a ton.

What are some of the underrated areas you're referring to?

 

[throwittoblythe]

Last went in 2021. Timed entry was just beginning. Log-in ASAP to get the times/days you want and plan the rest of your trip based on when you can get into the areas you want.

Parking at Bear Lake and any of the trailheads in that area is brutal unless you go early. I even saw some families that went there and had breakfast in the parking lot, tailgate style, while waiting for the shuttle busses to start.

Where are you staying? We stayed at YMCA of the Rockies and walked into the NP from a trail there to a parking lot/shuttle bus stop and went to bear lake from there.

Besides our hiking trips, daughters did a couple of trail rides, we did a white-water trip down the Colorado, and son and I did a fly-fishing experience.

We loved the hikes from the Wild Basin Trailhead (Ouzel Falls) on the east side of the park south of Longs Peak. Fewer crowds on the trails, but you still had to go early to get parking.

We are staying in a house off Hwy 66 just south of the Estes entrance.

 

[1SEIACLONE]

I would do my best to pre-purchase the parking pass, if they are sold out for your date, then ask what time do they start giving out the 40% left for the next day and would be there trying to get one. If you do not get one, I would just do the shuttle or skip Bear Lake and see the rest of the park. It's a very beautiful drive and they have quite a few places you can stop and get out and look, just not hike from that spot.

 

[jsb]

I’m going to guess it is going to be even more nuts this year with the massive amount of people fired and general chaos.

 

[JM4CY]

What are some of the underrated areas you're referring to?

Ypsilon Mountain. Do the other two peaks on the way. be at the trail head off old fall river road by 5:15 to get a spot. Greatest hike of your life. Thank me later.

Twin Sisters gives you a unique view of the whole range and is cool.

Sky pond is rad but you have to deal with Bear Lake.

Chasm Lake is cool but you might need the shuttle or something because it's off the TH for Longs

 

[throwittoblythe]

Ypsilon Mountain. Do the other two peaks on the way. be at the trail head off old fall river road by 5:15 to get a spot. Greatest hike of your life. Thank me later.

Twin Sisters gives you a unique view of the whole range and is cool.

Sky pond is rad but you have to deal with Bear Lake.

Chasm Lake is cool but you might need the shuttle or something because it's off the TH for Longs

Good to know. Thanks for the tips! No way we're getting to the park at 5:15am with young kids. We'll have to hit Ypsilon Mountain another time.

 

[ISUTex]

My family and I have booked our vacation to Estes Park, CO, for early August. We are spending a week there and the plan is to spend most of the time at RMNP.

Does anyone have recent experience with the timed entry system? My concern is how much of the park we can realistically expect to have access to given the high demand, parking, etc. You can get into the park without a timed entry pass as long as you arrive before 9AM which is no problem for us. We are staying 5 minutes from the entrance and I'd like to be there no later than 7:30am most days.

You can only get into the Bear Lake area without a pass if you arrive before 5am which is impossible for us. So, we need to get a pass to get to that area.

My questions are:
1) How hard is it to get a timed entry pass to Bear Lake? I see the passes open up for our time frame on July 1. They also hold another 40% back until the night before so there's another opportunity there.
2) How bad is parking in the park? I see they have a shuttle system for the Bear Lake area. What about in the non-Bear Lake area?

Any other things to be aware of or consider? Our plan is to get there early, hike in the morning, have a picnic lunch and do additional hiking before leaving in the afternoon.

Be aware, there are no pot shops in Estes. And watch out for elk.

 

[CycloneSarah]

Gem Lake has always been my favorite. Its technically RMNP but trailhead is not within the main park. Haven't been in a while so not sure what access or busy-ness is like nowadays.

 

[JM4CY]

Good to know. Thanks for the tips! No way we're getting to the park at 5:15am with young kids. We'll have to hit Ypsilon Mountain another time.

If you can get your kids to suck it up and get up there, once you get over the ridge into the valley, when they see chasm lake it will be the coolest thing they've ever seen in their lives. It will be tough with a 6 year old but if that kid is game, it will be worth it. The other hikes I gave you also might be tough with a 6 yo. Someone mentioned Ouzel upthread. Go there for sure with kids, if I remember right it's pretty flat but it's a drive down there so take a lunch and go early, the TH could be a mess. There will be wildlife down there too. There's a couple others for kids I'll try to mention if I remember the names. Twin Sisters could be doable if you take your time. The view is sick as hell.

 

[throwittoblythe]

Gem Lake has always been my favorite. Its technically RMNP but trailhead is not within the main park. Haven't been in a while so not sure what access or busy-ness is like nowadays.

Thanks for the tip! I had the Lumpy Ridge Trail on my list for the first day for an "easy hike" to acclimate before we go for longer hikes. Looks like Gem Lake is on that same trail.

 

[JM4CY]

Thanks for the tip! I had the Lumpy Ridge Trail on my list for the first day for an "easy hike" to acclimate before we go for longer hikes. Looks like Gem Lake is on that same trail.

Pro Tip. Go here to get info on trails. Some may be shut down for one reason or another. Or tell the people in there what kind of hike you want to do and who's with you. They are the experts. They will give you up to the day info on nearly every trail and will help you maximize your hikes to get what you want out of it. They can tell you often where the wildlife are likely to be, etc. as well.

Wilderness Permit Office. It's in Estes Park. Google it and you'll figure out where it is (behind one of the main vistor stations, you have to walk down to it).