The Big Thompson River Drive to Rocky Mountain National Park

On our April visit to Fort Collins, in Northern Colorado--click here-- to read that post--we woke up to a foggy, rainy day. Nonetheless, we decided to follow through with our plans to drive to Estes Park and enter Rocky Mountain National Park-- one of our favorite places in Colorado. The park is extremely popular, with over four million people visiting every year, and the months from May through October require a prior reservation to visit. Still, in April, we knew we could just easily drive in.  We wanted to take a new route to us along the Big Thompson River, on Highway 34 west of Loveland, Colorado.  The drive did not disappoint us! Even in bad weather, the views were beautiful!

The Big Thompson River is a tributary of the South Platte River, approximately 78 miles (126 km) long. Originating in Forest Canyon in Rocky Mountain National Park, the river flows into Lake Estes in the town of Estes Park, and then through Big Thompson Canyon.

From Lake Estes, the river descends 1⁄2 mile (800 m) in elevation through the mountains in the spectacular 25-mile (40 km) Big Thompson Canyon, emerging from the foothills west of Loveland. It flows eastward, south of Loveland, across the plains into Weld County and joins the South Platte River approximately 5 mi (8.0 km) south of Greeley, Colorado.

Please click on this photo collage to enlarge it to read the placard information

The scenery changed from a deep, dark canyon to more rocky, hilly, open space as we drove west. The Big Thompson River is popular for trout fishing, and we saw many cabins and homes situated along it. 

At one point in our drive, we had to stop to allow a flock of wild turkeys to pass in front of us!

As we approached the town of Estes Park, we passed ranches and saw the distant Rocky Mountains covered with rain clouds and fog.  

In our Colorado drought-filled, high-desert climate, rain is always a welcome sight, and we enjoyed seeing these misty, mysterious mountain views! 

We entered Rocky Mountain National Park. My husband and I are Senior Lifetime Pass members- we paid a one-time fee as senior citizens a few years ago, and now we can enter any US National Park for no fee. It is the best bargain ever!

We drove along the lower portion of Trail Ridge Road ( US Highway 34)until we reached the section that was closed. 

Trail Ridge Road covers the 48 miles between Estes Park on the park's east side and Grand Lake on the west.  Eleven miles of this high highway travel above treeline, the elevation is near 11,500 feet, where the park's evergreen forests come to a halt. As it winds across the tundra's vastness to its high point at 12,183 feet elevation.

Because of high winter snow accumulation, Trail Ridge Road is closed to vehicles at a certain point for the winter season. In May, the closed portion of the road is plowed on both ends until the entire road can be opened again for travel, usually around the end of May.

A view looking down at Upper Beaver Meadows from the Many Parks Curve overlook, along Trail Ridge Road.

We drove back towards the lower elevation meadow areas of the park...

... where the views were magnificent!

The top of Longs Peak, the park's highest mountain at an elevation of 14,256 feet, 

(4345.22 m), 

was hidden by clouds, but it was a view we had seen many times in the past.

We enjoyed seeing the wildlife on this visit! A goose had made a nest and was protecting her eggs, ducks diving under water for food in ponds,  more wild turkeys along the road, as well as many mule deer.  Surprisingly, we did not see any elk, which are usually prolific in the park, but I read that the females were beginning to give birth to their fawns, and they were probably in hiding.

We drove to our favorite place in the park--Sprague Lake.

The 0.7-mile round-trip (1.1 Km) walk around the lake is easy, with stunning views of Tyndall Glacier and Hallett Peak.

We were excited to see two moose enter the lake!

Zooming in with my camera, I could see it was a female moose and her yearling calf!

A short video of the moose walking through the water. 

(To enlarge the video fo easier viewing, click on the square on the lower right on the video, and to return to my blog post click on "esc" key on your computer.)

Colorado is home to more than 3,000 moose and boasts one of the fastest-growing populations in the lower 48 states. Colorado has Shiras moose, which are the smallest of the four moose subspecies, and are commonly known as Yellowstone or Wyoming moose.

We have often seen moose on the west side of the park, on the other side of the Continental Divide, but now moose have been migrating east of the divide and are being seen more often. We even saw a moose in my neighborhood--click here-- to see that post, which is located along the Front Range!

While fascinating and beautiful animals, Moose can be dangerous, and caution should always be taken when observing them. Some information about living with moose can be found on this Colorado Parks and Wildlife link--click here.

My husband and I always stop to take photos of each other on this small pier on Sprague Lake, and this visit was no exception and I took a few last photos of the moose.

As we left Rocky Mountain National Park to drive back to Fort Collins, the weather was improving, and we had a "goodbye" glimpse of Longs Peak in the distance, peeking through the clouds.  

In my next post, I'll show our drive back along the Big Thompson River and a very special place we found along the way!

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