Best trails in Rocky Mountain National Park
Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the most popular natural parks featuring incredible mountain scenery. It is known for its alpine and subalpine lakes, peak hikes, and wildlife. You'll often catch a glimpse of an elk, moose, or marmot driving or hiking in the park. The park is also known for Trail Ridge Road, a jaw-dropping feat of engineering that takes visitors over the Continental Divide from Grand Lake to Estes Park. The road typically closes between October and June every year. The park features seventy-six mountains each over ten thousand feet tall. Equally enjoyable on foot or from your car. You can explore four stunning ecosystems within the park: montane, subalpine, alpine tundra, and riparian.
The park is easily accessible by shuttle from Denver International Airport and many shuttles run between the various trailheads, the Moraine Park Visitor Center, and even the Glacier Basin Campgrounds. Shuttles are a great way to get around the park since it is often crowded and parking is limited. There is no reliable cell service in the park, so it is a good idea to download your AllTrails maps ahead of time for hiking, biking, walking, and scenic drives within the park.
Like most National Parks, dogs are not allowed in most parts of Rocky Mountain National Park. Dogs are not allowed on any trails in the park, tundra, or any area off of a paved developed road. Dogs are only allowed on leash on roads, in campgrounds, and in parking lots.
Rocky Mountain National Park requires a permit and campsite reservation for overnight camping in the wilderness. Backpackers must also follow specific regulations when camping overnight. For more information, please visit: https://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/wilderness-overnight-backpacking.htm
Top trails
Visitor info
1-Day Motorcycle Entrance Pass. This pass is valid for one private motorcycle to enter RMNP for one day only. One pass is good for one motorcycle (including all riders). Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at the any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
7-Day Motorcycle Entrance Pass. This park entrance pass is valid for one motorcycle to enter RMNP for 7 consecutive days (including all riders). Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at the any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
1-Day Per Person Entrance Pass. This park entrance fee is for individuals, walk-ins, bicycles, and non-commercial groups to enter RMNP for 1-day only. Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at the any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
7-Day Per Person Entrance Pass. This park entrance fee is for individuals, walk-ins, bicycles, and non-commercial groups to enter RMNP for 7 consecutive days. Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at the any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
1-Day Vehicle Entrance Pass. This pass is valid for one private vehicle to enter RMNP for one day only. All passengers inside the vehicle are covered. Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
7-Day Vehicle Entrance Pass. This vehicle entrance pass is valid for one vehicle to enter RMNP for 7 consecutive days. All passengers inside the vehicle are covered. Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at the any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
RMNP Park-specific Annual Pass. This park pass is valid for entry to RMNP only for 1 year. One pass is good for one passholder and may be used in any personal vehicle. Park entrance passes may be purchased in person at the any of the park's entrance stations or in advance online at www.recreation.gov.
Join millions of people who enjoy our National Parks with the "America the Beautiful" National Park & Federal Recreational Lands Pass, otherwise known as the Interagency Annual Pass. The pass is valid for a year's worth of visits from the month of purchase at more than 2,000 federal recreation sites across the country.
No entrance pass required on these days:
Monday, January 20 — Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
Saturday, April 19 — First day of National Park Week
Thursday, June 19 — Juneteenth National Independence Day
Monday, August 4 — Anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
Saturday, September 27 — National Public Lands Day
Tuesday, November 11 — Veterans Day
The Interagency Access Pass is accepted here.
The visitor centers, bookstores, and information desks are all accessible to visitors using mobility equipment or strollers. The visitor centers also have wheelchair accessible restrooms and drinking fountains. Park films at the Beaver Meadows and Kawuneeche Village Visitor Centers include closed captioning.
An all-terrain wheelchair can be checked out at no cost. Call the main park number (970-586-1206) for more information or to make a reservation.
The park brochure is available in braille and large print. Assistive listening devices and sign language interpretation services are available but require advanced notice to guarantee availability (two weeks is suggested for assisted listening devices and a month for sign language interpreters).
Additional information about accessibility at Rocky Mountain National Park can be found on their website: https://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/accessibility.htm.
The summer shuttle buses that operate along the Bear Lake corridor are wheelchair accessible. Call Rocky Mountain Transit at (970) 577-7477 to learn about Town of Estes Park shuttle buses.
Electric Personal Assistance Mobility Devices (EPAMD), such as Segways, are allowed for people with disabilities in certain areas, including sidewalks, parking lots, roads closed to motor vehicles, and four trails.
The visitor centers, bookstores, and information desks are all mobility equipment accessible. The visitor centers also have wheelchair accessible restrooms and drinking fountains. Park films at the Beaver Meadows and Kawuneeche Village Visitor Centers include closed captioning.
There are wheelchair accessible picnic tables and restrooms at several trailheads, including Lily Lake, Sprague Lake, and Coyote Valley. Many of the overlooks along Trail Ridge Road have designated accessible parking.
There are both “front-country” and “back-country” wheelchair accessible camping sites at various locations.
Service animals must be on-leash throughout the park.
Trail reviews for Rocky Mountain National Park
Did CCY today with my daughter. (14 yrs old) and hit all three peaks. We did Chapin first then Chiquita, and Ypsilon. The trails up Chapin and Chiquita are relatively well marked, but Ypsilon will require you to use some intuition. Each peak offers really rewarding views., but it’s definitely a tough hike. We were on the trail for a total of seven hours, which included stops of between 15 to 30 minutes at each summit. I will say, we got a much later start than I would’ve liked, as we had not planned to do this today, but something got messed up with our Bear Lake timed entry so we had to pivot and did this instead. Therefore, we were on the trail at 10 AM and done just before 5 PM. We were very lucky that the weather today was great and very cooperative. From my perspective, this is very unique for Rocky Mountain national Park weather, as there are often storms in the afternoon. Therefore, I would not recommend a 10 AM start. I feel we just lucked out. As for parking, yes, all the spots the trailhead were taken, but there’s plenty of available spots on the side of the old Fall River Rd. that you can use that do not interfere with any traffic. That’s what we did and we were fine. All in all, it’s a great hike. You’ll feel a tremendous sense of accomplishment, and the views are awesome.
Arrived at 5:30 am with a timed entry pass only to waste an hour trying to find parking. We finally went to the Park and ride and took the shuttle. Other than that, the hike was amazing. Very difficult in some sections and the climb onside Timberline Falls is nothing short of epic! Sky pond is beautiful and worth the hike. The wind up there is brutal. One of the most scenic hikes I've done so far at Rocky Mountain National Park.
Glacier Gorge is a beautiful hike but not for the faint of heart. It’s a chest thumper for people traveling from lower altitudes, older people, or people who just aren’t used to sustained climbing at high altitude (people who aren’t fit enough yet). For those people, there are other beautiful hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park. If you can do it, however, there is a big reward at the top of the trail, a series of alpine lakes and an enormous glacial gorge rimmed with spectacular peaks. We arrived at the Glacier Gorge parking lot at 5:50 AM, but it was already full. We continued to the Bear Lake parking lot, and it was already 80% full. From that lot, there is a connecting trail that will get you to the Glacier Gorge Trail. Highly recommended for conditioned hikers. I am 70 years old. Note: the distance on my hike is off by about three miles because I forgot to end my AllTrails session before I started driving.
Stunning hike that is a must do in Rocky Mountain National Park.
I’ve been to Rocky Mountains NP multiple times and this trail was by far my favorite! Oh gosh those views!