Why You Should Visit Rocky Mountain National Park in Fall
Visiting a National Park during Covid-19 is a little different. Check the National Parks Service website on the park you want to visit to check if you need reservations before you go. For more details on recreating responsibly during covid, visit RecreateResponsibly.org.
Colorado in fall is just a fantasy of everything you could ever want fall to be. People flock to Colorado’s mountains in summer, but I’d like to propose that Rocky Mountain National Park in fall is better. Here’s why.
The Fall Foliage
Here’s the one you were expecting. This one’s a no brainer. It’s Colorado in fall, need I say more?
I am actually going to say more because that’s the point of a blog. It’s the rockies so be prepared there are a lot of evergreen trees so it’s not yellow everywhere you look, but you will be able to get your fill of stunning fall leaves. We drove over the mountains to Grand Lake and found some beautiful aspens and orange patches lighting up the view across the lake.
The Elk Rut
I’m a nature nerd so I think this is really cool. In September, Rocky Mountain National Park’s 3,200 strong population of elk start rutting. This is elk mating season and it’s a wonderful time to be in the park. You’ll know you’re in the right place when you start hearing the ghostly calls of the elk across the park. The best place to watch them when we went was Morraine Park, although you may also have luck over by the Sheep Lakes Info Station.
My friend and I got up early and drove to Morraine Park for dawn, and watched in absolute awe as bull elk rounded up their ladies and fought with each other. Just remember to stay wellllll away from the elk, they’re angier than normal and you will be gored (that’s a lot, I mean, you’ll be charged and *possibly* gored). We also came across a group of elk including a bugling bull on one of our hikes so we gave them a wide berth and waited for them to be far off the trail before we continued.
I also wrote this: The Best Spots for Magical Photos in Grand Teton National Park
The Towns
Visiting the towns of Estes Park and Grand Lake were two of my favourite parts of our fall trip. Just picture Hallmark movies set in fall, and you have Estes and Grand Lake.
Estes Park is has a special place in my heart. I’ve visited it more times than I can count as it’s the gateway to the park if you’re coming from Denver. Estes has a load of interesting little stores (and big stores now, hello Starbucks), is the home of the Stanley Hotel (the inspiration for the hotel in The Shining), and great options for eating and drinking. The best part of visiting Estes in September was Octoberfest. Ok, it’s not quite Octoberfest, but at The Barrel bar they had Elktoberfest which is arguably better. Elktoberfest had craft beer (pumpkin beer), food trucks, live music, and corn hole in a perfect patio area. Stumbling upon this was one of the best treats of being in Estes.
I had never visited Grand Lake before (well, not since I was a baby) and it blew us away. This town in fall is like jumping into Hallmark does the wild west. It has a wooden boardwalk, rickety looking buildings, and hitching posts. It’s a quintessential Colorado experience, and it’s even better in fall. We stopped for coffees and cookies at Blue Water Bakery, then went swimming in the lake and explored some of the boardwalk shops.
Then, because we were becoming obsessed with how insanely cute the town was, we went and drove around some of the residential roads to pick out our future cabin. I don’t know if I’d recommend doing this, it made it very hard to leave, also we probably looked very dodgy. Also, on the Grand Lake side of the Continental Divide you’ll find prime moose habitat. I had the most magical time watching a moose and her calf not far from Grand Lake.
The Cozy Drives
Visiting Rocky Mountain National Park in the crisper months is a perfect excuse to get a warm (pumpkin-flavour-optional) drink and go on a fall drive. Luckily, driving pretty much anywhere in the park is a feast for the eyes. The must-drive for me is the Old Fall River Road. This road takes you up to the alpine tundra of the park and the top boasts stunning 360 views. Being an old mountain road (opened 1920) it’s gravel, it’s steep, and in some places narrow. I love a challenging road but I’d recommend doing more research on this road before you commit to driving it! Incase this road isn’t for you, consider driving the Trail Ridge Road. It takes you up to the same summit point and is a well-paved, much less risky feeling road.
The Hiking
Good news, it’s still hiking season! Sure the days are a bit shorter, but there’s less thunderstorms and slightly less people so the hiking is arguably better. It was a little colder than the summer, but Colorado’s weather is so changeable and unpredictable that this might not always be the case. Fall hiking is great for getting in those last high elevation hikes before the snow pack comes back. We definitely took advantage of that with a hike up to Andrews Glacier. We did have to start this hike in the dark to have enough time to complete it and to get a parking spot, but it wasn’t too early for us and getting up early definitely paid off (see the next point). The main takeaway here is, it’s still hiking season in fall, so why not head to Rocky Mountain National Park.
The Sunsrise, Sunset, and Stars
The days are shorter so that means you don’t have to stay up late for a stunning mountain sunset, you’ll catch it on your drive back from a busy day. You don’t have to wake up stupidly early to watch a sunrise light up the valley. And if you are up early for a hike or to watch the elk rut, or up late because your friend hasn’t returned from his hike yet (that’s a story for another day), the stars will be littering the sky.
Summary
Incase it wasn’t clear, I’m the biggest fan of Rocky Mountain National Park. I would advocate going any time of the year, but there was something so special about going in fall. I highly recommend you visit and see for yourself! Let me know if I have convinced you to visit! Ooh and tell me if I’m missing any key reasons to visit Rocky Mountain National Park in fall!
