2017-12-15 07:14:24
MORNING One of the most popular parks in the country, Rocky Mountain welcomes 4 million visitors a year and still manages to offer quiet solitude. Take a drive on Trail Ridge Road (4), the highest paved through-road in North America. This roller coaster route crosses the Continental Divide and offers breathtaking photo ops as you climb past subalpine forests and windswept tundra to 12,183 feet above sea level. Or enjoy a family wildflower hike to Gem Lake or Bridal Veil Falls. For a little more challenge, try the 2.8-mile Mills Lake trek. You’ll be rewarded with grand views of 14,259-foot-tall Longs Peak and the Keyboard of the Winds, a whimsical rock formation named for its shape. Pull over at Moraine Park for prime wildlife watching. More than 3,000 elk and 800 bighorn sheep live in the park, which is a regular gathering spot for bugling. Inside the park, the Rocky Mountain Conservancy offers year-round seminars, guided fly-fishing, naturalist tours, hiking and photography classes. Kent Mountain Adventure Center, the first outfitter in the U.S. to offer breathtaking (literally) cliff-camping excursions, has new activities: a kids mountaineering camp, a New Year’s Eve Longs Peak trek, backcountry ski classes/guiding and a year-round “snow-climbing school.” Or get above it all a different way at the Open Air Adventure Park, where rope bridges, aerial tight-ropes and swinging logs challenge folks 5 years old and up. There’s also a new 12-mile mountain-biking and hiking trail in Hermit Park Open Space, a new pumptrack at Stanley Park and many dog-friendly hikes around town. AFTERNOON Estes Park is the gateway into the national park, but it’s also a destination unto itself. Stop by The Barrel, a seasonal alfresco beer garden, and window-shop along Elkhorn Avenue (3), with one-of-a-kind stores, several new boutiques and restaurants and plenty of places for an afternoon snack. Stop for coffee and sit outside on the Riverwalk. One block off Elkhorn, the path follows the Big Thompson River as it flows through town and hosts street performers in the summer. Take the path east for a tranquil walk around Lake Estes (1), or stop at the marina to rent bikes, pontoon boats, paddleboards or kayaks. Then, enjoy a tasting at Snowy Peaks Winery, Elkins Distilling Company, Rock Cut Brewing Company or Lumpy Ridge Brewing Co., a former gas station with a scenic beer garden and new brews on tap regularly. Or stop into Via Bicycle Cafe, part cycling shop and hangout, part coffee-geek hot spot. EVENING Wind down with dinner at the storied Stanley Hotel (2), an elegant 108-year-old, white-pillared landmark. Guided ghost tours reveal how Stephen King was inspired to write The Shining while staying in room 217. Stop by the beautifully crafted antique Cascades Whiskey Bar to choose from 250 different wine labels and the largest whiskey collection in the state. Or liven things up at Lazy B Chuckwagon Show, where a crowd-pleasing cowboy-style chuckwagon dinner is followed by a Western musical stage show. WINTER FUN From extreme sports such as ice climbing, backcountry split-boarding and skiing to more relaxed activities like snowshoeing and curling up by the fire, Estes Park also caters to winter visitors. It’s easy to get there year-round and offers an alternative to the bustling ski resorts. STAY & PLAY OPTIONS Allenspark, Estes Park (page 195), Lyons QUICK TIP Dip into Mrs. Walsh’s Garden (the gate is to keep nibbling elk out, not curious passersby), a beautiful respite along West Elkhorn Avenue with plenty of benches for pondering the alpine landscape.
©Colorado. View All Articles.