Estes Park

Estes Park was the last stop of our 10-day Colorado loop — Denver, then the
long scenic drives to Ouray and Telluride, up through Vail, and finally here,
the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. After a week of dramatic passes
and old mining towns, I wondered if the finale could keep up. It did.

The town

Estes Park is the kind of mountain town where the wildlife hasn't read the
memo about staying in the park. Elk wander across the golf course, graze by
the visitor center, and occasionally hold up traffic on the main drag like
they own the place — which, honestly, they do. The riverwalk along the
Big Thompson is an easy evening stroll, and the shops are touristy in the
cheerful way: taffy, t-shirts, and huckleberry everything.

The Stanley Hotel sits above town, white and stately — famous as the
inspiration for The Shining, but far less menacing with a lemonade on the
veranda.

Into the park

Rocky Mountain National Park starts minutes from town, and the highlight is
Trail Ridge Road — the highest continuous paved road in the US, topping
out over 12,000 feet. The drive climbs through three ecosystems in under an
hour: pine forest, then wind-bent trees at the treeline, then the alpine
tundra, where it's suddenly 20 degrees colder and the views stretch forever
in every direction. Pull over at Forest Canyon Overlook and just stand there
a while.

Closer to the ground, the Bear Lake area packs several short hikes into
one trailhead — Bear Lake itself is an easy flat loop, and Nymph, Dream, and
Emerald Lakes stack one after another up the same trail, each prettier than
the last. Go early; the parking lot fills before mid-morning and the shuttle
line grows fast.

Notes for next time

• Timed-entry permits are required for the park in summer — book ahead,
  especially for the Bear Lake corridor.
• Mornings are for hiking; afternoon thunderstorms roll in like clockwork
  above the treeline.
• After Ouray and Telluride's box canyons, RMNP feels wider and higher —
  less dramatic up close, more overwhelming at a distance. Save it for last;
  it's the right ending.

Ten days, five mountain towns, one national park, and a camera roll I'm
still sorting through. Colorado, you were showing off.