Best trails in Rocky Mountain National Park
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.
Guides
Trail reviews for Rocky Mountain National Park
Make sure to bring a wide brimmed hat as there’s no shades in lots of portions of the trail. There’s no water facilities at the trail head so come prepared and or bring a water filter. It was probably just me but Google Maps led me astray after awhile so when you see the BIG: « Rocky Mountain North Inlet » sign go in that direction. The « Sides » of these trails are on private property….and you have to actually leave the « main » Rocky Mountain National Park area in order to get to the North Inlet Trails.
We loved this easy going hike to Ouzel Falls in RMNP's Wild Basin area. Saw Copeland Falls and Calypso Cascades on the way and made note of the different campsites in case we want to revisit for a future, short backpacking trip. Wildflowers are making themselves known. We reached the parking lot by 8:15 and got one of the last spots. Would recommend showing up by 7 AM during the week in the summer before it gets warm. We would totally do this hike again. Timed entry reservations are only needed from 9 AM to 2 PM this year. So if you arrive earlier, no problem though. You do need a Park pass for Rocky Mountain national Park though.
Beautiful variety of valleys, forests, and mountains. Great trail conditions, but some rocky areas and high stairs. Amazing views of Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park.
A real sense of the Rocky Mountains!
The ice on Emerald Lake is breaking up. Nymph and Dream lakes have no ice.The snow makes great memories and photos. Plenty of hikers did not have shoe chains and went slower with far more slipping. Lots of people but no real complaints. Epic Rocky Mountain experience!