Rocky Mountain National Park:

I woke up this morning excited to make my way back into Rocky Mountain National Park. Today we were going to hike to Bear Lake and Emerald Lake. It would be a short hike (less than 5 miles), but remembering that there aren’t many places to find drinking water, I made sure to fill up a few bottle of water for our day pack. I also put in some snacks and rain jackets. Nisheet packed his swimsuit. It is a lake after all and the forecast was showing it was going to be a hot sunny day (with the possibility of storms, hence the jackets).

We picked up some sandwiches from a local grocery store and drove to Rocky Mountain National Park. We sat on a shady slope and watched the grasses gently blow in the meadow before us as we filled our bellies in preparation for our hike. We were told the parking lot at the trail head fills up very early in the morning, so we didn’t even bother trying to get a spot there. Instead we parked in a gigantic lot (with a bathroom!) and took a bus to the trail head. There was ample parking, but the bus was full even though it was the day after labor day. I’d hate to see how crowded it gets during peak season (which ended yesterday). Once we got to the trail, there was a ranger that told you about the trails and warned that the first part was rather crowded. He was right. Bear Lake is seriously just a hop away, and there were a ton of people there. Though the lake was very pretty, the crowds distracted me from the beauty.

 

We then headed to Emerald lake. The crowds thinned only a little bit. We made it to Dream Lake first, and honestly, I thought it was Emerald Lake due to the emerald color. I probably liked it even better too. You could see fish swimming and chipmunks were scampering around. Emerald Lake, and true to the name, it was also emerald green and though it was gorgeous, it was very crowded. We sat on some rocks, had a quick snack, and watched some mountain climbers, and then it was back to the trail.

 

 

This was as far as we had planned to hike (and what I had packed water for), but we decided to continue our journey. As we took a right onto a new path to Lake Haiyaha, almost everyone else went back the way we came. From here, we only saw a handful of people for the rest of our hike. As we neared the lake, the nice clear trail turned into a field of boulders. It was more fun than difficult to navigate across them, and they offered personal perches to view Lake Haiyaha. It was even more spectacular than Emerald Lake, and although I was already rationing my water, I was glad we had decided to hike here. As you probably have guessed by the name (Haiyaha = rock), the entire lake is surrounded by rocks and boulders, and there are boulders peaking out from the clear mountain water. Nisheet decided that this would be the perfect place to test out his swim trunks. We were hot and sweaty and the water looked so pure, refreshing, and tempting. He climbed down to the waters edge and plunged his foot in before quickly realizing that no one was swimming here because the water felt colder than ice.

 

Forgetting the urge to swim, we started back on our hike. We passed little ponds and stunning lookouts and then we came to a barer rocky area. And then I heard it. It was that buzzing electric sound again that I heard the previous day by the blue lakes. It was a stupid bug! At least the mystery was finally solved! The next (and last) major stop on our loop was Alberta Falls. Since the falls is only around 0.6 miles from the trailhead, the trails once again became crowded, though not so much as around Bear and Emerald Lake. The falls were obviously beautifully as the water came gracefully crashing down in a forest of aspens. There are plenty of lookouts so there was always a good vantage point even if there were lots of other people also trying to find the best view. I probably would have thoroughly enjoyed it and been mesmerized by each water drop following his own path over the cliffs and rocks and rejoining the others below, but I WAS OUT OF WATER. I was so thirsty. The only thing that kept me going those last 6 tenths of a mile was hearing cars and knowing that I’d soon be able to talk a huge gulp of cold water. I stumbled up to the bus stop. No water. I had to wait for what seemed like forever, but finally the bus came, we got back to the parking lot, and I was able to drink my heart out. And yes, I do realize I’m being over dramatic.

I don’t consider us very fit people, but I was reminded that most people have difficulty hiking at such an elevation when the people around us kept complaining about how hard it was. For us though, it was a relatively easy hike as long as you take breaks. And remember to bring more water than you think you need!

After a exhausting and wonderful day of hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park, we treated ourselves to the best dinner so far on the trip. We went to Smokin’ Daves BBQ. There was a long line, but I had read that it well worth the wait, so wait we did. And waited. And waited some more. I began to think the place would close before we got seated, but we eventually did, and it was definitely worth it. We both promptly ordered a beer and then decided to split a triple platter with extra sides. It was a lick your plate clean type of meal, and a great end to the already perfect day.

BTW, we also found out that it hailed and stormed in other parts of Rocky Mountain National Park that day. Boy had we lucked out with sunny weather all day!