Estes Park has pedestrian trails that connect downtown to Lake Estes and then continue West to Fall River Rd and also South to Carriage Hills.  This includes the Riverwalk trail along the downtown river corridor and also the trail around Lake Estes.  Locals and visitors alike take to our town trails to enjoy our outdoors, exercise or simply get from point A to point B. With shopping and dining so close together it is great for visitors to park their cars and breath in some crisp mountain air along these paths.  As a local, my kids use it to ride their bikes to schools, I use it to walk my dog and run safely away from traffic.   In April, the Parks and Recreation Department received a grant to assist with an addition of a new section of trail.  The grant is slated to fund an 2.43 mile section beginning at the Fish Creek Trail and ending at the Lily Lake Trail head.  This new section will be an eight foot wide soft trail estimated to cost about $875,000.  The grant from Great Outdoors Colorado is covering $450,000 and the town is contributing $50,000.  The remainder of the funds come from the mill levy increase approved by voters in 2008 for trail maintenance.  Upon its completion we will have a continuous 9 miles pedestrian trail from downtown Estes Park to the Lily Lake trail head.  Construction will be in early 2011 and be complete by the end of the summer.  I am excited, what a huge benefit to us.  I love the outdoors and Haley (my Golden Retriever) and I are going to enjoy using this new trail.  Thanks Estes Park!

You start this hike from the Glacier Gorge Trail Head.  Parking this time of year is starting to fill up, but this Monday it was fine.  Shuttles are running from the Park-n-Ride if you need them.  Slightly overcast and warmer than the cold weekend weather I was able to get by with a fleece and raincoat. The day before I would have wore a parka.

The water is still running fiercely in the rivers, streams and trails in the park. I had to do a lot of rock hopping to keep my boots dry.

Along the trail to Alberta Falls

I usually don’t go by the way of Alberta Falls and prefer to short cut, but today I wanted to see the falls with all the amazing snow melt we are experiencing. It is still early summer and the trails were not crowded. Alberta Falls is such a short hike you see all types of hikers-serious backpackers or people out for a stroll wearing pressed shirts and Dockers pants.

Marsh Marigolds

Glacier Creek

Alberta Falls

The plants and wildflowers are going to be extravagant this year. You can see the foliage starting to come out as the snow melts away. We didn’t encounter any snow on the trails until right before the Loch where there is still a large snowfield. The sign for the lake is still partially buried in the drift.

Snow field before the Loch

Cathedral Wall at the Loch

This is a great intermediate hike, only 2.95 miles to the Loch. If you are hiking with children, places to stop and rest along the creek are plentiful. Later in Summer you will find raspberries and lush Columbines in the area where the trails split to go to either Mills Lake or the Loch. Right now you can see the Marsh Marigolds ready to bloom along the creeks and drainages.  Great views of the park to North and also Half Mountain as you hike. Once you arrive at the Loch the landscape and cliffs are amazing. Sit on the shore and enjoy views of Powell Peak, Taylor Glacier, the Cathedral Wall, in the distance Timberline Falls. If you choose to continue you are only 1.4 miles from Lake of Glass.  See you on the trail!

This week in June our community comes together under the co-direction of Terry Chiplin and Belle Morris and puts on the Estes Park Marathon, one of the premier high-altitude races in the country. This weekend of events includes a fun run, 5K, 10K, half and full marathon.The courses are all beautiful, if you love to compete you do not want to miss this event.  I had two runners this year so I was crew, cheerleader, mom, wife, and volunteer today. My daughter who is in 8th grade ran the 10K and my husband ran the marathon. Since he is training for the Leadville 100 Trail Run, this should have just been an easy run for him except for the weather.   The forecast was for rain and a cool 36 degrees. We don’t mind the cold, but wet is another story. It wasn’t just sprinkling, it was a downpour.  The dedication of the volunteers and runners was inspiring.  Cold and wet, but both kept going until the end.   Two new items this year were the chip timing and the promotion of going cup-less.   All runners were given a chip to tie on their shoes and at certain intervals on the course they had to run over timing mats which record their splits and finish times.  Also all the half or full marathon runners were given small plastic pouches called HydraPouches that clip on their belts so that they can just fill them and not have to get a paper cup each time.  My husband didn’t use his because they only hold about 3 ounces and that is not enough.  One of the major problems at the aid stations was the drinks, iced down water and Gatorade.  The runners were frozen like popsicles and needed warm liquids, but no one thought of this.  I was running home to get warm water to fill my husband’s bottles because his hands were blue from carrying ice water.   My husband did have a scare and the aid station medic tried to get him to drop because he got too cold and was shaking uncontrollably, but after sitting in a warm truck for 30 minutes he was ready to finish it out.  The volunteers were just outstanding, I can’t say enough about their dedication and concern for the welfare of the runners.  My husband got an Estes Park Marathon finishers medal and is still grumpy about his time of 5 hours, but you never know what mother nature is going to hand you in Estes Park.  My daughter set a new personal record for her 10K time and finished first in her age category.  Being 13, she doesn’t have much competition because all the teen runners run the 5K instead.  I was very proud of her. You can check out the results on the EP marathon.org website.  I didn’t take many photos because of the rain.  Here are a few from the start line.

Estes Park Marathon 10K Start

Video of the start, I don’t think the staff realized that by letting the runners step on the mat it started the clock. My daughters started her watch at the countdown and she was 2 minutes off and so were some other people we talked to at the finish.

Spending time in the RMNP back country is one of life’s simple pleasures. I try to plan a couple trips per summer with my family. It allows you to enjoy places further into the park because you can spend the night and venture out on day hikes. A place we have wanted to go is Lawn Lake and Crystal Lake. The only draw back is all the tons of gear you have to haul in, especially when camping with children.  Three days of food for 5 people is hard to pack for,  it took two bear canisters to hold it all. My husband and I try to load our packs the heaviest and then let each of the kids carry their own clothing and snacks. We have a rule: The person with the heaviest pack gets to whine~and that’s usually my husband and he doesn’t whine.

The Big Pack

There are three individual campsites and one group site located right East of the lake in the trees. The sites are private and the trees protect you from the wind. We choose the second site so we could set up two tents and there was a large tree stump to cook on.

Filtering water at Lawn Lake

It was cold and rainy the entire weekend. We passed a lot of time in our tents waiting for the rain to stop. Some of the wildflowers were still blooming, but many were already done. We did a little exploring between rain storms and I spent the first night mostly awake after something large walked right between our tents.

New friend we met on the way to Crystal Lake

The second day my two youngest daughters and I headed up to Crystal Lake and my husband and my oldest daughter started scrambling up Mummy Mtn right behind our campsite. All of us were caught in the nasty thunderstorm that hit in the afternoon. My group turned back, but the other group was able to summit successfully. These two photos were taken 10 minutes apart, the first one we were just minutes from Crystal Lake hoping the weather would hold.  Unfortunately, a nasty boomer came over the saddle of Mummy and gave us a scare.

Sweeping Views above Lawn lake

Taking Cover coming down from Crystal Lakes

Stormy Summit

This is my second time being in this area, the most attractive feature to me is the diversity of the wildflowers. We saw Indian Paintbrush in all colors of the rainbow, yellow, light green, red, orange, pink, coral, and lavender.

Pink Indian Paintbrush

We made a slideshow of our photos and our favorite part of camping-Jiffy Pop over the stove.

This is a beautiful area, I hope you can make there someday. See you on the trail!

What to do with kids in Estes Park? I saw this question posted recently and it is a concern for many who visit here with children too young to hike long distances. You don’t need to climb Longs Peak or back country camp in RMNP to fully appreciate the area. There is art, history, nature, food, shopping, entertainment and much more. There are too many activities to list so I will just mention of few.

It is going to be hard for me not to emphasize JUST going into the park. It is by far the best attraction we have. You don’t have to hike for miles to experience its beauty though. There are lots of places to hike just a block or two and explore rocks, streams, and see great views. Visit the Alluvial Fan near the North Entrance for hours of rock hopping, playing in the water or looking for wildflowers or wild raspberries. Also Lily Lake has a very short walking loop with plenty of opportunity for adventure. Stop in to the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center and talk to the staff for ideas. They have ranger led walks just for young children. Make your own GORP, have a picnic in Moraine Park. Drive up Old Fall River Road and find a patch of snow to play in. Let’s back up for a minute before you come into the park, stop by the Estes Park Convention and Visitor’s Bureau and get one of their calendars of events to find out what is going on around town. There might be a festival going on at Bond Park or the Stanley Park Fairground. We have the Rooftop Rodeo, Arabian horse shows, car shows, art shows, Highlands Scottish Irish Festival, Quilt Shows, Film Festivals and our course Elk Fest. You could go to a festival every weekend all summer. We do have some fun touristy kinds of attraction like go-carts and miniature golf, but I would encourage you to also check out some of the unique attractions Estes Park offers like the Estes Park Museum or MacGregor Ranch Museum. Our Art Center and Library offer programs for hands-on activities throughout the summer months. Did you bring Fido? Take him to the Dog Park to burn up some energy. If you are downtown, check out some of our kid friendly stores that sell toys or have rocks and artifacts. Watch the glass blowers at several glass shops too. Grab an ice cream cone and head over to Riverside Plaza or Performance Park to enjoy an outdoor concert. Visit the flower garden on West Elkhorn Ave. and see how many flowers you can name. Rent a bike cart and ride around Lake Estes or play at one of the many playgrounds around town. Ride the Aerial Tram to the top of Prospect Mountain. Maybe the weather is turning off bad? Head over to the Aquatic Center for a swim or to the Historic Park Theater for a movie. How about the Estes Park Mountain shop for a rock climbing lesson? And I almost forgot the YMCA of the Rockies, horseback riding and chuck wagon dinners too. Soon we will have a Planetarium for star gazing. How about an old time portrait? Are you tired yet? You don’t need to leave Estes to keep the family entertained. #1 Rule-don’t forget to take lots of water, sunscreen and snacks!