Alberta Falls and Bear Lake

Anyone who has been to Rocky Mountain National Park, or any national park for that matter, knows they get CROWDED. One of the best ways to beat the crowds are to arrive before the sun comes up (or stay after it goes down). That's how we opted to do Emerald Lake in RMNP. After spending the night near Chasm Lake below Longs Peak, we entered the park via Estes and parked at the entirely empty lot...

Begin the hike by following the Bear Lake trail and after ~.45 miles take the trail to the right towards Odessa Lake and Flattop Mountain. Continue along the trail as it climbs above Bear Lake to the split with the Flattop Mountain trail at approximately 1 mile. The trail continues toward Odessa Lake and will climb through forests and meadows along the way. Travel moderates to the Sourdough Cam...

From the Bear Lake Trailhead, the path to Nymph Lake is a moderate paved trail. At the lake there are several places to sit and take in the scenery. This is also where you'll find the most people. From here, continue up the trail towards Dream Lake. On the way, the trail forks. The left will take you to Lake Haiyaha, but head to the right, which will take you to Dream Lake. The views here are a...

Bear Lake is a popular tourist destination in Rocky Mountain NP, but when the sun is low in the sky or the stars are out you'll find the big crowd are gone. The lake is beautiful at sunrise and sunset but especially photogenic in the fall or at winter's end. While it doesn't have the darkest night skies it can still serve as an excellent location to watch meteors or photograph star trails abov...

Park at Bear Lake, and follow the signs north of the lake to Odessa Lake. However, do NOT go all the way to Odessa Lake; after about 3 miles, when Notchtop is in full view, the trail begins to descend to Odessa Lake. Find an unmarked spur trail to the left which leads to shallow Lake Helene, then scramble through slabs and krummholtz west of the lake to treeline and some small tarns. The cliff ...

Snowshoeing to Emerald Lake was completely different from hiking the trail during summer. Instead of hiking around Nymph Lake, Dream Lake, and Emerald Lake, I was able to go straight across them (check the ice to make sure it's thick enough to support your weight). Rocky Mountain National Park's trails get a lot of use even in winter, which makes it easier to find your way. When the snow cover...