Hello everyone,

I will be in Denver in mid-April for a conference, and I have taken two extra days to go to the Rocky Mountain NP. I am aware that it is short in time, and that there will be snow. However, I am looking for hikking possibilities for those two days, starting from a road which is not closed because of the snow at this time of the year. I can rent snowshoes or ski (I am very familiar with cross country skiing in France). However, I will probably be alone so I do not want to take too much risk with avalanches (although I suppose in april, the snow should be more or less stabilised ?).
Thank you for your advices.

Olivier (Toulouse, France)

Bonjour Olivier, et bienvenue a Colorado

First, I should say that, of course weather and conditions vary year to year, but, generally speaking, mid-April is usually still very much winter in the Colorado Rockies. In fact, our biggest snowfalls of the season usually occur in March and April. That said, it sounds like you enjoy mountains, snow, and skiing, so you should still be able to have a great time during your few days off.

As far as access, given your limited time, I would suggest focusing your attention on the Bear Lake road, which is open and maintained year-round. Because of this, the trails off of this road also tend to be fairly well-traveled throughout the winter season, meaning less trail-breaking and more scenery. As far as some specific recommendations:

1) Flattop Mountain. A good first "real mountain" in RMNP. About 3000 feet/1000 meters gain from the Bear Lake trailhead. Easy, low-angle trail the entire way. No avalanche danger on the standard hiking route from Bear Lake. Great scenery, and can be great randonee/telemark ski tour if conditions are good.

2) The "lakes tour". From the Bear Lake trailhead, head up towards Dream and Emerald lakes, then take the spur to Lake Haiyahah, then the cutoff trail to the Lock and Mills Lake, and then back down to the road (a trail parallel to the road leads back to the parking lot at Bear Lake). Also a great ski tour. No summits, but spectacular scenery and some very good skiing. The section to Lake Haiyahah CAN have some avalanche danger, but if there has been a lot of snowfall you can skip that section and still have a great time.

3) Black Lake. Instead of the "lakes tour", start at the Glacier Gorge TH, take the trail to Mills Lake and then continue on to Black Lake. I have not actually done this trip, but heard very good things about it.

4) Odessa-Bierstadt loop: From Bear Lake TH, start on the Flattop trail, but take a right onto the Odessa Lake trail about 30 min into the hike. After passing Odessa and Fern Lakes, you'll need to take another right turn toward Cub Lake (a substantial climb), in order to eventually return to the starting point via Bierstadt Lake. I also have not done this trip in its entirely, and I know it's a long one, but at least the section from Lake Helen to Odessa and Fern lakes is absolutely spectacular. Again, it would probably be best as a ski tour. There is a section between Lake Helen and Odessa Lake that could have avalanche danger, so use good judgment and check the latest avalanche conditions (http://avalanche.state.co.us/.

There are many other options, of course, but these are just some that come to mind. Enjoy!

Thank you very much Alexey for this very precise information.

I am very happy to know that there is still one road open, and with so many possibilities starting from this road.
Moreover, it is better if the trails are well travelled : alone in the snow, it is good to see some people from time to time (I will take in this case an avalanche beacon with me).
I will study all these trails carefully.
Do you know if the car rental companies in Denver provide special equipements for driving on a road covered with snow ?
May be winter tyres are sufficient ?

Well, the Bear Lake road is plowed and maintained regularly throughout the winter. Most of the time, you should be fine in any type of car, even without winter tires. Occasionally the road is indeed snow-covered, in that case snow tires or AWD/4WD may be a good idea. The park regularly updates the conditions here: http://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/bear-lake-snow-conditions.htm. As you can see, they even sometimes write what type of vehicle is recommended for that day. Also, if you click on the "trail reports" link on the upper right side of that page, it lists the latest trail conditions (in this case, this hasn't been updated in almost 2 weeks, but still can be useful).

As far as car rental companies, I'm not aware that they provide chains (I'm assuming that's what you meant by "special equipment"?), but you can buy them at many gas stations or tire shops. Personally, I would probably not bother with those on the Bear Lake road, but I suppose it depends on the conditions.

Oh, lastly: if you're looking for more of a mountain summit hike, you might want to check out Grizzly Peak and/or Mount Sniktau - off of Loveland Pass on US Highway 6. These are high-elevation ridge hikes with great views, and are avalanche-safe no matter how much snow there is. Another bonus is that Loveland Pass is considerably closer to Denver than Rocky Mountain NP. Although, Rocky is certainly very beautiful in its own way...

http://www.summitpost.org/grizzly-peak/152333
http://www.summitpost.org/mount-sniktau/152332

Thanks again Alexey

I have read that the cars of the main rental car companies in Denver are equiped with 4 seasons tyres, so it should be sufficient if the road is well maintained and not too steep (some companies have cars equiped with ski racks and with chains inside the car, but it is a costly option...).

I think I will stay in the Rocky Mountain NP. Even with only one road open, it is already much too wide for a two days trip, and the photographs I have seen on the internet are beautiful !

You're very welcome! Rocky is wonderful just about every time of year in my opinion - you won't be disappointed! Enjoy.