Explore Rocky Mountain National Park

Visiting Rocky Mountain National Park is a wonderful experience for meeting participants, as a spouse program or as a leisure group activity. With 360 miles of trails, 150 lakes and 450 miles of streams, the park presents vast terrain to explore on foot, bike, horse ATV, boat, snowshoe, skis or snowboard. There are hiking trails for all levels – from quarter-mile loops to overnight hikes of 20-plus miles.

Rocky Mountain National Park was designated as a national park in 1915 and covers 267,000 acres of natural wonderment that your group will not want to miss. The park is split by the Continental Divide and surrounded by the Roosevelt, Routt and Arapahoe National Forests. Located west of Fort Collins, Loveland and Boulder with Granby and Estes Park as gateways, Rocky Mountain National Park is convenient to so much of Colorado but feels a world apart.

What to Do at the Park

Rocky Mountain National Park is an endless playground of outdoor adventure during both the summer and winter months. Meeting planners can get their team away for a memorable summer vacation filled with fresh mountain air, cool temperatures and lots of smiles, or a picture-perfect winter retreat to meet and ski at the world’s finest resorts. Here’s just a sampling of what you can do at Rocky Mountain National Park:

• Biking – Road cycles and hybrid bikes are ideal for the park, as riding off established roads is prohibited. There are miles to ride and even guided bicycle tours offered by Park Partners. 
• Canoeing and Kayaking – Bear Lake is just one of many bodies of water to see when visiting the park. It is ideal for canoeing and kayaking.
• Fishing – The many lakes in the park are also excellent for fly-fishing.  More than 27 lakes contain known populations of the four species of trout inhabiting the waters – brown, brook, rainbow and cutthroat.
• Horseback Riding – A truly western way to experience the beauty of the Rocky Mountains is horseback riding. Horses, mules, ponies, llamas, and burros are allowed in the park and there are two stables within the grounds and dozens more outside the park.
• Hayrides and Dude Ranches – Seeking authentic Western flavor? There are also fun hayrides and dude ranches to explore.
• Off-Roading – Several roads are available through the park for ATV off-roading and Jeeping. Trail Ridge Road, Fall River Road, and Bear Lake Road are popular scenic drives.
• Skiing and Snowboarding – Skiing and snowboarding in Colorado is some of the world’s best, and several top resorts have paintball, alpine coasters and other family-oriented activities. 
• Snowmobiling – Snowmobiles are also allowed along a two mile stretch of the North Supply Access Trail in the southwest corner of the park, along with miles of trails in the national forests adjacent to the park.
• Snowshoeing and Nordic – In cooler months as early as November, there is enough snow accumulation on the western side to explore the park by cross-country ski or snowshoe.

Access to the Park

Rocky Mountain National Park is open year-round, however, variable weather can cause gate/entrance closures, and the superintendent can implement area closures to protect resources, or for safety reasons. There are several visitors’ centers within the park, including Alpine Visitor Center that is open daily from late May through early October. Beaver Meadows and Kawuneeche are open daily year-round and Fall River is open year-round on weekends. Moraine Park Visitor Center is open daily throughout the summer.

Individual entrance fees are $20 per automobile, good for seven days or $40 for an annual pass.  Bicycles, pedestrians, and motorcycles are $10 per day.