Colorado Hike: Chasm Lake (RMNP)

Ask 10 Coloradans why they love this state and I'm going to guess the majority of the answers you get will mention the mountains. They certainly ranked high on our list when we decided to move out here.

For a while I was doing a fairly good job of sharing information about the trails we've hiked or run, but I've fallen out of the habit. I'm going to try and get back in the habit because there are so many gems to be shared - like the beautiful and somewhat difficult trail we hiked this past weekend.

While I always hope this information is helpful for others who are looking for a trail to hike - or run - I personally love being able to look back and see where we've been.

Chasm Lake, Rocky Mountain National Park

This trail begins at the Longs Peak trailhead and shares a trail with the Longs Peak trail for several miles. Roundtrip, you'll travel about 8.5 miles and the "strenuous" rating is on point as far as I'm concerned. The trailhead sits at an elevation of 9,405 feet and the highest recorded elevation on this trail is 11,823 feet. 

The first two or so miles are in an evergreen forest. The trail is very well maintained and clear, which is much appreciated, but don't take your eyes off the trail for too long or else you're likely to trip on rocks or tree roots. The trail crosses streams in a few spots and there are some beautiful waterfalls to cross. We were lucky enough to enjoy beautiful wildflowers along the way, and were also quite popular with the mosquitoes.

Eventually you'll climb out of the forest and reach the alpine tundra. There are no trees for shade and the sun can be punishing, so be sure to wear sunblock and have a hat with you. On the upside, there are beautiful views and you'll have left the mosquitoes behind! The trail is still very easy to follow and you'll enjoy a few short respites where the trail levels off for a bit and you can catch your breath.

You'll make your way to a stretch where you walk along the wall of the canyon and have a view down below to a lower lake and a waterfall. At the end of this section there's a bit of scrambling to do and when we visited, there was still some patches of snow, right along the canyon wall, to cross. We could easily follow the path set by others and our hiking poles were useful.

Once across, there's a beautiful flat section where you'll walk along and cross over streams and likely see a number of marmots - the only animals beyond squirrels, birds and mosquitoes that we saw along the entire hike. Here there is also the second of two privy's along the way that likely are welcome sights for many.

One last climb before the lake. While some have described this as "easy", I felt it was a bit challenging. It's all relative but it is doable. On the way down we determined we had taken the wrong way up, so I'll give you a hint: stay towards the right side on the climb up.

It was all worth it once you make it up that last climb. The lake is beautiful, clear and is an instant reminder of just how small we all are.

Take a few minutes to have a snack, relax, take stock of the work you've put in so far, snap some photos and enjoy the view before you start the trip back to the trailhead.

What to know if you go:

• This lot fills up very early, so plan to arrive before 7:00am
• While you don't enter through a main entrance to the park, it is part of Rocky Mountain National Park, so be sure to pay the entrance fee
• There is a Ranger Station and toilets, as well as picnic tables at the trailhead
• Storms come up quick in Colorado in the summer, especially after noon. So be sure to check the weather forecast before you go and don't start out on your hike if it's already raining or getting really dark. Another great reason to go early. Hiking in a storm is not safe or smart.
• Be sure to take plenty of water, snacks, sunblock and a hat. Bug spray is also advised. 
• Hiking poles are definitely helpful on this trail.
• Have fun, be courteous, leave the animals alone, pack in/pack out, and enjoy this beautiful park!

To help plan your trip, reference this Longs Peak Area Trail Guide from the National Parks Service.

We're open to trail recommendations in Rocky Mountain. If you have one, let me know!

Snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park

It was 75 degrees and sunny in Denver, but there were five feet of snow in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Choosing to skip the holiday traffic and crowds of the free parks day, we headed up to Estes Park Monday afternoon and were surprised to find green grass in and around town. That evening, we visited a local brewery, filled up on Mexican food, then spent the night in an historic lodge built over 100 years ago on the side of Prospect Mountain. The next morning we woke up early, ate some breakfast, packed up our gear, and put on our layers and boots, before heading into the national park for an adventure.

My parents gifted us an annual parks pass for Christmas and we were excited to put it to use. Our goal is to visit Rocky Mountain (RMNP) at least four times this year, as well as other national parks. The annual pass is only $80 and helps provide much needed support and funds to the parks system. In this one day alone we got nearly 5 hours worth of entertainment, adventure and physical exertion thanks to the pass. Not bad considering a single night out of dinner and a movie can cost just as much.

According to an official press release, RMNP received more than 4.5 million visitors in 2016, an 8.7% increase over the year before. While they attribute some of the increase to the centennial celebration of the national parks system, the population boom along the Front Range likely also played a role and will continue to do so in the future.

While I love that more people are enjoying our parks, breathing fresh air, and getting their heart rate up a bit, the surge in visitors has put a lot of stress on the parks. There's a shortage of rangers, maintenance costs have increased and there's a lot more wear and tear on the trails and other infrastructure in the parks. Passes and visitation fees can help, but as visitors we also need to make sure we're being respectful of the environment, leaving no trace, leaving wildlife alone, and speaking up when others aren't doing their part.

Okay.... back to Tuesday. After talking with a very helpful and energetic park ranger at the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center, we took his advice and headed to the Bear Lake trailhead parking lot. We saw only a few other cars driving through the park and there were only a handful at the trailhead when we arrived. In other words, it was perfect.

The route we took left from the Bear Lake trailhead and immediately started about a half mile descent (we did not realize this was going to be the case and instantly regretted the decision because it meant the last half mile of our trek would be uphill.) This connected into the trail to, and past, Alberta Falls near the Glacier Gorge trailhead. We hiked a good section of this trail back in 2015, but this time there was snow and we split off and went to The Loch instead of Mills Lake.

There are several solid climbs throughout the trek to get our heart rate up and lungs burning, but also a good number of easier segment to just enjoy the scenery. The wind was blowing pretty strong all morning, so we appreciated the cover from the trees when we had it.

Unfortunately the trails aren't marked for winter use like some trails are in Colorado, so we did get off track a few times and we never did find the winter trail bypass. At one point we followed a well worn path until it became windswept and turned into tracks from a single skier. This took us through more than one questionable section, but we (Matt, more than I) had faith that this crazy person knew where they were going and thankfully that turned out to be true when we connected back in to the main trail.

The ranger had warned us that the last section before The Loch would be a pretty steep climb but that it was "fairly short" in length, "fun," and well worth it. (please take note of the quotes) This section called for us to use the heel lifts on our snowshoes, which made it much easier than it would have been otherwise, but I still stopped a few times to catch my breath.

There was a bit of a leveling off at the top, around a bend and then The Loch was in front of us. We had checked with the ranger and knew the lake would be sufficiently frozen, so we walked out a bit onto the ice and Matt finally got to see it in person.

As we were leaving The Loch and heading back down, we ran into a couple who had camped out in the woods just below the last big ascent. They had hiked up to the lake around midnight, decided it was too windy (it was howling when we were there) and decided to make camp a little lower down in the trees. A good reminder that even though we though we were killing it on this snowshoe, there are so many people in this state who are hardcore to the point that I can't even imagine. Nevertheless, we were proud of our effort.

All in all, our snowshoe trek ended at 6 miles with a visit to Bear Lake at the end. The parking lot was much more full when we got back to the car, and while we did see a number of people out on the trails, most seemed to be hanging around Bear Lake which is just a few hundred feet in from the trailhead.

Snowshoeing is no joke. It's a really great workout and, at least for us, the miles go a bit slower than they do when we hike, so we were out on the trail for several hours. It was beautiful and fun, and we stayed pretty warm with several layers, thick socks, waterproof boots, and a thermos full of hot green tea.

Unfortunately my physical exertion didn't end when the snowshoes came off. It was day 99 of my run streak, so on our way out of the park I had Matt stop at a pull-off along the roadway and let me out. Thankfully there was another pull-off exactly a mile later where he waited for me. It was the hardest mile of all the miles I'd done over those 99 days, but I got it done and my 3 mile run the next day was much better.

What's your favorite winter sport? * Have you tried snowshoeing?

Hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park

When I'm asked what I enjoy most about living in Colorado, my response is "the endless opportunities to enjoy the outdoors." More specifically, I've been falling in love with hiking and (when not injured) trail running. This past Saturday we woke up early and headed up to Rocky Mountain National Park - which is celebrating its 100th anniversary - to get a fix of fresh mountain air and get our hearts beating. 

At the suggestion of a colleague who is working towards hiking every trail in RMNP, we decided to tackle the Mills Lake trail. This one starts at the Glacier Gorge Trailhead not far from the Beaver Meadows entrance which is just outside of Estes Park. By the time we arrived a bit before 9am (it's about an hour and a half drive from our house in Denver), the parking nearest the trailhead was full so we parked at the Park & Ride and took the shuttle - which was very easy and convenient, albeit packed. 

The Mills Lake trail is popular with families because the first section especially is a very easy hike and less than a mile in is Alberta Falls, which is quite beautiful. The trail at the start is fairly wide and we saw many families with young kids to grandparents. As you continue, the trail gets slightly more technical but it's still a moderate hike for the 2.8 miles to Mills Lake. We did lose most of those families at the waterfall, which was just fine with us. We like our space when we hike!

When we got to the lake we were blown away by its beauty. It's nestled right up against the mountain and reflects back the clouds in the sky and the rocks and trees along its edges. The edges were perfect for relaxing or enjoying a picnic. We wanted to stop but decided to press on and extend our hike to Black Lake. 

Past Mills Lake the trail gets more technical but not impossible. The crowds definitely thinned out for this portion. The trail winds through marshy areas, a section where a massive amount of trees had been uprooted during a rare microburst back in 2011, along the Glacier Creek, and across rock. You know you're arriving at Black Lake because you first hear, then see, Ribbon Falls. At the top of the falls are huge boulders that lead to a lake that is even more beautiful than Mills Lake. It was absolutely breathtaking and one of mother nature's great beauties. We lingered for a while on the rocks to take in the enormity of it all.

I briefly talked with a man who had come around the edge on a small trail who suggested we take the trail up higher to see the view as he thought it was an even more incredible perspective, and this was one of his favorite hikes that he's done several times. So, of course, off we went. This section is very steep and being above 10,000 feet it was quite difficult. Woody went farther than I did, but really, I was beyond happy with the view I had. It does look black from above, but it's some of the clearest water we've seen anywhere.

After a bit we made our way back down, spent a few more minutes on the rocks then started back towards the trailhead. This is an out and back trail but the perspective going each way is different enough we loved it. We took a break at Mills Lake to dip our feet in the water - which is so cold that it stung - and enjoy the peaceful scenery for a few minutes. Thankfully the cold water gave us a nice energy boost as we continued on. While the sky had been very blue for most of our hike, the clouds had started to roll in as we were leaving Black Lake. Weather conditions can change very quickly in the mountains and afternoon rainstorms are quite frequent during the summer. While we had our rain jackets with us, we didn't have to use them, although I wouldn't be surprised if some hikers did later in the afternoon in some parts of the park.

While we've done a number of hikes now in a number of parks, this is my favorite so far. I do like a bit more technicality, but the views are just stunning. Every turn the trail took brought into view something else that was just awesome, and there were so many beautiful wild flowers. I definitely hope to go back, and maybe make it a bit longer of a hike by doing the full Black Lake trail but also adding on a spur to check out The Loch or Lake Haiyaha. If you make your way to Rocky Mountain National Park, I highly recommend this trail - even if you only get to Alberta Falls.

If you've been to Rocky Mountain National Park, what trail did you love most? * With one month left of summer, what do you want to do that you haven't done yet?