Rich Voninski asked me to post an update on conditions here in Rocky Mountain National Park. I haven't had the chance to explore much of the Park yet, but I can give a brief update on conditions based on the few places I have been to.
Moraine Park: The aspen are just beginning to show a few leaves. The grass is mostly brown but a bit of green is beginning to show itself.
Horseshoe Park: Greener and aspen are a few days ahead of Moraine Park, but still not ready for prime time. The falls at Alluvial fan are running fast.
Cub Lake:The trail up to Cub Lake and around to the Pool is completely clear of snow. The lake as well is free of ice and the grass is greening up.
Bear Lake: There is snow all around the lake but the lake itself is free of ice.
Nymph Lake: Very icy trail up to Nymph and still quite a bit of snow. The lake is partially thawed but since it is in the shade it may take a little while to fully clear.
Dream Lake: Just over half the lake is free of ice. The trail up there is rather challenging due to the ice. I was up there this morning and took the image above.
Other:There is still a lot of snow up on Flattop and the surrounding mountains, but it is melting quickly with this recent weather. Snowshoes are necessary to avoid post holing. Any hiking in the trees over 9,000 feet will involve some icy snowy trails. I'll try to put some new photos of the above locations on my website later today so you can see the conditions for yourself.
If you have specific questions, let me know and I'll answer them if I can.
Tony, if you go up in the morning you almost need ice skates. If you go up after the sun has risen it begins to soften up quite a bit. If you are going up for sunset, then I would certainly recommend that you bring snow shoes. I was planning on going to Haiyaha this morning but the trail was so slippery that I couldn't make it all the way up there in time.
Posted by Scott Borger on May 16, 2006 at 12:09 PM
Much appreciated Erik. I'll start sharpening my skates. Would crampons be better than snowshoes (for the sake of ice) or is there enough loose snow to justify snowshoes? BTW: NICE shot! What time does the sunrise hit RMNP these days?
You're making me feel guilty that all I've been doing is working this winter. I guess I'll have to dustoff the camera and drive up to RMNP. Glad to have you back.
I hiked into Dream Lake this morning (Wed) and conditions are already a bit different than what Eric describes. The trail up to Dream is more than half free from snow. The snow that was there was crusty, not icy, probably because it didn't get cold enough to freeze last night.
I started out with snow shoes but they were more trouble than they were worth. Crampons might be nice to have in spots, but the well-worn trail through the snow is too narrow to walk with snowshoes side-by-side.
I ran into both Tim Zandee and Robert Castellino (author, Colorado Roadside Photography Guide), and the light was gorgeous. A good morning.
Spring keeps moving along quickly! Dream Lake was nearly free of ice this morning, mostly thin stuff that should disappear very fast. Nymph Lake was free of ice. Expect typical spring patchy/postholing hiking conditions on this trail. The large parks are getting pretty green, with plenty of neon aspen trees down low.
I drove through Grand Lake and over Trail Ridge last night. The lack of snow up on Trail Ridge is astounding, for the 3rd week of May. The Never Summer Range had a nice blanket of white though.
I'll share more pics from my trip later this week. Erik, Scott and Jim - it was great meeting up with you guys!!
Here is a hastily processed pic from Dream this morning.
Discussion
17 repliesMoraine Park: The aspen are just beginning to show a few leaves. The grass is mostly brown but a bit of green is beginning to show itself.
Horseshoe Park: Greener and aspen are a few days ahead of Moraine Park, but still not ready for prime time. The falls at Alluvial fan are running fast.
Cub Lake:The trail up to Cub Lake and around to the Pool is completely clear of snow. The lake as well is free of ice and the grass is greening up.
Bear Lake: There is snow all around the lake but the lake itself is free of ice.
Nymph Lake: Very icy trail up to Nymph and still quite a bit of snow. The lake is partially thawed but since it is in the shade it may take a little while to fully clear.
Dream Lake: Just over half the lake is free of ice. The trail up there is rather challenging due to the ice. I was up there this morning and took the image above.
Other:There is still a lot of snow up on Flattop and the surrounding mountains, but it is melting quickly with this recent weather. Snowshoes are necessary to avoid post holing. Any hiking in the trees over 9,000 feet will involve some icy snowy trails. I'll try to put some new photos of the above locations on my website later today so you can see the conditions for yourself.
If you have specific questions, let me know and I'll answer them if I can.
It's amazing that Bear Lake is totally thawed - I was up there last Saturday, 5/6, and every bit of it was still frozen.
Brian
Thanks so much for the update. Cant wait toget back up there very soon!
RichieV
You're making me feel guilty that all I've been doing is working this winter. I guess I'll have to dustoff the camera and drive up to RMNP. Glad to have you back.
Jim Rice
Broomfield, CO
Erik, glad to have you back!! Just giving you a hard time! Great image, and great info! Thanks for both!
I started out with snow shoes but they were more trouble than they were worth. Crampons might be nice to have in spots, but the well-worn trail through the snow is too narrow to walk with snowshoes side-by-side.
I ran into both Tim Zandee and Robert Castellino (author, Colorado Roadside Photography Guide), and the light was gorgeous. A good morning.
I drove through Grand Lake and over Trail Ridge last night. The lack of snow up on Trail Ridge is astounding, for the 3rd week of May. The Never Summer Range had a nice blanket of white though.
I'll share more pics from my trip later this week. Erik, Scott and Jim - it was great meeting up with you guys!!
Here is a hastily processed pic from Dream this morning.