Emerald Lake Hiking Guide: Rocky Mountain National Park, CO

Helpful links:
Rocky Mtn NP Site: www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm
Rocky Mtn Ticketed Entry:
www.recreation.gov/timed-entr...
Emerald Lake Hike on AllTrails:
www.alltrails.com/trail/us/co...
My hike to Sky Pond: • Sky Pond via Glacier G...
Things to do in Rocky Mountain NP: • 10 Things to Do in Roc...
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Shop Stoof's original National Park inspired paintings on her website: www.stephmoracafineart.com/ga...
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[@PatrickBoberg]

This video has me so hyped for my trip next week. Great work.

[@TravelSzN]

Awesome! Thank you and have an amazing time in the Rockies!

[@MobyLife]

It's so nice to watch such a video on these hot days, a lot of freshness, very cool!

[@TravelSzN]

Glad you enjoyed it! We miss these cooler rainy days too!

[@JohnAmes]

Thanks for the great video my friends

[@donroy7825]

Hi Travel SzN 👋 !! Thanks for this marvelous Emerald Lake hike, so well filmed and edited. Thanks for all the information. This is a hike I have actually done 🤩 !!. Back in 1992 we teamed up with friends from Dallas, 👩🏼‍🤝‍👨🏻👩🏼‍🤝‍👨🏻 we were all staying in Estes Park for a week in July. We got perfectly still sunny weather for this spectacular hike. I was a bit unwell the next day, thanks to the altitude and all the running about, taking photographs at the top of the trail 🏔 🏃💆🏻. A wonderful location. Greetings from Scotland 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿, cheers, Don 🙋‍♂️ !!

[@TravelSzN]

oh that is awesome you had the chance to do this hike! it is beautiful! thanks Don!

[@ervinslens]

So atmospheric place, loving the combination of audio and shots here. Beautiful upload 🏔🥾🥾

[@TravelSzN]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@hdi4eva-castlesbydrone531]

Wonderful hike on beautiful trails to and along these magnificent mountain lakes. It looked so amazing as the sun came out after the rain, creating a wonderful atmosphere. Nice and instructive video again, my dear friends.🤘👌

[@TravelSzN]

Thank you very much!

[@travel_nature_and_life]

obviously , we prefer hiking on a sunny day, but I must admit , even on the rain, there is a part of mystery added that is really interesting 💛

[@TheCrafterNookWithConnie]

I truly love watching your hikes no matter where you take us. Each one puts me in awe. There are some views that give me goose bumps just thinking of them. You know the ones where the path is like on the very edge, 200 foot drop, and a whopping 12 inch wide. I also like walking in the rain and Hubby doesn't. Men LOL Looking forward to your next video SUPER SHARE as Always!!👍👍❤

[@TravelSzN]

hahaha thanks so much Connie! We had a couple hikes near cliff edges this summer, they were very exhilarating!

[@markglosser4266]

Thank you for forcing me to add Rocky Mount NP to my bucket list LOL. Gotta admit, I’m with Nate…Soooo glad the rain stopped ;)

[@TravelSzN]

haha yes! It is a beautiful park with so many great hikes!

[@pjourneys5337]

Nice lake hiking !

[@AlphaTraveler1]

OK, I realized that you will probably never run out of AWESOME places to hike. HAHAHA. LIKE 10. 👍👍👍👍

[@TravelSzN]

:D so many amazing places to hike!!

[@kristenwilliams1513]

Just went! So pretty.

[@TravelSzN]

Nice! :D

[@supriyasou3722]

Did this hike last week and it was very different..completely snow covered everywhere 😅

[@TravelSzN]

oh wow! was the lake still frozen over?

[@supriyasou3722]

@@TravelSzN It was frozen but not enough to walk across

[@lotusriver88]

thanks for the great video. For Timed entry+Bear lake. is the window time for main gate entry or Bear lake Road Entry?

[@TravelSzN]

Here is what I found on the NPS site: "Rocky Mountain National Park's timed entry permits are available in 2-hour blocks of time. This means that when you reserve a timed entry permit, a visitor must initially enter the park within the 2-hour window specified under the reserved permit. Are you planning to visit any destinations located along the Bear Lake Road Corridor? These destinatons include Moraine Park, Sprague Lake, Glacier Gorge, and Bear Lake. If yes, you will need a Timed Entry + Bear Lake Road permit. You must enter through one of the park's main entrances (Fall River, Beaver Meadows, Grand Lake), as well as enter the Bear Lake Road Corridor during your reserved 2-hour window of time. " ...so it looks like in your 2 hour timed entry window, you must enter the park and enter bear lake corridor. Have fun in RMNP! :)

[@Brightbear_mom584]

Thank you for sharing such detailed information in your RMNP videos. We plan to go in June 2023. We will have a 9 year old and our 2 1/2 son. My son will be in a hiking backpack carrier my friend gave me. He enjoys being in it so far. This will be our first time to leave the State of Texas and our first time to see mountains. We have hiked the marble cliffs and hills of Ink’s Lake state park with my son on my back and I did well, of course now he’s probably 10lbs heavier. Haha! This seems like a good hike to take with small children. Can you recommend things to back, good gear, tools and things that would be helpful, especially if it rains. We’ll be going the first week of June, what week of June did y’all go last year? Any advice would be so very helpful!

[@TravelSzN]

have a great time in RMNP and enjoy the mountains! I would just recommend to be extra careful on the snow covered sections of the trail - we went in mid June and there was still a good amount of snow in some areas. The snow can get slippery and cave in a little when you walk on it. Thanks for watching and have a fun time in the park!

[@daveharter6469]

We hiked it late in June. no snow. lots of people, we walked around Bear Lake first.

[@ouamaiahtra6722]

Do you get to Alberta falls while you’re going to emerald lake or is getting to alberta falls on a totally different trail?

[@TravelSzN]

Alberta falls is a different trail! Here is the Alberta Falls trail route: www.alltrails.com/explore/trail/us/colorado/alberta-falls-trail?mobileMap=false&ref=sidebar-static-map

[@mcgope]

Do you think we'd need jackets for early May? Or snow spikes?

[@TravelSzN]

Sorry for this delayed response - yes you likely need jackets and snow spikes until June. Looks like they received a lot of snow this May! How was your hike?

[@mcgope]

@@TravelSzN snow spikes in early May was a must!

[@ohheyyitsharon]

Were you there on a weekend or week day? How early did you start in the day to snag a parking spot?

[@TravelSzN]

We were there on a Friday in June and I believe we arrived at the parking lot around 4:30/5PM, so many people already left for the day.

[@timp_]

👍

[@omgitsriskayy6082]

Do I have to buy a pass if I’m going in February? I’m checking the website and it’s not letting me choose dates

[@TravelSzN]

sorry for the late response - it looks like the timed entry system kicks back on in May! More info here www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/timed-entry-permit-system.htm

[@MichaelGarton74]

I hiked with snow it was bad

[@greg7712]

What month were you there?

[@TravelSzN]

mid June 2022!

[@101ummm]

Do you recommend buying bear spray?

[@TravelSzN]

Black bear are in the area in Rocky Mtn NP, so it would be a good idea to have some bear spray on you while you hike. I personally did not see bear on my trip, but saw quite a few moose and elk in the park. This is a popular trail, so you are not likely to be alone for long periods of time while doing this hike.