Rocky Mountain National Park Tidbits
Trail Ridge Road

• Rocky Mountain National Park, "Rocky" to its close friends, straddles the Continental Divide. The Continental Divide is NOT the highest point or ridge, it is the point at which a drop water will start its travels to the Atlantic or Pacific Ocean, depending on whether it falls slightly to one side or the other of the Divide

  

• Rocky has the highest continuous paved road in the US - Trail Ridge Road rises more than 12,000 feet above sea level as it runs between Grand Lake and Estes Park

• Trail Ridge Road is closed in winter. It closes around the middle of October and is reopened by Memorial Day weekend (late May) most years. Mother Nature does not always cooperate, so call ahead to see what the weather and road conditions are. During times when the road is closed, the trip between (around the long way) Grand Lake and Estes Park will take about 4 hours!

• Trail Ridge Road may be closed for a few hours or days any time of year due to snow, ice, fog, or other weather conditions. These conditions may change rapidly, so keep this in mind when making your plans. Even if you call ahead, things can change between when you call and when you arrive - for the better or the worse!

• Because of the high elevation, allow yourself to move more slowly -- there's a lot less oxygen up here than most folks are used to. Drink lots of water -- it's very dry and you can easily become dehydrated. If you feel ill, come down to lower elevation right away. Altitude sickness can affect anyone, regardless of physical condition, and in some cases can be life-threatening.

• Use a lower gear going up and coming down. Even an automatic transmission can be geared down for mountain driving. Usually, "L" or "2" or "D2" (depending on how your indicator is labelled) will give you better power up the grades, and provide some "compression breaking" (using the engine to keep your speed down) and save your brakes from overheating.

  

• PLEASE use the pull-outs and parking areas for taking pictures, for letting faster traffic move past you, and for enjoying the scenery. The only thing worse than being worried about the road's lack of guard rails is to come around a turn to find a car stopped in the roadway!

• Afternoon thunderstorms are common in the main visitor season. They can be spectacular and very dangerous. Watch for building clouds, and get below tree line to watch nature's display from a safe vantage point.