Be prepared for bad weather. During the summer months, Rocky can get hit with some nasty afternoon thunderstorms. Start your hike early, you want to be back below tree line before anything comes up.

Carry more water than you think you'll need.

NEVER head up the trail when a storm is moving in. I'm always amazed to see people heading up a trail, sometimes with small children, as I'm hauling butt downhill with the sound of thunder filling my ears. Don't mess with lightning, it's one strike and you're out. I'll usually take a few seconds to explain the danger to people, and 90% of the time they keep right on going. I'll never forget the time a storm moved in as we were returning from Ouzel Lake. My friend Sandy flew past me heading for tree line and yelled over her shoulder, "I don't want to be on the six o'clock news." More people should think like that.

For more on lightning dangers. Lightning Safety Guidelines

If you're hiking more than a short distance from the trailhead, ALWAYS take rain gear. The most beautiful day can turn miserable quickly. Being soaked to the skin is a rotten way to end a hike.

This is one of my biggest gripes in the park. When you enter the park, pull ahead and park your car if you want to talk to the ranger. Don't hold up the people in line behind you!!!!!

You know you're close to the trailhead when you see a guy in Dockers hiking towards you.

Driving in the mountains can be intimidating for first timers. It's understandable to want to drive slowly. But PLEASE, if you're holding up traffic, pull over and let people by.

Don't ride your brakes. Use a low gear on your car to slow down. I made it from the visitor center on Trail Ridge to Hidden Valley and only tapped the brakes once at Rainbow Curve. Save your brakes for when you really need them.

Wildflowers are for looking at, DON'T PICK THEM!! There's a line in my favorite hiking book that says something to the effect that anyone picking Colorado Blue Columbine will be hanged from the state capitol building AND fined $500.

No matter how tempting it might be, DON'T TAKE SHORT CUTS. Stay on the trail, even if a straight line is much shorter than the switchbacks. Short cuts cause erosion. Damage to the tundra can take hundreds of years to repair. Back in 1980, we were returning from Flattop Mtn, when we saw a busload of teenagers tramping accross the tundra, totally ignoring the trail. I tried talking to them, but they kept right on going. Where is lightning when you really need it?

Take nothing but pictures, leave nothing but footprints. And make sure your footprints are on the trail. Thanks from everyone who loves the park.