Rocky Mountain National Park

Bear Lake Trailhead to Bierstadt Lake

I only did one hike at Rocky Mountain National Park, the trail started at Bear Lake Trailhead with an out and back to Bierstadt Lake.

4.4 miles Out and Back / 646 Elevation Gain

Hikes: 

Bear Lake Trailhead to Bierstadt Lake / 4.4 miles / Out & Back / 646 ft Elevation Gain

We did the 4.4 mile hike in yaktrax, waterproof hiking boots, and ski pants. As we walked in there were two individuals on cross-country skis that informed us that since we did not have snow shows we “would not make it very far”. 

There were times when the snow got a couple feet deep. But for the most part it was fine, packed in, and not that bad. 

There was low visibility so the views were not that amazing. However, the snow on the trees and ground was magical. It felt like a winter wonderland. Beautiful. 

The hike meandered across from Bear Lake Trailhead to Bierstadt Lake, around the lake, and back out along the same trail towards Bear Lake Trailhead.

A Snowstorm, a Wrong Turn, and a Snowplow

It was February 6th, 2021. The plan was to drive up early in the morning from Denver, through Boulder and Estes Park and to Rocky Mountain National Park and do a day hike at the Storm Pass Trailhead, camp at Moraine Park Campground and drive back the next day. That was the plan. 

According to AllTrails, the trail had some ice on it. So, the night before Jacqueline and I went to FEREL – An Indie Outdoor store in the Mountain View neighborhood of Denver and bought some YakTrax pros. 

The drive to RMNP was beautiful, especially the drive into Estes Park down U.S. Route 36. The first warning sign was when we got to the Conoco gas station in Estes. Flurries of snow whipped by as I got out of the car. It was frigid. We bundled up, got gas, bought a map and kept on driving to RMNP. 

Since it was our first National Park of the year we bought an Annual National Park pass. An $80 card that will get you into almost any park in the national park service for free. 

Continuing up to the campground, the snow continued to pick up and visibility dropped. We could see probably 500 yards in front of us but none of the famous vistas or mountains were visible. The campground was pretty empty, so we continued up the mountain to Storm Pass Trailhead. 

The snow slowly continued to pick up. Still not too much more than a flurry. We got to the Storm Pass Trailhead too late and all of the spots were taken. No worries. Plan B was to continue up to Bear Lake Trailhead and hike from there. 

The road ends at Bear Lake. We parked and packed up the backpack. The parking lot was packed. The bathroom line was long. As previously mentioned, early on in the hike two guys glided by on cross country skis, did a once over at our snowshoe-less boots, and said “You’re not going to make it very far”. The snow was deep at certain points, but for about 90% of the hike the snow was packed in. 

After the 4 miles in we got to Bierstadt lake, ate a sandwich and (I cannot recommend it, but some other people were out there) walked out over the frozen lake. It was a cool experience, with the fresh snow powdered over the ice. We made our way across the lake and out the other side. The snow on that side was not packed down. We stomped through 50 yards of deep snow to make it back to the trail that circles the lake. 

This is where we messed up. Coming out in a different area than we went in, we did not realize that when we started our hike back to the Bear Lake parking lot, we were not actually on our way to the Bear Lake parking lot. Instead we went four miles in the wrong direction. 

At some point I think we knew it, but did not have reception to check. When we came out of the trailhead in another parking lot we realized we were 8 miles from the original parking lot, down the mountain, the snow was picking up, and the sun was setting. We made a terrible mistake. Stupid and immature in every possible way. We should have planned better, had a gps, checked our directions multiple times and so much more. 

I called the ranger station and asked if they could pick us up and take us up to our car. It was two hours before the ranger got there. We learned later that a car took a turn too sharply and was hit by a snowplow. Thus occupying the rangers time on a more important issue.

The ranger picked us up, and the ride back to the top with the ranger was pleasant and awesome. Most park rangers are. She drove us to our car. After the ordeal we decided to not camp overnight, drove back to Denver, and we both learned a lot about hiking, preparedness, and how to communicate with each other.