Define Fettle Travels: Great Sand Dunes & Rocky Mountain National Parks
A recap of our road trip to Colorado to check two more National Parks off our list. Read further for our favorite hikes, the best places to spot wildlife, where to find the most insane views without hiking a mile & more!
Summer 2020 had us slotted for an epic trip to Banff National Park in Canada to celebrate my 30th birthday next to those gorgeous mountains and teal waters but COVID-19 had different plans in mind. With the Canadian border being closed, we were forced to cancel that trip and come up with a new, more feasible local [and safe] plan for the big ol’ 3-0 instead.
With our US National Park Tour always fresh in our minds, it didn’t take long to decide we’d take the opportunity to try to knock a few more parks off the list. We knew that we weren’t really interested in flying at this time [think back to summer of 2020] so the criteria for us choosing the park/parks were as follows: a driveable distance that would require only one travel day each way [also ideal for work schedules, allowing for as much time at the destination as possible] and that they parks were actually open/functioning at a level where we could experience a majority, if not all of what the park had to offer.
This narrowed our options down pretty quickly so it wasn’t long before we’d decided to make the trek out to Colorado to cross Great Sand Dunes and Rocky Mountain National Parks off of our list. Lucky for us, my FIL [Austin’s dad] has a 38ft long RV and somehow Austin knows how to handle that beast on the road so we were able to lock that in both as our mode of transportation out to Colorado and our home base while we were there, which allowed us to safely social distance throughout our entire trip.
DESTINATIONS:
Great Sand Dunes National Park:
Our road trip officially began in the wee hours of a Thursday morning and continued throughout the entirety of that day and into the night, bringing us to our home base of a Walmart parking lot to catch some ZZZs before driving the final hour to Great Sand Dunes National Park the next morning. It was a long day turned even longer by a few minor RV mishaps including: a broken generator, a miswired refrigerator and rolling into a parked car [no joke but luckily the damage was minor and the owner couldn’t have cared less] and all I have to say is… I’m so thankful that I wasn’t the one driving the RV.
The next day we arrived at the sand dunes around 10ish I’d say. We definitely didn’t really have an agenda and only had a few hours to explore the park as we still had a 5+ hour drive ahead of us, so we just got out of the RV and started hiking.
First things first, these are sand dunes and in my opinion I think it’s easiest to hike through them in hiking sandals [chacos or something similar]. My main reason in saying this is because you’re essentially climbing up a giant hill of sand and then back down which means sand is going to get into your shoes/socks immediately and stay there until you’re done anyways which is highly uncomfortable -- to me at least. Next thing, it was SUPER windy [which is very common] so sand was literally pelting us in the face the entire time. I’d highly recommend sunglasses, a hat or anything else to shield your eyes/face because at times it was tough to even open our eyes. The overall temperature is going to vary depending on what time of year you go [we went early summer remember] and also the time of day.
PRO TIP: If you’re planning on visiting the dunes in the middle of summer, during the heat of the day… beware because the sand will get incredibly hot. During these months, most people try to visit the park in the morning or late afternoon to avoid these temperatures.
I wasn’t super excited to visit the sand dunes to be honest [I mainly just wanted to check the park off of our list] however, I ended up really, really enjoying our time there. The hike to the top of the dunes was TOUGH, but it was a great experience and the views were awesome. If I ever go again, I for sure want to take in a sunrise/sunset, hike deeper into the park and apparently the night photography is great there so that’s definitely an interest for Austin as well.
Rocky Mountain National Park:
Once we wrapped at the sand dunes, we started our 5 hour drive north to Estes Park/RMNP [where we spent the rest of our time in CO] and picked up a rental car along the way. We opted for a rental car in addition to the RV so we wouldn’t have to a) drive an RV through a mountainous national park and b) pack/unpack, secure/unsecure, hook up/unhook everything each time we went into the park and it was definitely the right decision because the roads in the park can get a bit wild at times even in a car.
Throughout our stay in Rocky Mountain National Park we hiked to Emerald Lake, Black Lake, Fern Lake and spent a day searching for [and finding a ton of] wildlife and taking in the insane views on Trail Ridge Road.
PRO TIP: I get asked a lot how we pick/plan our hikes and I personally like to use AllTrails to find hikes that are popular in the area and research them individually from there. Austin’s preference is to utilize blogs to find unique spots -- either way, we’re always looking for great views/photo ops and a collective hiking schedule that will challenge us physically.
Our first hike was a sunrise hike to Emerald Lake [a birthday request of mine] which required a 4:30a wakeup time but overall was a fairly short/easy hike clocking in at roughly 3.5 miles and only 700ft of elevation gain. Obviously with Emerald Lake being the destination, that seems to be a favorite part of this hike for many but I will say that I think the views along the way were almost better. There were many streams/rivers, small waterfalls and you’ll pass by Nymph and Dream Lakes as well. Keep in mind that this is a very popular hike in the park and given the shorter length and lower difficulty rating, it can get pretty busy during peak season/times of the day. For us, the early start time significantly decreased our interaction with others along the way -- there were less than 10 of us total at Emerald Lake at sunrise -- and aided in a gorgeous hike with the most magical morning light.
Our next was to Black Lake and took place the following day. Again, we got an early start to not only avoid most of the crowds but also this hike was a longer/more strenuous endeavor so early starts are always preferred for us in those situations. Let me just start out by saying that this hike was nothing short of breathtaking the entire way and definitely landed itself a top 3 hike for me [Havasu Falls and Lake Solitude round out the list of favorites]. This hike comes in just shy of 10 miles with around 1650ft of elevation gain with a rating between difficult and strenuous [depending where you look] so it’s definitely going to take some effort to get to the top but once you do… OMG it’s so damn good. Idk what it is but the serenity of the alpine lake situated directly beneath the majestic mountain peaks was worth every single bit of sweat and heavy breathing it took to get there. It also makes the perfect spot for a picnic lunch as I promise you’ll be hungry by the time you get there. I would do this hike 1000x over, there are no questions about it but make sure you read local trail reviews before going and prepare yourselves. Even in late June, we were still met with 7+ feet of snow in some spots once we hit those higher elevations and although we didn’t wear spikes of any kind, it definitely would have been beneficial in many areas.
PRO TIP: Temps in RMNP ranged from high 30s at night to mid 60s to 70s during the day so dress in layers because it’s COLD especially by water and at higher elevations. Also, the best time to visit is June through September when most of the snow is melted on trails [though we did run into some snow at higher elevations] and the Trail Ridge Road is open:)
After a few days of hiking, we took the opportunity to embark on the 48-mile scenic drive through the park between Estes Park and Grand Lake labeled Trail Ridge Road. This was a recommendation we pulled directly from Austin [as he’s been to RMNP before] and I’ll be honest I totally underestimated this experience -- the views were some of the most insane I’ve ever seen! We started the morning by posting up at Sheep Lake to see if we could catch our fix of bighorn sheep [this is a very popular destination for them -- rangers even patrol the road during busy seasons to allow for safe sheep crossings] however with no luck after about an hour we moved on. I rarely talk to this point but honestly, wildlife sightings are one of my favorite parts about visiting National Parks. Don’t get me wrong, half of me is terrified we’ll run into a bear during a hike but the other half is like “bring it on” because HOW INSANE is it to experience these animals in their natural habitat?! Obviously, it’s very important to keep your distance and to be incredibly respectful of the animal[s] -- but I swear I could just silently watch for hours and still be so amazed by them.
Ok, ok the point of my [I love animals] tangent is that in addition to these jaw dropping views of the snow covered peaks and milessss of scenery, we saw SO many animals along this route. I’m talking deer, moose [and their calves], hundreds of elk and just when we thought we were going to strike out… we found bighorn sheep licking minerals off the rocks at one of the highest elevation points on the road -- day maker! Although you won’t be clocking miles of hiking on this adventure, I really believe that this is a [can’t miss] experience if you’re planning a trip to Rocky Mountain National Park and Grand Lake is the perfect place to grab a quaint mountain town lunch.
Our final hike of the trip was Fern Lake Trail and it was another wonderful option! This hike closes in just shy of 11 miles with roughly 1600ft of elevation gain with a difficulty rating of moderate to strenuous [depending where you look] but personally, I would rate it difficult. It was definitely easier than Black Lake however we were still huffing and puffing on the way up because the elevation gain is not light. Our last adventure of the trip started in the early morning hours [a very common theme for all of our hikes] and again, the views throughout the entire trail were magical. You’ll pass by Arch Rock, The Pool and Fern Falls all before arriving at the incredibly serene Fern Lake. Maybe it was just the warm morning sunshine, true calmness and the fact that we were the only ones there that morning but thinking back to this place literally makes me feel all warm and happy inside. If you have the time, I would highly recommend this hike as well though I am certain that most hikes in this park will knock your socks off.
A trip to Estes Park wouldn’t be complete without some time spent inside of the adorable town itself however due to the pandemic our time in town was limited and of course, masked. We grabbed mexican on a patio for my birthday [because that’s what I always do], hung at a local brewery, bopped around a few shops and then for the grand finale… got to see SO MANY momma elk and their babes just chilling at the city park. This trip felt extremely safe to us as we didn’t interact with many others, were rarely indoors [if we were, we were masked] and most people we encountered were also being respectful of others and wearing masks.
Whether you’re hopeful for 2021 adventures or you’re dreaming of travels more long-term, I cannot recommend this Rocky Mountain National Park enough. It’s beautiful and breathtaking [and all of the other words I’ve already used to describe it] in every single way and there’s just no going wrong. And if you’re keeping track, these were numbers 14 and 15 of 61 on our National Park Tour:)
If you have questions about anything, I am more than happy to help so please reach out at britany@definefettle.com. I would love to hear from you and help in any way possible.
Happy Travels!
Looking for more travel recommendations?
Checkout our experience in Grand Tetons & Yellowstone National Parks, French Polynesia & more throughout the blog!
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