Bear Lake, Nymph Lake, Dream Lake, Emerald Lake, Lake Haiyaha
Rocky Mountain National Park
7/31/2015
This is the most popular hike in Rocky Mountain National Park (Emerald Lake). It's easy to see why- good trailhead access, stunning scenery, mild grades, easy trail. In 6 miles you can see 5 different lakes, forest, streams and waterfalls. This Friday morning was quite busy, and a Saturday or Sunday would be even more crowded. This is quite a nice hike, and would be excellent for snowshoeing as well.
I took my sister and nephew from Wisconsin, and my 3 year old son. I was proud of him, he made it 5 miles out of the 6 before I had to carry him. It was his longest hike to date. Altitude doesn't much seem to bother him, but boredom certainly does.
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| Nymph lake, filled with lillypads |
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| Nymph Lake |
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| Longs Peak |
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| Dream Lake |
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| Emerald Lake |
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| Longs Peak from the Lake Haiyaha spur |
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| Nice forest trail |
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| Panoramic composite shot of Lake Haiyaha |
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| Lake Haiyaha |
GPS Says:
6.0 miles
1309' of elevation gain
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| GPS tracks loaded into Google Earth. We did Emerald first and then Haiyaha. |
If one were to repeat this hike, there is a shortcut at the switchback above Dream Lake so you don't have to circle all the way around the bottom. I didn't investigate to see how viable it is. As this is a high-volume trail, it is important to stay on the trail as much as possible.
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