The Trail Ridge Road, which crosses the Continental Divide in Rocky
Mountain National Park, offers a grand circuit of Colorado's beauties
that forms one of the most attractive and impressive of the scenic
automobile trips of our country.
The trip starts from Denver, crosses the Continental Divide at Milner
Pass in Rocky Mountain National Park, reaches Grand Lake, crosses the
Continental Divide again at Berthoud Pass, traverses the Denver Mountain
Parks, and returns to Denver, having completed without any duplication
240 miles of comfortable travel through magnificent country, full of
interest and variety; the trip can be made in 2 days or it can be
prolonged to suit individual time and inclination. It combines in one
trip half a dozen features, any one of which by itself would be worth
the journey. The Rocky Mountain Parks Transportation Co. operates daily
scheduled trips over this route during the summer season.
On leaving Denver the road leads out Federal Boulevard, crosses
Westminster Heights, from which point there is an extensive view of the
Great Plains to the east and a panorama of the Front Range of the Rocky
Mountains to the west, stretching out before the eye from Pikes Peak to
Longs Peak, a rampart of mighty mountains, 125 miles from end to end.
The road then passes through a farming section, where irrigation has
turned what was once an arid plain into a richly productive district.
Fields of deep green alfalfa alternate with the waving wheat, and in the
fall of the year the harvesting and threshing add new life to the
landscape. Next is the town of Lafayette, where coal mining is the
principal industry, and then the road traverses a sugar-beet country.
Colorado is the sugar bowl of the United States, and here is one of the
regions where the beets are most successfully grown. At Longmont and
Loveland are large factories, where sugar is extracted from the beets
and refined for table use. At Loveland the road turns westward and soon
plunges into the precipitous canyon of the Thompson River, where it
follows the turns of the dashing stream, walled in by towering cliffs.
Then comes the village of Estes Park at the edge of Rocky Mountain
National Park and half surrounded by it. From the green of the
meadowland the eye follows the slope, up, up, up, over timbered hills
and rocky cliffs, past timberline to the crest of the Continental Divide
where snow lingers, and to Longs Peak.
Continuing the journey, two routes lie open to the motorist. One of
these follows up the valley of Fall River, 2 miles beyond the Fall River
gateway, and then turns left over a portion of the Highdrive to the
beginning of the new Trail Ridge Road.
The other road leads past the Government museum and information office
to Moraine Park and Deer Ridge, with a magnificent view of Longs Peak
and the Continental Divide.
The Trail Ridge Road is the highest continuous automobile road in
America. Its 4-mile section over 12,000 feet in altitude is probably the
longest stretch of road ever built at such a height. The trip to Grand
Lake on this road is a never-to-be-forgotten experience. The road climbs
to the very crest of the range and then follows the ridge. Valleys and
parks lie thousands of feet below, rivers look like tiny silver threads,
and automobiles on the highways of the floor of the valley resemble
minute moving dots.
To the south an unexcelled view of the most rugged portion of the Front
Range is spread out, while to the north, across Fall River Valley, the
view is dominated by the majestic Mummy Range, and the course of the old
Fall River Road may be traced as it zigzags up the slope of Mount Chapin
toward Fall River Pass. Over a 350-foot cliff one may look into
fascinating Iceberg Lake, a rock-bound crystal pool on which float
blocks of ice.
A short distance beyond Iceberg Lake the highest point on the road is
reached, 12,183 feet above sea level; the road descending to Fall River
Pass, elevation 11,797 feet, which divides the waters of the Thompson
River from those of the Cache la Poudre. The view from this point is
unsurpassed. Below lie streams, valleys, forested slopes, and the realms
of civilization. All around are mountains and peaks, no longer towering
above but close at hand or seen across some mighty valley. One can
easily trace the work done by the glaciers during the ice age on these
mountain ranges; the broad U-shaped valleys and precipitous
amphitheaters or cirques at the head of the streams are the typical
glacial signs, written in bold letters on the landscape. To the south is
Trail Ridge. Iceberg Lake, walled in by cliffs, is only a mile distant,
though not in sight. To the west is Specimen Mountain, interesting
because of the variety of color in its volcanic rocks, geodes lined with
crystalline material, volcanic glass, and other curious formations. It
is also the home of the mountain sheep.
Farther to the west lies the Medicine Bow Range, or, as the Indians so
picturesquely named it, the "Never Summer" range. Of its many peaks the
most prominent are Bowen, Nimbus, Red, Cumulus, Howard, Lead, and,
highest of all in this range, Mount Richthofen, 12,953 feet in
elevation. Strange as it may seem, Milner Pass lies below, and one
descends in order to cross the Continental Divide. The road drops down
into the forest zone, passes Poudre Lakes, and crosses Milner Pass at an
elevation of 10,759 feet. The Atlantic slope lies behind and, crossing
the backbone of the continent, one travels down the Pacific slope to the
headwaters of the Colorado River. The valley of the North Fork is hemmed
in by mountains. The Continental Divide makes a loop here and blocks
progress to the west, north, and east. The valley opens to the south,
however, and the road proceeds down the north fork of the Colorado
River.
Grand Lake, the sapphire gem on the western edge of the national park,
is one of the largest and most beautifully situated lakes in the State.
It is a mile and a half in length and nearly a mile in width. Its clear,
cold water is of great depth. The lake lies at an elevation of 8,369
feet and claims the highest yacht club in the world. The annual regatta
is an event of much interest. At the head of the lake Mount Craig rises
to a height of 12,005 feet, while Shadow Mountain, Bryant, Wescott, and
Mount Enentah are nearby.
This is a point of concentration for park visitors where nearly
everybody spends at least one night. Fishing, boating, horseback riding,
and mountain climbing are some of the outdoor attractions.
Leaving the lake, the road follows down the Colorado River, passes the
town of Granby, and commences the climb up a beautifully timbered valley
to Berthoud Pass. Here, close to timberline, the watershed between the
two oceans is again crossed. The road approaches near Georgetown, famed
for its railroad loop, and then passes through Idaho Springs, with its
hot springs and medicinal baths. Soon the valley of Clear Creek is left
behind and the climb to Bergen Park is made where the Denver Mountain
Parks are entered. In this region is Lookout Mountain, where Colonel
Cody, "Buffalo Bill", is buried, overlooking the plains he knew so well.
From Wildcat Point there is a splendid view of foothills and plains,
with Denver some 12 or 14 miles away.