Extend a straight line fifty-five miles northwest from Denver and
another line sixty miles southwest from Cheyenne and these lines meet
in approximately the centre of the Rocky Mountain National Park. This
centre is in the mountain-heights a few miles northwest of Long's
Peak, in what Dr. F. V. Hayden, the famous geologist, calls the most
rugged section of the Continental Divide of the Rocky Mountains.
This Park is a mountain realm lying almost entirely above the altitude
of nine thousand feet. Through it from north to south extends the
Snowy Range,--the Continental Divide,--and in it this and the Mummy
Range form a vast mountain Y. Specimen Mountain is the north end of
the west arm of this Y, while Mummy Mountain is at the tip of the east
arm. Mt. Clarence King on the south forms the base of the stem, while
Long's Peak is against the eastern side of the stem, about midway.
Long's Peak, "King of the Rockies," is the dominating peak and rises
to the altitude of 14,255 feet. There are ten or more peaks in the
Park that tower above thirteen thousand, and upwards of forty others
with a greater altitude than twelve thousand feet. Between these peaks
and their out-jutting spurs are numerous cañons. The Park is from ten
to eighteen miles wide, its greatest length is twenty-five miles, and
its total area is about three hundred and sixty square miles.
[Illustration: ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK]
A line drawn around the Park on the boundary line would only in two or
three places drop below the altitude of nine thousand feet. The area
thus is high-lying and for the most part on edge. About one fifth of
the entire area is above the limits of tree-growth. The peaks are
rocky, rounded, and sharp. Here and there they are whitened by
comparatively small snow and ice fields. From the summits the
mountains descend through steeps, walls, slopes, terraces,
tablelands, spurs, gorges, and mountain valleys.
This Park is a wilderness. Though entirely surrounded by settlers and
villages, it is an almost unbroken wild. Many of its peaks are as yet
unclimbed. There are pathless forests, unvisited gorges, unnamed
lakes, and unknown localities.
Gray and red granite form the larger portion of its surface. Here and
there are mixtures of schist, gneiss, and porphyry. The northwest
corner is volcanic and is made up of rhyolite, obsidian, and lava. The
Indians have a tradition concerning the volcanic activity of Specimen
Mountain, though I doubt if this mountain has been active within a
century. It is a dead or sleeping volcano. A part of its old
crater-rim has fallen away, and brilliant flowers cover the cold ashes
in the crater.
Most of the territory was glaciated during the last ice age, and there
still remain five small glaciers and a number of ice-fields. The
Hallett Glacier is on the north shoulder of Hague's Peak, the Sprague
Glacier on the south side of Stone's Peak, Tyndall Glacier between
Flat-Top and Mt. Hallett, and Andrews Glacier in a cirque of Loch
Vale, while an unnamed small one is at the bottom of the east
precipice of Long's Peak.
There can hardly be found a greater and more closely gathered area of
imposing, easily read glacial records than those which centre about
Long's Peak. These works of the Ice King, both intact and partly
ruined, have attracted the attention and study of a number of
prominent geologists and glaciologists. Among these ice works Dr.
Hayden and Dr. David Starr Jordan have climbed and wandered. Vernon L.
Kellogg has here gathered material for a book, and Dr. Edward L.
Orton, former State Geologist of Ohio, has spent many weeks here in
study. Within a six-mile radius of the top of Long's Peak are more
than thirty glacier lakes and perhaps twice as many lakelets or
mountain tarns. Immediately south of the Peak, Wild Basin is literally
filled with glacier-records. To the north is Moraine Park; to the
northwest, Glacier Gorge and Loch Vale; to the west, lying between
the Peak and Grand Lake, there is a wondrous area of the Ice King's
topography.
Bierstadt, St. Vrain, and Mills Moraines are imposing deposits of
glacial débris. Of these Mills Moraine has been the most studied. It
apparently holds the story of two widely separated ice ages. This
moraine evidently was formed by the glacier which made the basin of
Chasm Lake. It extends eastward from Long's Peak, its uppermost end
being at twelve thousand five hundred feet. At timber-line its trend
is toward the southeast. It is about one mile wide, five miles long,
and in places apparently more than one thousand feet deep.
The ice-stream which piled the enormous Bierstadt Moraine took its
rise on the west summit slope of Long's Peak. It flowed first toward
the west, and in the upper amphitheatre of Glacier Gorge it united
with the ice-stream from the north slope of Shoshone Peak and the
stream off the eastern slope of Mt. McHenry. Although a part of this
enlarged flow appears to have been thrust across the Continental
Divide, the larger portion of it was deflected to the north through
Glacier Gorge. Emerging from this gorge and enlarged by the
ice-streams from Mt. Otis, Mt. Hallett, and other peaks in the
Continental Divide, it flowed on to thrust against the eastern base of
Flat-Top Mountain. This bent it to the east, and from this
turning-point it began to unload its débris on Bierstadt Moraine. A
part of its débris was dropped in a smaller parallel moraine on the
opposite side of Glacier Creek, and finally a terminal moraine was
piled against the western front of Green Mountain, where it almost
united with the terminal part of the Moraine on the south side of
Moraine Park.
The glaciers have formed and distributed much of the soil of this
region. Above timber-line there are wide, sedgy meadows and tundras
and dry, grassy moorlands. Everywhere on the heights where there is
soil there is a growth of Arctic-Alpine vegetation. Above the limits
of tree-growth are enormous ragged areas and tiny ledge gardens that
are crowded with a variety of brilliantly colored wild blossoms.
[Illustration: ESTES PARK ENTRANCE TO THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL
PARK]
The average altitude of the timber-line is about eleven thousand three
hundred feet, nearly a vertical mile higher than the timber-line in
the Alps. Timber-line the world over is a place of striking interest,
but nowhere have I found or heard of a timber-line which exhibits so
many telling features as does the forest-frontier on the eastern side
of the Continental Divide. The prevailing tree on the drier slopes at
timber-line is _Pinus flexilis_, the limber pine. In the moist places
Engelmann spruce predominates, and in many of the moister places there
are dwarfed and tangled growths of arctic willow, black birch, and
aspen.
Among the least broken and most enchanting of the primeval forests of
the Park are a few that are grand. One of these is between the head of
Fall River and the Poudre; another is in Forest Cañon; one is in the
southern part of Wild Basin; still another is on the western slope of
Stone's Peak and Flat-Top Mountain. These forests are mostly Engelmann
spruce, with a scattering of sub-alpine fir. Around the lower, warmer
slopes grows the Western yellow pine, and on the cold lower slopes
the Douglas spruce. There are a number of extensive lodge-pole pine
forests. These are from thirty to one hundred and thirty years old.
Lines of aspen adorn most streams; here and there where the soil is
moist they expand into groves.
The wild-flower inhabitants of this great Park number more
than a thousand species. Many of these are members of famous
families,--famous for their antiquity upon the earth, for their
delicate scent, for their intricate and artistic structure, and for
their brilliant color.
The gentian family is represented by fifteen species, one of these
being a fringed blue gentian, a Western relative of the fringed
gentian celebrated by the poet Bryant. There are intricately-formed
orchids. The silver and blue columbine is here at its best; it
blossoms on the lower slopes in June, on the heights during September.
The populous pea family, in yellow, white, and lavender, covers and
colors extensive areas. Then there are asters, daisies, mariposa
lilies, polemonium, wintergreen, forget-me-nots, black-eyed Susans,
and numerous other handsome flower people. These flowers are scattered
all over the Park except in places destitute of soil. I have found
primroses, phlox, and mertensia on the summit of Long's Peak. In the
heights above the limits of tree-growth there are scores of other
blossoms.
More than one hundred species of birds nest in these scenes. Among
these are the robin, the bluebird, the wren, the hermit thrush, the
hummingbird, the golden eagle, the white-crowned sparrow, and that
marvelous singer the solitaire. Among the resident birds are the
ouzel, the crested and the Rocky Mountain jays, the chickadee, the
downy woodpecker, and the magpie. The ptarmigan and the rosy finch are
prominent residents in the heights above the timber-line.
Once the big-game population was numerous. But the grizzly has been
almost exterminated, and only a few black bear remain. There are a few
mountain lions and elk. Deer are fairly common, and in localities
mountain sheep are plentiful and on the increase. Specimen Mountain
probably is one of the places most frequented by mountain sheep. A
number of times flocks of more than a hundred have been seen on this
mountain. A scattering of wolves, coyotes, and foxes remain. Conies
are numerous in the slide rock of the heights, and snowshoe rabbits
people the forests. The Frémont, or pine, squirrels are scattered
throughout the woods. Lunch where you will, and the dear and confiding
busy chipmunk is pretty certain to approach. The region appears to be
above the snake line, and I have never seen a snake within the
boundary. The streams and a number of the lakes have their population
of rainbow and brook trout. Around the water's edge mink make their
home.
The beaver has colonies large and small all over the park up to the
limits of tree-growth. Houses, ponds, dams, tree-cuttings, canals, and
other works of the beaver are here readily seen. Excellent
opportunities are afforded to study beaver manners and customs and to
comprehend the influence of his work in the conservation of soil and
water.
[Illustration: THE FALL RIVER ROAD ACROSS]
[Illustration: THE CONTINENTAL DIVIDE]
Big game, and in fact all wild life, begin to increase in numbers and
also to allow themselves to be seen from the instant they receive the
complete protection which parks afford. This park will thus assure a
multiplication of the various kinds of wild life which the region now
contains. And this increased wild life, with no hunters to alarm, will
allow itself to be readily seen.
There are only a few miles of road within the Park boundaries, but the
Fall River Road, now under construction across the Continental Divide
at Milner Pass, just south of Specimen Mountain, will be a wonderful
scenic highway. Although there are a number of trails in the Park, so
broken is the topography that most of the country a stone's throw away
from them is unvisited and unknown.
A road skirts the western boundary of the Park and touches it at Grand
Lake and Specimen Mountain. Another road closely parallels the eastern
boundary-line, and from it a half-dozen roads touch the Park. This
parallel road reaches the roads of Denver and of the plains through
the Boulder, Left Hand, Big Thompson, and two St. Vrain cañons.
The drainage of the western half of the Park concentrates in the Grand
River on the western boundary and reaches the Pacific Ocean through
the Grand Cañon of Arizona. A number of streams rise in the eastern
side. These assemble their waters in the Platte River out on the
plains. In their upper course, all these streams start from the snows
and come rushing and bounding down the roughest, steepest slopes.
The climate of the eastern slope is comparatively dry and mild. The
winters are sunny, but little snow falls, and the winds are
occasionally warm and usually extremely dry. Though only a few miles
from the eastern slope, the western rarely receives a wind, and its
snow-fall is more than double that of the eastern.
Numerous authors and artists have made long visits in this region, and
its scenery has received their highest praise. Bierstadt, the artist,
came here in 1870. A few years later he was followed by the famous
authors Isabella Bird, Anna Dickinson, and Helen Hunt. Frederick H.
Chapin visited the region in 1888 and wrote a splendidly illustrated
book about it, called "Mountaineering in Colorado." This was published
by the Appalachian Club. In commenting upon the scenery of the region,
Hayden, Father of the Yellowstone National Park, turned aside from
scientific discussion in his geological report for 1875 to pay the
following tribute to the scenic charm of this territory:--
"Not only has nature amply supplied this with features of rare beauty
and surroundings of admirable grandeur, but it has thus distributed
them that the eye of an artist may rest with perfect satisfaction on
the complete picture presented. It may be said, perhaps, that the more
minute details of the scenery are too decorative in their character,
showing, as they do, the irregular picturesque groups of hills,
buttes, products of erosion, and the finely moulded ridges--the effect
is pleasing in the extreme."
Long's Peak is considered by mountain-climbers an excellent
view-point. Standing aside one mile from the Continental Divide and
rising above a large surrounding wonderland, its summit and upper
slopes give splendid views and command a variety of scenes, near and
far. While upon its slope, Mr. Chapin said: "I would not fail to
impress on the mind of the tourist that the scenes are too grand for
words to convey a true idea of their magnificence. Let him, then, not
fail to visit them." It is an extremely rocky and rugged peak, but it
is almost entirely free of snow and ice, so that climbing it is simply
a day's work crowded with enjoyment and almost free from danger.
Though it is two hundred and fifty feet lower than the highest peak in
the Rocky Mountains and three hundred and fifty feet lower than Mt.
Whitney, California, the highest peak in the United States, Long's
Peak probably has a greater individuality than either. Alongside it
stands Mt. Meeker, with an altitude of 14,000 feet. These sky towers
are visible more than one hundred miles. The Indians of the Colorado
and Wyoming plains used to call them the "Two Guides."
It is possible, if not probable, that Long's Peak was originally one
thousand or even two thousand feet higher. The mass of this peak
stands apart from the main range and embraces three other peaks. These
are Mt. Meeker, Mt. Washington, and Storm Peak. All are united below
thirteen thousand feet. They may once have been united in one greatly
higher mass. Much of the débris in the vast Boulderfield and Mills
Moraines and a lesser amount from the enormous Bierstadt and St. Vrain
Moraines must have come from the summit slope of the Long's Peak
group. No small part of this may have come from above thirteen
thousand feet. An exceedingly small percentage of the glacial débris
which surrounds Long's Peak would, if atop the Long's Peak group,
elevate it two thousand feet higher.
The Glacier Gorge region, which lies just to the northwest of Long's
Peak, probably has the most magnificent scenery in the Park. Here are
clustered enormous glaciated gorges, great glaciated walls, alpine
lakes, waterfalls, moraines, alpine flora, and towering peaks.
Wild Basin, a broken and glaciated region of twenty-five square miles,
lies immediately south of the Peak. This basin is almost encircled by
eight towering peaks, and the enormous St. Vrain Moraine thrusts out
of its outlet and shows where the united ice-rivers formerly made
their way from this basin. Within this wild area are lakes, forests,
waterfalls, and a splendid variety of wild and lovely scenes.
The glacier lakes and wild tarns of this Park are one of its delights.
Though most of these water fountains are small, they are singularly
beautiful. They are in the middle-mountain zone, in a belt which lies
between the altitudes of ten thousand and twelve thousand feet. There
are more than a hundred of these, and their attractiveness equals that
of any of the mountain lakes of the world.
The best known and most popular of these lakes are Fern and Odessa.
These lie about twelve miles west of the village of Estes Park. Chasm
Lake, on the east side of Long's Peak, is set in an utterly wild
place. Its basin was gouged from solid granite by the old Long's Peak
Glacier. Mt. Washington, Mt. Meeker, and Long's Peak tower above it,
and around it these peaks have flung their wreckage in chaotic
confusion. A glacier almost crawls into it, and the east precipice of
Long's Peak, the greatest precipice in the Park, looms above it.
Long, Black, Thunder, Ouzel, and Poudre Lakes have charms peculiar to
each, and each is well worth a visit. Lake Mills, in the lower end of
Glacier Gorge, is one of the largest lakes in the Park. The largest
lake that I know of in the Rocky Mountain National Park is Lake
Nanita. This is about one mile long and half as wide, and reposes in
that wilderness of wild topography about midway between Grand Lake and
Long's Peak. There are mountain people living within eight or ten
miles of this lake who have never even heard of its existence.
Although I have been to it a number of times, I have never found even
a sign of another human visitor. A member of the United States
Geological Survey is the only individual I have ever met who had seen
it.
As originally planned, the Park was to have more than twice its
present area. I hope there may be early added to this region Mt.
Audubon, Arapahoe Peak, and other territory to the south. The summit
of Twin Peaks on the east would make another excellent addition. A
part of the Rabbit Ear Range to the northwest, and Medicine Bow
Mountains and the headwaters of the Poudre lying to the north, would
make excellent park territory.
But even as it now stands, this splendidly scenic region with its
delightful climate appears predestined to become one of the most
visited and one of the most enjoyed of all the scenic reservations of
the Government. In addition to its scenery and climate, it is not far
from the geographical centre of the United States. A number of
transcontinental railroads are close to it, and two railroads run
within a few miles of its border. The Lincoln Highway is within twenty
miles of it, and six excellent automobile roads connect its edges with
the outside world.
Each year visitors reach it in increasing numbers. During 1914 there
were more than 56,000 of these, many of whom remained to enjoy it for
weeks. It has a rare combination of those characteristics which almost
every one wants and which all tired people need,--accessibility, rare
scenery, and a friendly climate.