Park roads take you through and to places you might not see otherwise. In the case of Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado, every road is a scenic drive displaying the park’s stunning landscape, offering opportunities for wildlife sightings, and leading you to trailheads of places you may only have seen in photos and can now actually hike to yourself.
There are three roads for which this national park is famous: Trail Ridge Road, Old Fall River Road, and Bear Lake Road.
Trail Ridge Road (US 34)
This is the main park road, one of thirteen America's Byways in Colorado, and a national designated All American Road. It’s also the highest continuous paved road in North America, reaching an elevation of 12,183 feet (3713.4 meters) above sea level. Running 48 miles (77.2 kilometers) through the park, Trail Ridge Road connects the community of Estes Park on the eastern side of the park with Grand Lake on the western side.
Make sure your camera is readily available because this road with its elevation changes takes visitors through deep green forests, climbing up to tundra meadows dotted with ponds and small lakes sparkling like blue jewels beneath the craggy, snow-capped peaks of the Gore Range. Along the way, you might spot a herd of elk, bighorn sheep, marmots, or some other commonly-seen wildlife. Depending upon the season you travel this road, you might view vibrantly-shaded patches of ground-hugging alpine wildflowers dotting the green tundra, or quaking aspen shivering in the wind while showing off their autumnal hues of orange, gold, yellow, and perhaps even a little bit of red. It’s always windy the higher you climb and 20 – 30 degrees cooler than at either Estes Park or Grand Lake, so carry an extra clothing layer with you.
There are plenty of pullouts and view areas along Trail Ridge Road for you to stretch your legs, capture a photo or two, and simply drink in the alpine beauty of the park.
Old Fall River Road
Opened in 1920, Old Fall River Road earned the distinction of being the first auto route in Rocky Mountain National Park offering access to the park's high country. The park calls this gravel, narrow curvy one-way road a “motor nature trail” which runs for 11 miles (17.7 kilometers) with no guard rails. The posted speed limit is 15 mph and you definitely want to take your time driving up to the 11,796-foot (3,595.4-meter) elevation of Fall River Pass where it joins with the Trail Ridge Road at the Alpine Visitor Center.
Bear Lake Road
Bear Lake Road offers some scenic views along its paved 9.2 miles, winding and climbing from an elevation of 8,200 feet (2,500 meters) above sea level at the junction with Trail Ridge Road to 9,475 feet (2,888 meters) at the Bear Lake Parking Area and Trailhead. Numerous trailheads and parking areas to key destinations are reached along this road, including the Moraine Park Area, Sprague Lake, the Park & Ride Parking Area, Bierstadt Lake Parking Area and Trailhead, and the Glacier Gorge Parking Area. At road’s end is the Bear Lake Trailhead, gateway to popular high-elevation hiking destinations including the Bear Lake Loop, Nymph Lake, Dream Lake, Emerald Lake, Mills Lake, Odessa Lake, and Flattop Mountain.
If you plan to drive this road, you will need a timed entry + Bear Lake Road reservation that includes Bear Lake Road. This is different from the regular timed entry permit which does not include access to Bear Lake Road. Reservations are required during the park’s peak 2025 season of May 23 through October 19, from 5 a.m. – 6 p.m. daily and may be purchased through recreation.gov.
The turn for Bear Lake Road is located along Trail Ridge Road, approximately 0.2 mile (0.32 kilometer) from the Beaver Meadows entrance to the park and 1.4 miles (2.25 kilometers) from the Beaver Meadows Visitor Center.
Of course, if you would rather sit back and let someone else do the driving, you can always take the park’s free shuttle service which operates during the summer season. There are two shuttle routes available: the Bear Lake Route and the Moraine Park Route. To see the shuttle map and for all shuttle route details, visit the park’s Shuttle Bus and Public Transit webpage.
- By Rebecca Latson - July 14th, 2025 8:05am
