In The Shadow of Longs Peak
Bierstadt Lake
21 October 2024
We hiked to Bierstadt Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park today.
The day began overcast and chilly. Driving across CO 66 to Lyons, the branches of trees dance in the wind and are a brilliant yellow and gold with hints of orange.
Once on CO 36 heading to Estes Park, it starts to rain. Not a downpour but it is raining gently and steadily.
We drive thru Pinewood Springs, approach Hermit Park and are about to crest the hill before heading down into Estes, the sun peeks thru the clouds; Patches of blue are beyond.
The Peaks, though, are socked in, shrouded in a wind cloud. We wonder what hiking conditions will be like, and talk about how long rain jackets keep out the rain.
The weather continues to clear as we drive thru town to the main park entrance at Beaver Meadows.
After a quick stop at the Visitors center, we head to the entrance both, show my pass, then continue to the Glacier Gorge Road.
Heading toward Bear Lake, we pass thru Moraine Park where the trees are in full gold with a back drop of the high peaks shrouded in clouds. Then over the Big Thompson Rivers and gaining altitude to the Park ‘n’ Ride, aka the bus barn and one of the trailheads for Bierstedt Lake.
There are two buses but we are the only car. I open the door and chilled air rushes in. I add a layer, then hat & gloves then get into my boots. It takes about 10 minutes to gear up.
Heading up the trail, it is cool with brisk breeze but once moving along the trail and in the trees it does not seem quite as cold.
The wind rattles the treetops. Trunks of partially fallen trees, reb and squeak though do not seem to ready to fall.
The trail is rough and uneven with chunks of rocks & assorted pebbles. Downed trees line the path and provide inviting sitting spots. The trail is quite good along those segments that are somewhat level.
I pass a stand of aspens shorn of leaves and take a photo trying to capture their whiteness and feeling of nakedness. An elk bugles in the distance. Beyond the aspen I see Sprague Lake, the nearby stables and the valley covered with pines.
Continuing up, the trail is sometimes steep and rough, sometimes smooth.
After 75 minutes, there is the junction of the trail that goes around Bierstadt Lake, but no sign of the lake!
I follow the trail in a counterclockwise direction and see the lake here and there through the trees. The sun is out and it seems to be warming up though the wind high in the tree tops seems to be increasing.
About 3/4 of the way around, I spy Gary in his blue wind breaker and stop for a snack.
There are a couple of places where the trail is nearly beside the lake but I am chilly and there
doesn't seem to be a vista worth a photograph. The breeze is pushing the lakes surface into small waves.
We hike back down to the car. Heading back to Estes, Moraine Park is in full gold bloom contrasting with the cloud shrouded peaks in the distance.
The light is clear and crisp. The sun baths everything in a cast of gold. Driving across Lake Estes, dapples of sunlight are reflected on the disturbed surface of the water.