| NATIONAL PARKS QUICKLINKS |
Rocky Mountain Adventure Guide (2012 National Parks Series: Part 2 of 6)
Our map team scouted more than 500 miles of trails and cross-country routes to bring you a summer's worth of escapes in the Rockies.
Best Weekend: Gorge Lakes
Hike cross-country to explore this secluded chain of hanging lakes.
Best Week: Continental Divide Loop
Tour glacial valleys and navigate to off-trail lakes and waterfalls on this six-day circuit.
Best Day: Longs Peak via Clarks Arrow and the Keyhole
Scramble up a 12.7-mile sneak route to the park's highest peak.
Rip & Go: Tonahutu Loop - Rocky Mountain National Park, CO
Cross elk-filled woods and bighorn- busy flats on this park's quiet side.
Navigation Center: Videos
Learn the basics of using GPS devices and watch amazing Google 3D flyovers in our special navigation focused video center.
National Parks Center
We've collected the best hikes, most amazing photos, and mind-blowing videos for the ultimate National Park planning center. Get inspired and get hiking now!
National Parks Hall of Fame: Photo Galleries
Catch the best views in the nation's marquee parks from the comfort of your computer. Prepare to drool...now.
Ultimate Rocky Mountain Destinations
Disappear into Yellowstone's forgotten peaks. Bag Colorado's most exciting Fourteener. Hike Utah's unknown long trail Our field editors pick 24 epics for your Rockies life list.
Central Rockies: Mount of the Holy Cross Loop, CO
Scramble to a remote refuge on this peak's secret side.
Central Rockies: Longs Peak, Rocky Mountain National Park
Climb this iconic summit on an uncrowded sneak route.
Mountain West Readers' Choice Hikes
A weekend in Glacier, a quiet 14er, and the Rockies' best hot springs.
Readers' Choice Mountain West Hike: Santa Maria Spring, Grand Canyon NP
Gaze into the world's most beautiful labyrinth.
Readers' Choice Mountain West: Mr. Bubbles, Yellowstone NP
Relax in an effervescent bath far from the dayhiking crowds.
Readers' Choice Mountain West Hike: West Maroon Pass, CO
Trip through kaleidoscopic color amid high-alpine splendor.
Readers' Choice Mountain West: Mills Lake, Rocky Mountain NP
Get big payoffs on an easy hike.
Readers' Choice Mountain West: The Colorado Trail
Thru-hike America's highest trail.
Readers' Choice Mountain West: Gunsight Pass, Glacier NP
See the park's famed glaciers from a high mountain pass.
Northern Rockies: Imogene Pass Loop, ID
Swim, climb, nap–repeat. This Sawtooths trek has it all.
National Parks Hall of Fame: Best Cross-Country Adventure
Traverse alongside delicate ecosystem, open tundra and hit nine summits on this "grand slam" of cross-country treks.
Watch It, Hike It: An Episode-by-Episode Guide to The National Parks: America's Best Idea by Ken Burns
Catch these highlights from The National Parks: America's Best Idea, then download maps to hike to them yourself.
BACKPACKER 3D Trail Flyover Videos
Fly these classic hikes in 3D with our guided tours.
National Parks Confidential: Q & A with Filmmaker Ken Burns
On the eve of his much-anticipated documentary, Ken Burns discusses the heroes and history of America's most precious wildlands–and the new challenges they face now.
Phantom Menace: Air Pollution Threatens Western National Parks
Invisible but dangerous, airborne pollutants are a danger to the West's most iconic national parks
Full Circle: The Rocky Mountain Grand Loop
Follow a long-forgotten loop in Rocky Mountain National Park across the Continental Divide, through moose-infested meados, and up Longs Peak via a rarely climbed route.
Insider's Guide Rocky Mountain National Park
From the top day hike to the key skills you'll need, we'll have you ready for the Rockies in no time.
August 2009 Table of Contents
Swimming Hole Hikes
Time to cool down. Hike to these refreshing swimming holes and settle right into summer.
Rocky Mountain National Park's Grand Loop: 3D Flyover and Tracklog
Fly the Rockies with our 3D video, then download the GPS track to do the route yourself.
Phenomenon: Glacial Relics
The Ice Age left its mark from Acadia to Yosemite. Here's scenic evidence.
Ten Epic Hikes
Paddling, hiking, testing self arrest skills–we cover it all in these 10 epic trips throughout the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
When Disaster Strikes! 5 True Survival Stories
Read these real-life tales from five survivors who made it out alive, and learn what they did wrong–and right.
Caught in a Colorado Snowstorm
An autumn climb turns life-threatening when a hiker endures a night in a whiteout at 12,000 feet in the Rockies.
Trip Doctor: Best Western Foliage
Where's the best western foliage?
Where Can I Find The Highest Designated Campsite?
Head to the RMNP for the highest designated camp–find out where below.
Time 2 Go: National Parks In Winter
With the cold driving away crowds, National Parks are a delight to visit in winter. Here's our top picks.
How to Stay Safe in the Wilderness
Retracing the route to people's accidents can help us prevent our own. These 10 trips lead you to the exact locations of disasters from Denali to the Grand Canyon.
Backpack Rocky Mountain National Park
Try this 30-mile lollipop loop that is almost entirely above 9,000 feet.
The Continental Divide Trail's Rocky Mountain National Park
The best overall weekend hike you'll find on the CDT.
Essential National Park Skills: The Ultimate Park Pass
Write your own ticket to new adventures with these 10 territory-expanding skills.
Epicenter: The Scene In Grand Lake, Colorado
Slide through Rocky Mountain National Park's mellower back door.
Glacier Gorge, Rocky Mountain National Park
Giant cliffs and numerous waterfalls are among the stunning sites that can be viewed along this Colorado hike.
Hike The Hidden Trails of Rocky Mountain National Park
Here's a detailed hiking planner that will take you to the hidden corners of Colorado's most scenic park.
Best Dayhikes In America
With strong legs and an ambitious plan, you can see more wild country in 12 hours than some backpackers see in a week, and still make it home in time for dinner.
Best Backpacking In Colorado
Our comprehensive guide to the best backpacking you can find in Colorado.
Life's Great (Continental) Divide
The Continental Divide in Rocky Mountain National Park is a place of reckoning and, given its trackless nature, a place of choices. To a young man who came of age here, it offers perspective on paths not taken.
National Parks: Best Scenery
The greatest backpacking parks in the United States, chosen for their scenery.
Rocky Mountains, Defined
Exploring the wilder, uncrowded reaches of our highest national park.
