Reflect on This

Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP) is one of this nations oldest parks, established by Woodrow Wilson in January, 1915.

The park sits astride the Continental Divide and is the headwater source for the Colorado River to the west and the Platte River to the east. The highest, continuous, paved auto road in the world, Trail Ridge Road, takes visitors to alpine heights above 12,000 feet and to stunning views of the mountain peaks, glacial carved gorges, lakes and vast meadows of these iconic mountains. Since 1976, the park has been designated a Unesco World Biosphere Reserve. Elevation ranges from 7,860 ft. to 14,259 ft. (Longs Peak), with 60 summits over 12,000 ft. At 265,461 acres, RMNP offers many recreational and backcountry opportunities with 450 miles of rivers and streams, 350 miles of trails,150 trout-filled lakes, and abundant wildlife viewing.

Our visit to the location pictured here was in 2007, armed with our very first digital camera, and ready to climb Powell Peak. Rising at 4:00AM at the Glacier Basin campground, we drove to the Glacier Gorge trailhead, parked, wolfed down a breakfast and began hiking at sunrise. Following well-maintained trails, we passed Alberta Falls, “The Loch,” Timberline Falls and came to “Lake of Glass and Sky Pond, both calmly reflecting the glacial-carved cirque at the head of the valley. Though the day had started out beautifully clear, by the time we were heading up the steep slabs to Powell, clouds were filling the valley below and light rain was falling, turning the tilted rock into a slippery, potential death-trap, especially when covered with lichen. This was not the day to push on through adverse circumstances as the two lakes below us were being obscured by mist-filled clouds. So, we gave up our ascent and turned back. But, the day was not a total loss, because we captured this photo and others similar in mid-morning before the rain had moved in and before the winds had stirred the reflective calm waters.