r/EstesPark

Is there short hikes that aren't in RMNP? We're going to be there late 05/27 until 05/31 early morning. It looks like all the morning times for RMNP Bear Lake Road are taken and we are really knew to hiking and don't understand the timed entry and finding a trailhead/loop to follow. We'll have a large group that will try to condense to as few of vehicles as possible (8 adults, 6 kids) and we'd all like to take a short trail to see the views and wildlife.

Thanks for your assistance! Sorry for the naive-ness - sincerely, someone who lives in the flat midwest and nowhere near a national park.

Hello! Me and my partner will be in Estes Park for a few days coming up. We are looking to do some hiking, but shortly before the trip my partner got injured. We are still likely going to try to do some hiking but it will have to be less intense than we were originally planning. Probably fine as we could only get timed entry passes for the 2-4 range. Any recommendations for easier hikes, and also any activities that require limited mobility we can try during the morning before our timed entry slot? 🙏

Are there any good places within driving distance of Estes Park you can pay to either mine crystals or hunt for fossils? I’ll be making a trip there this weekend.

Hello! my fiance and i are looking for an officiant for our elopement July 16, 2026. any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

Growing up in Estes Park, I always thought Latino history here was pretty recent. In my head, Mexican presence in town started around my grandparents’ generation. People coming here for work, cleaning cabins, working construction, kitchens, housekeeping, and doing whatever work they could find.

But while reading a National Park Service history book on Rocky Mountain National Park, I found something that made me stop.

On PDF page 109, talking about the CCC camps near Estes Park during the Great Depression, the writer briefly describes the workers:

“An interesting lot, mainly from Denver, one Negro, twelve Mexicans, the rest ordinary Americans…”
— Battell Loomis

That’s it.

No names. No stories. Just “twelve Mexicans.”

Still, that one sentence says a lot.

By the 1930s, there were already Mexican men living and working in the Estes Valley. These camps helped build trails, roads, and infrastructure in Rocky Mountain National Park. The work was hard, especially at altitude, and this was during the middle of the Great Depression.

The same writer also said this about the men in camp:

“These aren’t panhandlers; they are the men we use to make wars, or revolutions, or crime waves. They’re husky, intelligent, clean-living youngsters.”

And then:

“You can build a new state out of men like these.”

Reading that nearly 100 years later, it is hard not to think about those twelve Mexican men.

We do not know their names. We do not know where they came from or whether they stayed in Estes. But chances are, they faced a lot of the same things many Mexican workers still face coming here. Arriving young, ready to work hard, trying to build something better.

The wording of the quote is strange to read today. The author separated the twelve Mexicans from the “ordinary Americans.” But in a way, maybe even he knew there was something extraordinary about them.

Young men, far from easy circumstances, working in the mountains during one of the hardest times in American history, helping build one of the most beautiful places in the country.

History only gave them one sentence.

But they were here.

And they are part of Estes Park history.

Source:
Rocky Mountain National Park Administrative History (National Park Service PDF) (PDF page 109)

Just in town for a couple more days. I’ve been collecting souvenir cocktail shakers everywhere I go. I’ve looked and looked and still have found nothing. If someone has any information or suggestions I would be very grateful

Hi - trying to decide between staying at Best Western Silver Saddle or Silver Moon Inn. Is the Best Western walkable to the main area with shops and restaurants or will we need to rely on car or shuttle? We will be there July 1 - 4 so we know it will also be busy. Thanks!

Any early morning breakfast options for the folks that want to go to RMNP at daylight?

Husband & I are visiting Estes Park May 20-26th, and I’ve purchased the entry passes each day for the parks. Just curious what a good hiking schedule for RMNP is to see the most. One hike a day, up to 4 miles, where to enter/start, etc.

We bought a house in Estes Park, and some friends can't understand why we didn't choose places like Breckenridge, Vail, Beaver Creek, Telluride, or Durango. I had my reasons, mainly the natural beauty and our homes is on The Big Thompson River and I like to fly fish. I can’t afford Beaver Creek or Aspen unless I own a lot of Bitcoin I didn’t know about.

Still it made me wonder why you and really so many others love Estes Park, whether visiting or staying long.

I enjoy that the best hamburger stand is part of a gas station, that more elk than people are downtown early on Sunday mornings, and that it feels like a welcoming small town rather than a place to be seen. For me, Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the top five parks worldwide. I'm curious—what do you like about Estes Park?

Me (18) and my bf (19) are planning on coming to Estes park for a week in a few months! We’ve ran into problems before trying to find a hotel that will let anyone under 21 stay. Does someone know of any relatively budget friendly places we could stay at? I’ve thought about airbnbs but don’t want to book one, drive all the way there and find out we can’t stay. Thanks in advance 😁

Local here, looking for a good deep tissue person.