Beaver Meadows
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Our first morning in Rocky Mountain National Park began bright and early with a guided birding hike at the Beaver Meadows trailhead. While we were still in the parking lot, a mule deer strolled by just 20 feet away. The wildlife here is bold and clearly unfazed by humans.
Mule deer at Beaver Meadows parking lot
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Our first stop was a grove of young aspens, where we were surrounded by birdsong. The trees were fenced to protect them from elk, which would otherwise keep them chewed down and stunted. We learned that aspen groves actually share a single root system, making them one large, interconnected organism.
Our guide had an incredible ear for bird calls and introduced us to the Merlin Bird ID app, which can identify birds by sound and is surprisingly accurate. My zoom camera wasn’t quite strong enough for many of the treetop songbirds, but I did manage to get shots of a mountain bluebird, yellow-rumped warbler, and Lincoln’s sparrow. A marmot perched on the rocks nearby kept a watchful eye on us as well. At the time, it felt like a rare sighting. As the trip progressed, marmot number sixteen didn’t quite carry the same excitement.
Next, we visited Sprague Lake for a short scenic loop. Along the way we saw a moose, plenty of geese and goslings, and a spotted sandpiper working the shoreline.
In the afternoon, we headed into Estes Park for gas, groceries, and a walk through town. We followed the riverwalk and stopped by the famous Taffy Shop, which has been making taffy for 90 years. I’m not usually a fan of taffy, but fresh-made is a different story. It was delicious, and we stocked up for later.
Just like in the park, elk rule the town. We came across three standing right in front of a restaurant, completely unbothered by the foot traffic around them. A few mule deer wandered through town as well.
We returned to the park later that evening and headed to Sheep Lakes in Horseshoe Park, hoping to catch a glimpse of bighorn sheep. On the way, we had another moose sighting near the road. We also came across a group of male elk, a contrast to the herds of females we’d seen earlier at Moraine Park. Turns out the bulls stick together this time of year, a little bro time away from the ladies and the calves.
The bighorn sheep were way up high on the ridge. We learned they’re most likely to come down between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., so we’ll try again another day and see if we get lucky with a closer view.
Our guide had an incredible ear for bird calls and introduced us to the Merlin Bird ID app, which can identify birds by sound and is surprisingly accurate. My zoom camera wasn’t quite strong enough for many of the treetop songbirds, but I did manage to get shots of a mountain bluebird, yellow-rumped warbler, and Lincoln’s sparrow. A marmot perched on the rocks nearby kept a watchful eye on us as well. At the time, it felt like a rare sighting. As the trip progressed, marmot number sixteen didn’t quite carry the same excitement.
Next, we visited Sprague Lake for a short scenic loop. Along the way we saw a moose, plenty of geese and goslings, and a spotted sandpiper working the shoreline.
In the afternoon, we headed into Estes Park for gas, groceries, and a walk through town. We followed the riverwalk and stopped by the famous Taffy Shop, which has been making taffy for 90 years. I’m not usually a fan of taffy, but fresh-made is a different story. It was delicious, and we stocked up for later.
Just like in the park, elk rule the town. We came across three standing right in front of a restaurant, completely unbothered by the foot traffic around them. A few mule deer wandered through town as well.
We returned to the park later that evening and headed to Sheep Lakes in Horseshoe Park, hoping to catch a glimpse of bighorn sheep. On the way, we had another moose sighting near the road. We also came across a group of male elk, a contrast to the herds of females we’d seen earlier at Moraine Park. Turns out the bulls stick together this time of year, a little bro time away from the ladies and the calves.
The bighorn sheep were way up high on the ridge. We learned they’re most likely to come down between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m., so we’ll try again another day and see if we get lucky with a closer view.