Emerald Lake Hike

During my brother Glenn's recent visit from Portland, Oregon, Susan and I took him on one of the classic easy hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park.

You start at Bear Lake, hike to Nymph Lake, then Dream Lake, then Emerald Lake -- 4 alpine lakes in one hike!

This is a very popular hike, which means there are usually a lot of people on the trail with you.

The hike is a total of 3.6 miles round trip. The trail starts at Bear Lake, elevation 9,475'. The elevation at Emerald Lake is just over 10,000', so the gain for the hike is about 600'.

We were lucky enough to spot a climber on the wall of Hallett Peak. You can barely pick the person out. This gives you a much-needed reference point for appreciating how huge this mountain is.

Here are some pictures from the hike. The views at Emerald Lake are big -- bring your ultra-wide lens! :-)

Bear Lake with Hallett Peak in the background

Nymph Lake

My "little" brother, Glenn with a great view of Longs Peak

Tyndall Creek just below Dream Lake with Longs Peak in background

Dream Lake with Hallett Peak and Flattop Mountain

Waterfall on Tyndall Creek with melting snow

Emerald Lake with Hallett at left and the crags of Flattop Mountain at right

A Yellow-bellied Marmot poses for the hikers at Emerald Lake

Can you see the climber standing on the rock formation on Hallett Peak (center of photo)?

Above image cropped, showing climber

And here's a map of the area showing the four lakes.