Why Rocky Mountain National Park?

Is there a right or wrong way to visit a national park that is truly a national miracle? In all its magnificence and size, the park does not dictate response. But having recently visited Rocky Mountain National Park, I find, as always, that the beauty found within it makes it difficult to relate it to anything else I have experienced.

As with many who have visited before me, I am inspired to wonder at the beauty within the park. I've decided recently that seeing wildlife is an exciting occurrence but not required for my enjoyment. It is as if the park itself provided all one could want from a landscape of natural, pristine landscape. To see animals such as elk or Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep grazing or interacting with their peers is in effect a bonus.

I am always tempted to wonder if man in his brilliance has created anything to match this splendor. One might think about DaVinci or Mozart, Shakespeare or Michelangelo. Depending on your discipline and your preferences, your definition of perfect art emerges. But I have created a slightly different albeit quirky perception of delight for the senses and my relationship to it.

In this metaphor, we are all born with an emotional/perception/natural beauty zone. Some of us can "fill up" this zone by touring an art museum, enjoying a concert or viewing the Grand Canyon by air or by foot. There is no right or wrong way of filling up our zones. We need to replenish our zone quantities on a regular basis, I believe, and each time I visit Rocky Mountain National Park, I find that I am able to inhale and absorb my surroundings almost as if it is the oxygen I breathe. Conversely, when I am absent from the square miles known as Rocky Mountain National Park, I feel that my zone is emptied and my entire being diminished.

For those who haven't ventured there as yet but have the ability to do so, please don't hesitate to dedicate at least a day to your visit. The park is available from either side of Trail Ridge Road. From the east you would access by way of Estes Park, from the west through Grand Lake. If nature in its magnificence moves you, prepare to be moved. The landscape is obviously going to change with the season but each one has its power.

Winter in the Rockies drapes the mountains with snow and majestic but immutable pine trees. Animals inevitably find their places to graze and it is no challenge to see substantial herds of elk wandering in their heavy coats, seeking food and quiet places to linger.

Summer brings more tourists but an entirely different view, of lush aspen, possibilities of seeing black bears and numerous lakes and streams with hungry fish and thousands of species of botanic and animal creatures. Abundance is everywhere - green is the dominant color, with the mountains contributing pine trees (again) and the deciduous trees joining the panorama.

You can easily prefer spring or fall, without any difficulty. Spring boasts abundance of elk calves, wildflowers, light cool breezes and melting snowcaps. On the other hand, autumn brandishes glorious displays of aspen leaves, elk bugling their mating calls and brisk temperature as winter prepares its arrival.

My only regret regarding RMNP is that I was introduced to it so late in life. Consequently, it is my glorious pleasure to replenish my beauty zone as often as feasible. If your passion is flora, fauna, geology, history or simply immersing yourself in a vista of massive but eternally spectacular grandeur, plan a trip to our park. You can't prevent being moved by it.