The Continental Divide trip traverses the “backbone of the North American continent”. We start on the east side of the Rocky Mountains- commonly called the Front Range- and hike over the Divide and towards the west side. You truly see all the Rockies have to offer on this trip- glacier carved valleys, clear glacial run-off lakes, waterfalls, along with wildlife sightings. Plenty of stops along the way for rest, pictures, trail lunches, and to simply enjoy the majesty of nature. Nights under the stars, camped along lakes, streams and flowering meadows. We start in the beautiful green forests of the Rockies, hike above the tree line- which is another ecosystem altogether- and drop back down the eastern slopes into the Grand Lake Area.
We will start our Rockies adventure by gathering at our Estes Park hotel and double-checking guest gear, pack fit, and supplies. We'll grab breakfast from a local restaurant, enjoy the ride to our trailhead, and fuel ourselves up for a great hike. We will climb for a while as we enter the famous granite enveloped Odessa Gorge. Passing Grace Falls, we make our way to our gorgeous campgrounds of Odessa Lake.
We get to sleep in and relax a bit this morning, enjoy a great breakfast on the beach of Odessa Lake, and prepare for a short but amazing hike. We do continue to climb another 800' into the majestic Rocky Mountains, but it's over just 2 miles, the shortest mileage day of the trip. We'll take time today along the trail, exploring side-hikes, waterfalls, and more incredible views of the Odessa Gorge. We'll settle in to camp early enough to explore Lake Helene under the towering Notch Top Mountain.
Today marks the most adventurous day of the trip! We'll break camp very early, and head into the high altitudes and center of the Rockies. We catch a break and hike downhill for a couple of miles, then we climb about 2000' over 4 miles, reaching the peak of Flattop Mountain at well over 12,000'. Our trail flattens out and we get to experience a quite literal view of both the eastern and western United States. We drop down along a beautiful trail — a great spot for elk sightings — and head to our campground.
Congrats! We get to sleep in and think about the feat we just accomplished — and it's a downhill day! We'll have a great mountain breakfast and break camp, and drop down 1000' into the North Inlet area, showcasing gorgeous mountain trails, possible wildlife sightings, seasonal flowers, and alpine grass valleys. Some of this area was burned years ago, however that provides an opportunity to understand how our forests regenerate. We continue towards Big Pool Campground, a secluded area in the pines with a great swimming hole.
All good things must come to an end. Today we will enjoy a leisurely morning breakfast around the camp and reluctantly pack up for the final descent. We'll hike mostly downhill for 4 miles through the hills of the North Inlet valley, winding along beautiful stream meadows where elk and moose are often sighted, old homestead cabins and an abundance of flowers under towering Lodgepole Pines. We'll stop to explore Cascade Falls and see the area marmots. We'll finish at the North Inlet Trailhead and have a picnic lunch in charming Grand Lake.
