 View of the vehicle, approximately 500 feet below Trail Ridge Road; NPS/ROMO photos At approximately 8:50 p.m. on Thursday, September 1, 2022, Rocky Mountain National Park received a call from a visitor traveling on Trail Ridge Road who saw a vehicle off road. A small SUV with one occupant had driven off Trail Ridge Road east of Gore Range Overlook, and the vehicle came to rest approximately 500-feet down the steep slope. While the occupant was being rescued, Trail Ridge Road was temporarily closed for two hours. The occupant, a 54-year old man from Florida, walked up from the vehicle with assistance from park staff and the Estes Valley Fire Protection District and was transported out of the park by Estes Park Health ambulance. Trail Ridge Road was temporarily closed again the morning of September 2, for approximately 4 hours as park staff and Monarch Towing Company worked to extract the vehicle and all associated debris. In addition to the park's Search and Rescue team and law enforcement staff, we would like to thank partner agencies who provided key support on this incident, including the Estes Valley Fire Protection District and Estes Park Health. This incident is under investigation. No further information is available.  NPS search and rescue staff and Estes Valley Fire Protection District work to set up lines to help the occupant walk up the steep slope to Trail Ridge Road; NPS/ROMO photo  Staff work to safely extract the vehicle from a location 500-feet below Trail Ridge Road; NPS/ROMO photo
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 Visitors crowd a popular elk-rut viewing area. NPS/ROMO photo RMNP UPDATE - September 1, 2022 Beginning on September 1, park officials will put annual closures in place for travel on foot or horse off established roadways or designated trails from 5 p.m. to 10 a.m. In 2020, the closure time extended to 10 a.m. from 7 a.m. due to a significant increase in visitors approaching elk when the morning meadow closures lifted. These closures last through October 31 and are effective in Horseshoe Park, Upper Beaver Meadows, Moraine Park, Harbison Meadow and Holzwarth Meadow in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Fishing in the Fall River, Thompson River or Colorado River within the posted areas remain the same as previous years and are closed from 5 p.m. to 7 a.m. The purpose of the closures is to prevent disturbance and harassment of elk during their fall mating period and to enhance visitor elk viewing opportunities. As always, elk calling and the use of spotlights or vehicle headlights for spotting wildlife is prohibited in Rocky Mountain National Park. RMNP Update - August 30, 2022
The Milner Pass Parking Area and trailhead will be closed to all users beginning on Wednesday, September 7, for the construction of a new vault toilet facility. This project is anticipated to be completed by mid-October, as weather and conditions permit. Located 4.3 miles west of Alpine Visitor Center along Trail Ridge Road near Poudre Lake, the Milner Pass Parking Area, as well as all access trails from this parking area, will be closed for visitor safety while this area is under construction. All visitors planning to hike on the Ute Trail and other connector trails in the area should plan to access these trails from the Alpine Visitor Center. For more information on Rocky Mountain National Park, please call the park’s Information Office at (970) 586-1206 or visit our website at www.nps.gov/romo  Golden Eagle in flight; NPS photo Due to golden eagle nesting activity, closures have been extended through August 15 at Sundance Buttress, Thunder Buttress and Needle Summit in the Lumpy Ridge area. These closures include the named formations. Closures include all climbing routes, outcroppings, cliffs, faces, ascent and descent routes and climber access trails to the named rock formations. All other closures have been lifted. Check the park’s website at www.nps.gov/romo/raptor-closures.htm for maps and updated information on raptor closures.
Each year to protect raptor nesting sites, Rocky Mountain National Park officials initiate temporary closures in areas of the park. To ensure that these birds of prey can nest undisturbed, specific areas within the park are closed temporarily to public use during nesting season and monitored by wildlife managers. The closures began this year on February 15. Closures may be extended past July 31, or rescinded at an earlier date depending on nesting activity. Some routes were reopened in mid-June. The National Park Service is committed to preserving birds of prey. If nest sites are located or territorial behaviors such as aggressive divebombing/vocalizing or birds fleeing nest sites due to human disturbance are observed, please report the general location to ROMO_Information@nps.gov. The same cliffs that are critical for raptors also appeal to climbers. The cooperation of climbing organizations and individuals continues to be essential to the successful nesting of raptors in the park. For further information on Rocky Mountain National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/romo or call the park’s Information Office at (970) 586-1206.  The Tonahutu Trail on July 13; photo by Chris Reveley RMNP UPDATE - July 20, 2022
Park staff are adjusting the trail status of the Upper Tonahutu Creek Trail. The Upper Tonahutu Creek Trail from the junction of Onahu Trail at Tonahutu to Flattop Mountain has closed again for ongoing evaluation. The Green Mountain/Onahu Trail loop will remain open to hikers. The Green Mountain Trail remains closed to stock users. All stock users are advised to use the Onahu Trail in and out. On the west side of the park, the Sun Valley and River Trail and the Lower Tonahutu Trail (between Big Meadows and the KVC Turkey Spur Trail) remain closed to all users. In the northwest area of the park the Mirror Lake area trail system remains closed. On the east side of the park the Spruce Lake Trail remains closed. Park visitors should be aware of additional hazards when recreating in burn areas including:
For current fire information, maps and details on areas closures within RMNP, visit https://www.nps.gov/romo/learn/fire-information-and-regulations.ht  Incident on Ptarmigan Fingers: female being littered to air ambulance July 11/ Photo Courtesy Rocky Mountain National Park RMNP UPDATE - July 11, 2022 Yesterday afternoon, Sunday, July 10, park rangers were notified that a 61-year-old male from Boulder, Colorado, had been injured in a significant tumbling fall on a snow couloir in the Ptarmigan Fingers area above Odessa Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. It was later determined that a 59-year-old female from Boulder, also suffered injuries from a fall in the same area. Bystanders heard her calls for help and aided her. Bystanders were able to use their satellite communication devices to contact park rangers. Northern Colorado Med Evac air ambulance assisted Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue team members with air reconnaissance to determine the man’s exact location. Because of the location and severity of injuries of the male, the park requested assistance from a Colorado National Guard helicopter from Buckley Air Force Base to extricate the man via a hoist operation, using a winch operated cable. Rocky Mountain Rescue assisted with the helicopter hoist operations. This occurred at approximately 8 p.m. last night. The man was flown to Upper Beaver Meadows, transferred to Northern Colorado Med Evac air ambulance, and then flown to Medical Center of the Rockies.  Incident on Ptarmigan Fingers: female being littered around Odessa Lake to air ambulance July 11/ Photo Courtesy Rocky Mountain National Park The female also suffered serious injuries and was cared for overnight by Rocky Mountain National Park Search and Rescue team members and overnight campers at Odessa Lake. She was flown out by Northern Colorado Med Evac air ambulance this morning at approximately 11 a.m. Over 45 people were involved with this two day incident. Several agencies assisted Rocky Mountain National Park’s Search and Rescue team with this incident including Northern Colorado Med Evac, Rocky Mountain Rescue Group, Colorado National Guard and Larimer County Search and Rescue. No further information is available at this time.  Ptarmigan Fingers above Odessa Lake with Northern Colorado Med Evac Helicopter July 11 / Photo Courtesy Rocky Mountain National Park RMNP UPDATE - July 5, 2022 Beginning Tuesday, July 19, through Friday, July 22, the Wild Basin Road in Rocky Mountain National Park will be closed to all uses, including vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians for road maintenance. This closure will occur at the Wild Basin Entrance Station and will include the entire two-mile section of the road to the Wild Basin Trailhead.
The park’s roads crew will be spreading gravel and grading this narrow road to address ruts, potholes and help with drainage. Due to the road being closed to all uses from July 19 through July 22, visitors should avoid this area of Rocky Mountain National Park during this time. For further information about Rocky Mountain National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/romo or call the park’s Information Office at (970) 586-1206.  East Troublesome Fire Damage around Green Mountain in RMNP, photo by Barb Boyer Buck, July, 2021 RMNP UPDATE - July 9, 2022 The Green Mountain Trail and Tonahutu Trail from Big Meadow to Flattop Mountain on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park have reopened to hikers and backpackers. The Green Mountain Trail remains closed to stock users. All stock users are advised to use the Onahu Trail in and out.
These trails have been closed since 2020, due to impacts from the East Troublesome Fire. On October 21, 2020, the East Troublesome Fire made an 18-mile and over 100,000-acre run in Grand County, Colorado. The East Troublesome Fire was the largest fire in Rocky Mountain National Park’s 107-year history. It burned over 21,000 acres within the park. On the west side of the park, the Sun Valley and River Trail and the Lower Tonahutu Trail (between Big Meadows and the KVC Turkey Spur Trail) remain closed to all users. In the northwest area of the park the Mirror Lake area trail system remains closed. On the east side of the park the Spruce Lake Trail remains closed. Park visitors should be aware of additional hazards when recreating in burn areas including:
 Federal, state, and county agencies remind visitors and residents alike that fire danger is high in Colorado and recreating on public lands requires knowledge of area fire restrictions and bans. RMNP UPDATE - June 30, 2022 Denver, Colo. – While campfires often accompany camping, as do fireworks with the Fourth of July, extreme caution needs to be exercised this holiday and throughout the summer due to Colorado’s continued drought and the frequency of human-caused fires. Visitors enjoying public lands have a responsibility to know where campfires are allowed, how to properly extinguish them, and that all fireworks are banned on Front Range public lands.
Between 2017 and 2021, 89% of wildfires in the United States were caused by people, according to the U.S. Department of Interior and the Insurance Information Institute. Each year in Colorado, campfires that burn out of control are the leading human cause of wildfires. Public land agencies along northern Colorado’s Front Range emphasize that although parts of Colorado have received moisture in the last month, drought conditions are still present. According to the National Weather Service U.S. Drought Monitor, as of June 21, 99% of Colorado is still experiencing abnormally dry to exceptional drought conditions. Specifically, 38.5% of Colorado is classified as moderate drought, 30.3% as severe drought, and 12.5% as extreme drought. Tips for fire safety and prevention include:
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Rocky Mountain National Park is seeking public input on a proposed $15 expanded amenity fee to provide voluntary fast pass automated gate transponders to interested visitors with valid annual or lifetime passes.
In 2004, Rocky Mountain National Park constructed a fast pass lane at the Beaver Meadows Entrance and in 2011, an additional fast pass lane was installed at the Grand Lake Entrance. Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the only national parks that has a fast pass lane for visitors. Visitors who purchased an annual park pass or lifetime pass were able to use their pass to operate the automated gate. However, in 2019, the National Park Service modified the format of annual and lifetime passes. The new national passes are not compatible with the park’s existing fast pass gate system technology and the fast pass gate has not been operational for the last few years. Based upon this technological challenge, the park is proposing to transition to windshield transponders for interested annual and lifetime pass holders to access the fast pass lane, outside of any pilot timed entry permit reservation system times. A transponder is a small, credit card-sized device that attaches to a vehicle’s window. Transponders are not removable or transferable and would function for the lesser of one year or through the expiration month of an existing valid annual pass. If the park moves forward with this proposal, the park would anticipate initiating transponder sales late spring of 2023. For more information and a list of frequently asked questions please visit www.nps.gov/romo/getinvolved/proposal-for-expanded-amenity-fee-for-transponder-device.htm Public engagement is an important part of the park’s planning process. Rocky Mountain National Park is accepting public comments from July 1 to July 31, 2022, on the proposed voluntary expanded amenity fee. Please submit all comments to: https://parkplanning.nps.gov/RMNP_FAST-PASS_TRANSPONDER_2022 Comments may also be submitted via mail to: Rocky Mountain National Park Office of the Superintendent 1000 US Hwy 36 Estes Park, CO 80517 Please be advised, before including your address, phone number, e-mail address, or other personal identifying information in your comment, you should be aware that your entire comment – including your personal identifying information – may be made publicly available at any time. Although you can ask in your comment to withhold your personal identifying information from public review, we cannot guarantee we will be able to do so. For additional information on Rocky Mountain National Park, visit www.nps.gov/romo or call the park’s Information Office at (970) 586-1206. |
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