If you’ve been a longtime follower of the blog, then you’ll know that I’m incredibly lucky to have had one of my best friends from college living in Denver, Colorado, the past few years. I’ve been able to visit several times, each trip just crammed full of amazing hikes. So when the opportunity presented itself and I was able to squeeze in one last visit to Denver last spring before Kari moved away from Colorado, I flew out West for one last Colorado hiking spree (for now).

We began the trip with a drive out to Rocky Mountain National Park. The last time I visited RMNP was in January when everything was well and truly frozen and snow-packed, so I was hoping things would be a little more thawed in April. We opted to try Emerald Lake, an easier 3.5-mile loop to an alpine lake nestled in the heart of the mountains. We were hoping that the lake wouldn’t be frozen despite the promise of snow lingering on the ground.

It’s always a good idea to dress in layers whenever you’re hiking, but especially in high elevation. There were sections of the hike where a pull-over or windbreaker was necessary, and others where the warmth of the spring air forced us to strip down to just our t-shirt layer. Cramp-ons or spikes were a necessity. While there was no snow in Denver at the time, the entire trail to Emerald Lake was covered in hard-packed snow and ice. Due to the snow, I would rate this trail as moderate rather than easy, as there were several places where we had to scramble across thin shelves of snow or ice on steep cliffsides.

Apparently, this trail includes several subalpine and alpine lakes along the way, which make for stunning photo opportunities. Unfortunately, we were just too early in the season, so the lakes were still frozen. However, we did get beautiful views of Longs Peak, Hallett Peak, and Flattop Mountain.

Emerald Lake itself was mostly frozen, though a little slushy, hence why I look terrified to be anywhere near it in the photo below! The lake sits at an elevation of 10,110 feet, and the dominant mountain in the landscape here is the 12,713-foot Hallett Peak. Normally during the summer months, this trail is jam-packed with tourists, so that was one of the positives of visiting before the thaw—we had many of these views almost completely to ourselves.

We also did a second trail that day, since Emerald Lake was pretty short. The second trail was at a lower elevation through a section of the park that had been badly affected by wildfires. Unfortunately, I don’t remember the name of the trail, as I forgot to write it down, but if you recognize it, comment below!

We were also rewarded on the drive out of park by getting to see a herd of elk up close!

If you’re interested in hearing about my other Colorado adventures, click here. Thanks for reading!