Old Fall River Road, or Dog's Trail by the Native Arapaho, is a historic roadway crossing through Rocky Mountain National Park. It was built between 1913 and 1920 by 38 convicts from the Colorado state penitentiary, resulting in it being the very first motor route to cross the park. Following the construction of Trail Ridge Road in 1932, Old Fall River Road was designated a one-way route and continues to be today. Your journey up Old Fall River Road and around the slopes of Mt. Chapin, will take you through three of the life zones, or ecosystems, that Rocky Mountain National Park has to offer. Awarding you one of the best journeys through the park you will have, in my opinion. You will not forget your journey along this historic road. So take your time, drive it slow, and get out and enjoy what it has to offer.
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From Estes Park: Take highway 34 or highway 36 west and into the park. Passing through either the Fall River or the Beaver Meadows park entrances respectively. Travel either 3.6 miles from the Fall River entrance or 4.8 miles from the Beaver Meadows entrance. Turning west onto Endovalley Road and continuing straight for 1.8 miles to Waypoint 1.
From Grand Lake: Travel north on highway 34 for 39 miles. Turn left at Deer Ridge Junction, continuing on highway 34 for another 2 miles. Turn left onto Endovalley Road and continuing straight for 1.8 miles to Waypoint 1.
This is a good trail to run if you're in Rocky Mountain National Park. It has beautiful views and a good chance to see some wildlife (we saw a good number of elk including a large bull). It's a bit bumpy in sections, and there are a few small potholes here and there, but overall it's easy enough a Prius can do it.
This road hardly qualifies as off-road but it is a must for nature and wildlife lovers. We ran this at 7:30 in the morning and were treated to a variety of wildlife. I would think the trail gets busy later in the day and on weekends.
A scenic alternative route to the Alpine Visitor Center in RMNP. Road is in decent shape and is narrow in spots, some minor potholes and washouts to contend with as well. A lot of bikers and hikers out on this beautiful day. Make sure to stop and take the short walk to Chasm Falls, it's beautiful and highly worth it.
Beautiful dirt road through the park and a wonderful alternative to the main road up and over to the Visitors Center on top of the mountains. A Prius could do this pretty much but it is still worth the drive if your in the park. Word of warning is to have your camping figured out because it is very difficult to find a spot without prior planning.
A very scenic drive, with a lot of vehicles on this road. There are a few trails along the way for hiking, and a couple of spots to pullover for photo taking.
Trail was in great condition, moderate number of people were on the trail enjoying the vistas and waterfalls. Just a reminder though, local tour operators out of Estes Park, CO run tour jeeps through here, so it can be slow going for parts of the trail. But it is a short easy trail with lots of pullovers, so you'll get past them soon.
Made our way up this trail easily in our Tundra (those of you who were behind us, sorry we were sight seeing). There were a few sedans navigating this trail too. Definitely a great little trail for those (like us) Who were just looking to get our feet wet with experience. The trail was well kept and maintained. Some narrow spots, but still enough room to maneuver. Cant wait to come back next year and find more trails to explore!
Really nice drive. Saw a bull moose on the trail. We did do this in the rain which made the last part of the road up near the top a little more exciting but it wasn't too bad.
This is definitely doable with any AWD/4WD vehicle with a little bit of clearance. There were some ruts on the corners where a passenger car may get hung up.
Wife and I took a Labor Day weekend trip to visit Estes Park and took the opportunity to drive the road/trail. I agree that this is a must drive if you are going into the park and will be in the area. No special vehicle or equipment required. I didn't see, but you could even do this on a full dresser Harley if you wanted to with ease. There are plenty of places to stop and get out of the way to sight see. Given that we were there on a Holiday weekend, it was almost bumper to bumper for most of the trip. Get the book at the beginning of the trail. It is $25 to get into the park so be prepared, then the $2 honor system payment for the book.
Old Fall River Road is a one way well maintained road through Rocky Mountain National Park. The views from the road are amazing, with plenty of pull offs to take in the views around you.
Man it was a wonderful view and a great easy trail that can been don’t in 2wd and low rider. Absolutely the best was to go through the park. Route was heavily traveled so it’s no secret. Just pay the park en
Was great! Got stuck behind a few tourists that kept stopping in the middle of the road. used the horn quite often. Besides that the viewes are fantastic!
How can you go to Estes Park and miss the Old Fall River Road. The high country is in the peak of color change during this autumn season. As we began the journey, it was cloudy with the expectation of a few showers by the late afternoon. We were in for a different result.
About half way up the trail, the clouds began to hover over the mountain tops and the temperature made a drastic change. During the first part of the trail, we were able to enjoy the fall gold of the changing aspens. By the time we reached the summit, we encountered heavy fog and our first snow of the season. Park Rangers were waiting for us at the top as they had decided to close the the pass because of the declining weather conditions. It is not yet closed for the season, but just closed during the inclement weather. This was an awesome trip.
We decided to enjoy this years solar eclipse by taking a mountain journey to be able to enjoy the eclipse from high altitude. As part of that journey we visited Rocky Mountain National Park and traveled up Old Fall River Road to the Alpine visitors center. We started with having a nice little lunch picnic at the Endovalley Picnic area, at the start of Old Fall River Road. Where we got to see several beautiful birds and listen to the Fall River flow by. Traveling along the road we got to enjoy a run in with a Yellow-bellied Marmot, hanging out in the middle of the road. When we finally arrived at Marmot Point. We hiked out on the trail to the top of the first hill to sit and enjoy the sights. Where we discovered the sounds of the Marmots chirping away at each other and it echoing around the valley. While enjoying the stop we where awarded with the often missed Pika hanging out and playing on the rocks in front of us. We arrived at the Alpine Visitor Center shortly after 5. Where we found that it had just closed and the temp having dropped nearly 20degs from the clime. So we left and returned back to Estes Park via Trail Ridge Road.
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Nik is an passionate overlander, general outdoors person, as well as an avid homebrewer. Taking every chance they can to get outdoors and discover new areas, trails and campsites. When not enjoying the outdoors, you can find them wrenching on the truck, enjoying another great brewery, or working the day job designing computer systems and writing software.
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