Long Meadows, RMNP, CO September 9, 2008 - Geoff Weatherford (geoffw)'s Photos

Conor and I headed to Long Meadows in Rocky Mountain National Park, Tuesday, September 9, 2008. Please go to my trail blogging site (opens a new window) for a full description of the trip.

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Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > Conor and I took two hikes together during his visit to Fort Collins this summer. Both were in RMNP (Rocky Mountain National Park). One, that we took with Will, was to Lake Halyaha above Bear Lake. The other hike was just ourselves (Will was working) to Long Meadow on the west side of RMNP. The one to Long Meadow is described now and I'll post the one to Lake Halyaha next.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > Conor and I took off Tuesday morning from Fort Collins and stopped in Estes Park to get a bite to eat (late breakfast). By the time we got to the Long Meadow trailhead (officially known as the Onahu trailhead) and on the trail, it was between 10:30 and 11 am. So, not a real early start, but good enough.

The trail starts off fairly level (sorry, no trailhead photos : ) and winds through some open forest.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > After about 1/4 of a mile, it starts to head uphill. This uphill section was approximately 1 mile long and, while utilizing some switchbacks, was not too steep. You do get to pass by and cross several small stream crossings.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > Here's Conor waiting for me to catch up. As can be seen here, even on this "uphill" section, there were parts of the trail that had only a gentile uphill slope.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > The day started off cloudy with a hint of rain. But, it never did develop into anything serious and just kept it cool for the hike.

Here is a view of lower Onahu Creek.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > Neat open woods. Nice flat trail : )

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > The trail eventually gets into a section of the Onahu valley that is relatively flat.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > You spend a large part of this section hiking alongside a meadow, but staying in the trees. Here you can see the meadow (which has Onahu Creek running through it) off through the trees. We passed a couple of signs indicating that there were some backpacker (or, horse/llama packer) campgrounds (stoves only) back off the trail.

Geoff Weatherford (geoffw) > Conor and I both agreed that this section of the trail was quite pleasant to hike. Somewhere along here is where we saw/met the only two people during the hike. So, definitely not too crowded today.

Conor and I took two hikes together during his visit to Fort Collins this summer. Both were in RMNP (Rocky Mountain National Park). One, that we took with Will, was to Lake Halyaha above Bear Lake. The other hike was just ourselves (Will was working) to Long Meadow on the west side of RMNP. The one to Long Meadow is described now and I'll post the one to Lake Halyaha next.

> Conor and I took two hikes together during his visit to Fort Collins this summer. Both were in RMNP (Rocky Mountain National Park). One, that we took with Will, was to Lake Halyaha above Bear Lake. The other hike was just ourselves (Will was working) to Long Meadow on the west side of RMNP. The one to Long Meadow is described now and I'll post the one to Lake Halyaha next.

Conor and I took two hikes together during his visit to Fort Collins this summer. Both were in RMNP (Rocky Mountain National Park). One, that we took with Will, was to Lake Halyaha above Bear Lake. The other hike was just ourselves (Will was working) to Long Meadow on the west side of RMNP. The one to Long Meadow is described now and I'll post the one to Lake Halyaha next.

Camera: Olympus Corporation (C770uz) |

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Keywords: rocky trail park long hike mountain hiking elk national meadows trails hiking trails onahu

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