Fall in love with the Rockies

We planned a 3-day trip to Denver, Colorado late September 2022. Colorado observes Mountain Standard Time (MST) with Daylight Saving Time (DST). Denver, also known as the Mile High City, Queen City of the Plains, is the capital and most populous city of the US state of Colorado. Denver features a semi-arid climate and is subject to sudden changes in weather. The weather was pleasant and chilly. Wonderful golden, orange, and red colors were starting to show up.

I took a break in my travels past 3 years due to COVID-19. I have not even seen my family for the past 4 years. Especially, in the summer of 2022, airline cancellations and delays were skyrocketing, along with fuel costs. The fuel cost had reached 5 USD/gallon in Cincinnati, Ohio, USA. Inflation has reached its highest point since 1981. But travel is unavoidable in case of personal and work reasons. Here are a few tips to save money on your trip.

We flew to Denver from Cincinnati in 3 hours and tickets cost approx. 600 USD for a couple. We could have driven all the way (~1200 miles) but that would take us additional 2 days (including breaks+1-night halt) on a one-way road trip to Denver. We rented an AWD car for approx. 400 USD, based on my past driving experience in mountainous terrain. We stayed in a hotel in Denver which cost approx. 300 USD (including breakfast) since it was a quick getaway trip. It is possible to reserve a hotel room in advance. We typically compare the costs of staying in an Airbnb and a hotel. An advantage of having a kitchen in the Airbnb is cooking meals and reducing food expenses for a longer stay.

There were three main places on our itinerary - Rocky Mountain National Park (#RMNP), Denver,  and Boulder. We visited a park in Denver area on the first day and drove around the University of Colorado, Boulder campus on the 2nd day. The beautiful campus is very close to the Rockies. Boulder is known for its outdoor activities and vibrant downtown. I recommend the CAVA restaurant in Boulder downtown, where we stopped for lunch on the way to RMNP.  

Late September and early October are magical times to visit RMNP. The Rockies get three million annual visitors. I didn't know about the RMNP's timed entry permit system. We drove to RMNP from Denver on 2nd day but weren't allowed entry since tourists take the permits online earlier than noon or previous month. Then we just took a scenic drive and returned to Denver downtown in the evening.  

Scenic drive from RMNP to Denver

On the last day of the trip, we reached the gate around 3 pm since we didn't require timed entry permits after 3 pm. Luckily, we didn't need to buy tickets for admission since it was National Public Lands Day (#NPLD).

Scenic view from one of the pullouts on Trail Ridge road

Use the visitor's shuttle only if the parking is full for any tourist spots such as Bear lake. Check the weather online and on the park website for general daily updates. Know before you plan the trip to the Rockies. A popular route-Trail Ridge road is closed to through traffic for the winter season. Trail Ridge road covers the 48 miles between Estes Park on the east and Grand Lake on the park's west side. It is fascinating to observe the changes en route.

Scenic drive on the curvy Trail Ridge road, closer to highest elevation point - Alpine visitor center

Scenic drive on Trail Ridge road

The Alpine visitor center is the highest elevation visitor center in the National Park System at 11,796'. It closed after 4.30 pm. We could have made it earlier to the visitor center had we not stopped to click pictures at every scenic pullout. Then we took a U-turn to go back to see Bear lake. Bear lake road was open to visitors after 6 pm. We made it in time on Bear lake road and reached Bear lake just before sunset. It was perfect timing. It was amazing to see the reflections in the lake! 

Bear lake

RMNP is one of the country's top wildlife-watching destinations. We saw a few elk in RMNP. Usually, everyone can see them in the meadows.

Elk at RMNP

We would love to visit again and probably camp at RMNP next time. I recommend planning a trip in the fall of next year!