Hidden Valley Rocky Mountain Natl. Park

By Court Rye | in Hikes | Tags: Colorado, Snowboarding, Snowshoeing

Hidden Valley, Base of Mountain

Hidden Valley near Estes Park in Colorado makes for a great picnic, excellent sledding (in fact the only place to sled in Rocky Mountain National Park), snow shoeing and even back country skiing or snowboarding. In recent years it has changed from an official ski area with operational lifts, lodge and ice skating rink into more of a wilderness retreat with picnic tables and a basic parking lot.

For hikers who visit Hidden Valley during the summer and warmer months of the year there are a few short trails and picnic tables. It’s usually less crowded than Cub Lake and some of the other popular Rocky Mountain National Park areas because it’s off by itself and doesn’t really have a feature like a lake or waterfall. In the winter however, Hidden Valley comes alive with sledders and those looking to snowshoe.

I visited Hidden Valley regularly during the early and mid 2000′s. It provided the perfect setting for back country snowboarding with my friends and I would hike all the way up to Rainbow Curve, a stretch of Trail Ridge Road located half way up to the peak Continental Divide, to make jumps and snowboard down. This road is occasionally plowed towards the end of the winter season and provides an alternative route to the valley. At certain times the road will be closed but not completely snow covered, for mountain bikers and those looking for a beautiful traffic free ride this can be great, just watch out for icy patches. For those who enjoy riskier activities, the road serves as the foundation for a table top jump and I’ve gapped the road on my snowboard several times, even back flipping it once.

Hidden valley gets nice snow, offers fun snow shoeing and cross country skiing but it just isn’t that steep. You could spend six hours hiking up with your skis or snowboard only to find that you can’t ski all the way out because the powder is too deep and slow (without grooming service since it was shut down in 1991). For more history on Hidden Valley visit ColoradoSkiHistory.com and check out the official National Park Service website for conditions. Have fun up there!

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