Picnic area · Rocky Mountain National Park
A picnic beside two ponds, with a stairway down to the water.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Rocky Mountain Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Rocky Mountain National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Rocky Mountain audio tourRecorded for this area
Elizabeth Burnell Leads the Way“Elizabeth Burnell came here as a tourist in nineteen sixteen, then became one of the park's early licensed women guides. Qualifying meant knowing geology, plants, wildlife, and first aid, along with the roads and trails.”
Plays near Beaver Ponds Picnic Area in the Parkwolf Rocky Mountain Tour Guide.
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“…No cell service for majority of the day but had continuous access to the app - the maps, the tour guide as you drive is amazing. Highly recommend purchasing the subscription.”
Guide
Beaver Ponds Picnic Area is a small roadside picnic stop in Kawuneeche Valley on the park's west side, near Grand Lake. Six tables look over two ponds, backed by forest and mountain scenery. It's an easy place to stop for a meal and a closer look at the water; a short stairway leads down to the pond edge.
There are six fire grates and a vault/composting restroom. The tables are first-come, first-served, and timed-entry reservations may be required for picnic-area access during reservation periods. Portable grills are allowed as an adjunct to the provided fire grates, so bring a meal rather than expecting food service here.
The ponds support local wildlife. Look for White-crowned Sparrows, Dark-eyed Juncos and Yellow-rumped Warblers. Visitors have sometimes reported elk in nearby fields or heard them calling in the evening, but sightings vary. Keep at least 75 feet from elk, moose, coyotes and other large animals, and don't feed wildlife.
Wildlife
3,124 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
1,601 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
19 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
19 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
30 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
270 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Rocky Mountain. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ChallengingTimber Lake Trail9.6 mi · 6.5 hr · 0.9 mi awayA steady forest climb opens into a high lake basin.
ModerateLittle Yellowstone Canyon Trail10.8 mi · 5.5 hr · 1 mi awayRiverside meadows give way to a colorful canyon and a steep climb.
ChallengingDutch Town Trail12 mi · 10 hr · 1 mi awayClimb to faint mining traces below the Never Summer Range.
ModerateRed Mountain Trail to Grand Ditch6.4 mi · 4.5 hr · 1 mi awayClimb to the Grand Ditch for Never Summer Range views.
ChallengingLake of the Clouds Trail13.2 mi · 13.5 hr · 1 mi awayA long, rough scramble to a lake beneath the Never Summer peaks.
ChallengingThunder Pass Trail14 mi · 9 hr · 1 mi awayA long climb links old mining remains with an open alpine pass.
ModerateColorado River Trail to Lulu City7.4 mi · 3.5 hr · 1 mi awayFollow the old wagon road to a flowered mining-town site.
ChallengingSkeleton Gulch Trail12.4 mi · 11 hr · 1 mi awayA 12.4-mile out-and-back to a remote one-site camp.
Picnic area · 0.4 mi awayBeaver Creek Picnic AreaA quiet meadow picnic stop with autumn elk viewing.
Campground · 0.7 mi awayTimber Creek CampgroundWest-side camping at 8,900 feet, near Grand Lake.
Sight · 1.1 mi awayFarview Curve OverlookThe Grand Ditch cuts a pencil line across the Never Summer Range.
Sight · 1.2 mi awayHolzwarth Historic SiteA mile-long loop through a valley homestead and guest ranch.
Sight · 2.4 mi awayLake IreneA quick lakeside loop and picnic stop on Trail Ridge Road.
Sight · 2.8 mi awayTimber LakeA steep climb to a lake beneath two high peaks.
Sight · 3 mi awayMilner PassStand at the Continental Divide beside Poudre Lake.
Picnic area · 3 mi awayCoyote Valley Picnic AreaA riverside picnic with views of the Never Summer Mountains.Parkwolf’s Rocky Mountain ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
