Sight · Rocky Mountain National Park
Follow the Cache la Poudre valley toward Wyoming’s mountains.
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 place
Medicine Bow Curve: Two Treelines“You're nearing Medicine Bow Curve, a quick roadside stop for a long view north over the Cache la Poudre valley toward the Medicine Bow Mountains.”
Plays as you drive up to Medicine Bow Curve in the Parkwolf Rocky Mountain Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“…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
Medicine Bow Curve is a roadside viewpoint on Trail Ridge Road, looking north across the Cache la Poudre valley toward the Medicine Bow Mountains and Wyoming. It’s a quick stop for a broad sweep of open tundra, forested slopes and distant ridges. Trail Ridge Road is seasonal and can close when weather turns, so check access before setting out. This is high country, so take time to adjust; if altitude makes you feel off, rest, eat and drink water.
The Cache la Poudre River winds through the valley below, with the Medicine Bow Mountains on the distant horizon. For a photo, keep the golden tundra slope in the foreground; it gives the deep forested valley a sense of scale.
The upper treeline marks where subalpine forest gives way to alpine tundra. The lower one follows a valley floor that is too wet for trees. Once you spot both, the patchwork of open slope and forest below starts to make sense.
Elk, ptarmigan and marmots are seen in this area. Keep your distance and don’t feed them.
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
ModerateAlpine Ridge Trail0.6 mi · 45 min · 0.4 mi awayA steep stair climb to a 12,000-foot, four-direction view.
ModerateUte Trail West4 mi · 2.5 hr · 0.4 mi awayA high tundra traverse ending at the Continental Divide
ChallengingChapin Creek Trail1.3 mi · 1.3 hr · 1.5 mi awayA steep creek path fades into a high mountain meadow.
EasyTundra Communities Trail1.2 mi · 1 hr · 2.7 mi awayA short paved climb to a memorial among mushroom rocks.
ModeratePoudre River Trail from Milner Pass6 mi · 3.5 hr · 3.1 mi awayA 6-mile headwaters out-and-back through high, wet meadows.
ModerateForest Canyon Pass Trail4.7 mi · 3.5 hr · 3.5 mi awayTundra ponds and canyon views reward this high-country climb.
ChallengingMount Ida Trail9.6 mi · 6.5 hr · 3.5 mi awayA hard climb to a wide-open Continental Divide summit.
EasyLake Irene Trail0.8 mi · 45 min · 4.1 mi awayA short lake loop with an optional meadow view.
Food · 0.4 mi awayTrail Ridge Store & CaféA stone café and gift shop at Trail Ridge Road's high pass.
Visitor center · 0.4 mi awayAlpine Visitor CenterThe National Park System's highest visitor center, above the treeline.
Sight · 1.3 mi awayGore Range OverlookCatch the Never Summer skyline without adding a hike.
Sight · 1.6 mi awayLava Cliffs OverlookA rare lava exposure beside Trail Ridge Road.
Sight · 2.7 mi awayRock CutA road cut through the tundra, with pikas among the rocks.
Sight · 3.6 mi awayMilner PassStand at the Continental Divide beside Poudre Lake.Sight · 4.1 mi awayLake IreneA quick lakeside loop and picnic stop on Trail Ridge Road.
Sight · 4.1 mi awayForest Canyon OverlookFive minutes of walking reveals a canyon carved by ice.Parkwolf’s Rocky Mountain ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
