Parking
Fern Lake Trailhead is at the end of Moraine Park Campground Road, beside a gravel lot. The seasonal Moraine Park shuttle route lists a Fern Lake stop; confirm its walking distance from the trailhead on the current park map.
Overview
About Fern Falls Trail
Why go
- Arch Rocks and The Pool add worthwhile stops before the waterfall.
- The historic trail follows a river and creek through Moraine Park.
Heads up
- The final climb is steep, and the return retraces the same route.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Rocky Mountain map
Full mapElevation8,159–8,845 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
3 active Rocky Mountain alerts
- ClosureOld Fall River Road closed to vehiclesOld Fall River Road is closed to motor vehicles for the season.Official details
- ClosureSun Valley burn-area access remains closedThe area and trail west of Sun Valley Trail remain closed, including the route used for angler access to the Colorado River, because of impacts from the 2020 East Troublesome and Cameron Peak Fires;…Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Rocky Mountain Tour Guide
Your drive to Fern Falls Trail, narrated.
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 trailhead
Fern Lake Trailhead: Turn Around at The Pool0:00 / 0:25
“You're nearing Fern Lake Trailhead, where The Pool makes a good shorter turnaround.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Rocky Mountain Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Cub Lake: Lily Pads Beyond the Meadow
- Upper Beaver Meadows: A Picnic Below the Divide
- Hollowell Park: Lunch and a Creekside Stroll
- Watch for the Coyote's Pounce
- 79 audio storiesacross Rocky Mountain’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Elk, Moose, Mountain Goat, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 136 trails, 88 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“…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.”
Trail guide
Hiking Fern Falls Trail
The 5.1-mile out-and-backFern Falls Trail runs from Fern Lake Trailhead to a multi-tier waterfall on Fern Creek.
Fern Falls Trail runs from Fern Lake Trailhead to a multi-tier waterfall on Fern Creek. The round trip is about 5.1 miles, with roughly 700 feet of climbing; allow around three hours. The first 1.7 miles follow the Big Thompson River to The Pool, then the route leaves the river and climbs more steeply beside Fern Creek. Choose this if you want a longer waterfall hike with a few good stops before the falls. The Pool makes a solid shorter turnaround if you want to skip the final climb.
River, boulders and The PoolThe path follows the Big Thompson through mixed forest, with occasional openings across the…
The path follows the Big Thompson through mixed forest, with occasional openings across the valley. About 1.2 miles in, look for Arch Rocks, a pair of house-sized boulders beside the trail. At about 1.7 miles, The Pool marks the meeting of Fern Creek and the Big Thompson, where the water runs fast around rock and timber.
The climb to Fern FallsPast The Pool, the route turns uphill beside Fern Creek.
Past The Pool, the route turns uphill beside Fern Creek. The last stretch is the steepest part, gaining close to 400 feet over about 0.7 mile. Fern Falls appears at a switchback: a forested, multi-tier cascade with water continuing down through the trees. Keep the fallen logs in the bottom of your photo; they show how the water stacks over several drops.
An old park routeThe Fern Lake Trail grew out of early park tourism; its first complete route was established by…
The Fern Lake Trail grew out of early park tourism; its first complete route was established by 1906. Civilian Conservation Corps crews later built trail walls that are still part of the corridor. The former Forest Inn stood near The Pool. It opened in 1917 and was removed after the park acquired it in 1952. The trail was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2005.
A landscape changed by fireParts of the route were changed by the 2012 Fern Lake Fire and the 2020 East Troublesome Fire.
Parts of the route were changed by the 2012 Fern Lake Fire and the 2020 East Troublesome Fire. Burned slopes remain visible along sections of the approach, alongside forest that is growing back. If you expect an unbroken green forest walk, this isn't that; the river and waterfall are the stronger reasons to come.
Starting at Moraine ParkFern Lake Trailhead is at the end of Moraine Park Campground Road, beside a gravel lot.
Fern Lake Trailhead is at the end of Moraine Park Campground Road, beside a gravel lot. The seasonal Moraine Park shuttle route lists a Fern Lake stop, but published hike directions differ on how far it is from the trailhead; check the current stop map before relying on it. Dogs are prohibited on all park trails.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Rocky Mountain
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.
