Parking
Start at Green Mountain Trailhead on Trail Ridge Road, about three miles north of Kawuneeche Valley Visitor Center. Onahu Trailhead is an alternate access to the same loop; this route is mapped counterclockwise from Green Mountain.
Overview
About Green Mountain Loop
Why go
- Big Meadows and the Sam Stone Ranch Ruins give the forest walk a clear destination.
- The loop joins Green Mountain and Onahu Creek without retracing the main route.
Heads up
- The trailhead connector parallels Trail Ridge Road and is the least scenic leg.
- The full circuit includes a rocky climb to a high saddle.
Green Mountain Loop is a 7.1-mile counterclockwise circuit from Green Mountain Trailhead. It climbs through forest to Big Meadows, then loops back along the Onahu Creek corridor and a short trailhead connector. Allow about four hours. Different maps put the circuit between about 7.1 and 7.6 miles; the mapped trail line is about 7.4, so leave room for the longer reading. With roughly 1,300 feet of climbing and a high point near 10,000 feet, this is a half-day hike. Choose it for a full valley circuit with a meadow, creek bridges, and an old ranch site rather than a quick walk to one destination.
Parkwolf’s verdictIs this the hike for you?Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Rocky Mountain map
Full mapElevation8,776–9,918 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 Green Mountain Loop, 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
Green Mountain Trailhead: Big Meadows in Two Hours0:00 / 0:23
“Up ahead is Green Mountain Trailhead, where I'd choose Big Meadows for a two-hour mountain walk. It's three point six miles round trip with about six hundred feet of climbing, steepest in the first half mile.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Rocky Mountain Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- Onahu Creek: Turn Around at the Bridge
- How Moose Reached Kawuneeche Valley
- Harbison Meadows: Lunch at the Sisters' Ranch
- Coyote Valley: A Riverside Picnic
- 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 Green Mountain Loop
Start with the forest climbBegin counterclockwise at Green Mountain Trailhead.
Begin counterclockwise at Green Mountain Trailhead. The first stretch climbs through lodgepole pine, aspen, subalpine fir, and Engelmann spruce. The grade eases after about the first half-mile, and small openings break up the forest before the route reaches Big Meadows. Keep to the loop at junctions; the Onahu Creek Trailhead is the other valid access, but this route is mapped from Green Mountain.
Big Meadows and the ruinsThe forest opens along Big Meadows, a broad, marshy meadow with a different feel from the…
The forest opens along Big Meadows, a broad, marshy meadow with a different feel from the shaded trail. Its edges can be wet in spring. Look across the opening for elk or moose foraging, but watch from a distance. The Sam Stone Ranch Ruins are a small reminder of early settlement in the valley; the route passes the site without needing a detour. This is the best place to pause for a wide view framed by the tree line.
Onahu Creek and the saddleAfter the meadow, the route reaches the Onahu Creek corridor.
After the meadow, the route reaches the Onahu Creek corridor. A bridge carries the trail across the creek, then the path climbs through a talus slope to the loop's high saddle before descending to a junction. This is the rougher, steeper part of the circuit, and the elevation makes the climb feel bigger than the map suggests. The changing forest and creekside stretch make a good contrast with the open meadow.
Finish the loopThe return connector links Onahu and Green Mountain trailheads and runs parallel to Trail Ridge…
The return connector links Onahu and Green Mountain trailheads and runs parallel to Trail Ridge Road. It is the least scenic stretch, but it keeps the walk on trail and closes the circuit without retracing the climb. Green Mountain Trailhead is about three miles north of Kawuneeche Valley Visitor Center on Trail Ridge Road. Pets are prohibited on all park trails, including this loop.
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.
