Rocky Mountain National Park, CO
A short river walk to a lively, boulder-lined confluence.
Overview
Map & elevation
Plan your hike
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 trailhead
Fern Lake Trailhead: Turn Around at The Pool“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.
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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.”
Trail guide
The Pool Trail is a 3.4-mile out-and-back from Fern Lake Trailhead. Follow the Fern Lake Trail for 1.7 miles each way to the place where Fern Creek joins the Big Thompson River. The climb to The Pool is about 245 feet. It is an easy walk by the park’s scale, though the trailhead is above 8,000 feet. Allow 1.5 to 2 hours with a stop by the water. This is the short hike; Fern Falls and Fern Lake continue farther along the same trail.
The path runs beside the Big Thompson through mixed forest, with a few open stretches and valley views. At about 1.2 miles, look for Arch Rocks, two house-sized boulders beside the trail. The route ends at the Cub Lake junction and the river confluence; turn around here for the 3.4-mile outing.
The Pool is a boulder-lined spot where Fern Creek meets the Big Thompson, not a lake. Early hikers were already coming here by 1889. Local groups improved the trail and built a horse bridge at The Pool between 1907 and 1912. The Forest Inn above the river offered lodging before Rocky Mountain National Park was established in 1915 and closed in 1951; its site is remembered by a backcountry campsite.
Fern Lake Trailhead is at the end of Fern Lake Road. Its gravel lot can fill early. The seasonal Moraine Park shuttle serves the Fern Lake stop, about 0.8 mile on foot from the trailhead; check current service and road access before you go. The hike starts above 8,000 feet, so give yourself time. Pets are prohibited on park trails.
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
ModerateFern Lake Trail7.6 mi · 4.5 hr · At the trailheadA 7.6-mile return to Fern Lake passes The Pool and Fern Falls.
ModerateSpruce Lake Trail9.4 mi · 6 hr · At the trailheadFern Falls and a mountain lake reward the rough last climb.ChallengingLoomis Lake Trail10.3 mi · 6.5 hr · At the trailheadA 10.3-mile lake hike with an unmaintained final stretch.
ModerateOdessa Lake via Fern Lake Trail9.8 mi · 6 hr · At the trailheadTwo alpine lakes, a cascade and a serious climb from Fern Lake.
ModerateCub Lake–The Pool Loop6.1 mi · 3.5 hr · At the trailheadPair a lily-covered lake with a creek-carved pool.
ModerateFern Falls Trail5.1 mi · 3 hr · At the trailheadArch Rocks and The Pool earn the long walk to Fern Falls.
ChallengingGrace Falls Viewpoint Trail12 mi · 7.5 hr · At the trailheadA long high-country hike for a view of Grace Falls.
ModerateCub Lake Trail4.6 mi · 3.5 hr · 0.8 mi awayA meadow crossing and aspen climb lead to a lily-pad lake.
Sight · 0.9 mi awayCub LakeA lily-covered lake at the end of a varied Moraine Park hike.
Campground · 1.4 mi awayMoraine Park CampgroundElk bugles sometimes carry across camp on autumn nights.
Sight · 1.6 mi awayThe PoolA lively river pool makes a good shorter Fern Lake Trail turnaround.
Picnic area · 1.6 mi awayHollowell ParkA meadow picnic with Longs Peak across the basin.
Picnic area · 2 mi awayUpper Beaver Meadows Picnic AreaA quiet roadside picnic with the Continental Divide in view.
Sight · 2 mi awayBierstadt LakeMountain reflections reward the steep walk in.Sight · 2 mi awayFern FallsA tiered waterfall marks a natural halfway goal on Fern Lake Trail.
Sight · 2.2 mi awayMoraine ParkAn open glacial meadow with elk beneath Longs Peak and the Divide.Parkwolf’s Rocky Mountain ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
