Cub Lake Trail
Activity: SnowshoeDifficulty: Easy
Distance: maybe 3 miles
Location: Rocky Mountain National Park
Description:
Grandma and Grandpa came to visit so we took them to snowshoe at the National Park. Actually, we didn't really plan on all snowshoeing so we brought along our micro-spikes so we could all take turns trying out the snowshoes. After stopping in the visitor's center and talking to the Ranger, we went back to Estes Park to rent a couple more pairs of snowshoes. (When headed to the National Park rent your shoes in Estes, way cheaper than renting in Boulder). We also replanned the trail we were going to hike because of the active snowfall making the higher elevation roads a bit more risky. We ended up on the Cub Lake Trail.
We ate our lunch in the car at the trailhead. Once everyone got settled into their snowshoes we hit the trail. I highly recommend getting shoes for any child old enough to hike at least part of the trail solo. Our 3 year old really enjoyed the fun, light-up, snowshoes and acutally snowshoed faster than he's ever hiked before. I think the [stomping = blinking lights] motivated his movement.
We knew we would most likely not reach the lake because the total distance would have been over 4 miles. Most of our hikes when carrying the kids are 3.5 miles or less. We also had a time limitation with needing to return the rented shoes before the shop closed. The trail was easy to follow and lead us around the edge of Morain Park. It was a fairly level trail with only a small amount of ups and downs. If you hike all the way to the lake there is an uphill section at the end that we did not do. The snow was coming down at a good rate and we enjoyed the wonderland it created. It was pretty warm out so we were all comfortable.
Because we were hiking on the clock and not for distance, when we reached the time we needed to turn around we snapped a group photo and headed back to the car. We met a few people on the trail who had never seen snow before, that was neat. An enjoyable hike back to the trailhead concluded our first snowshoe adventure. Although, I think we could have gotten away without the snowshoes, it was fun to use them anyway.
