Hike to Ouzel Lake
Hike to Ouzel Lake (2020-07-18)
Preparation
Location
Ouzel Lake is inside Rocky Mountain National Park and required us to make a reservation two weeks in advance. We wanted to start the hike early in the morning (9:00 AM) but could only find an opening at 10:00 AM. This turned out to be a good thing as I'll explain later.
Weather
The weather forecast called for a high of 85 F with a moderate chance of thunderstorms. This was an improvement over the forecast for our home in Fort Collins with a high of 96 F.
Equipment
For the hike took my trusty Camel Bak MULE with 2.5 Liters of water, sunscreen, first aid kit, flash light, water-proof matches, Leatherman pocket knife, and 2 CLIF bars. For clothing I took my regular hiking shorts, my old Asics Nimbus running shoes, Brooks running socks, and a choice of shirts (one cotton the other tech wear).
The Hike
Getting there
Only my wife and I were going on the hike which meant we had to find things for our three kids to do. This turned out to be pretty easy. Our oldest was already away on a camping trip with her scout troop; the second oldest had plans for a lake day with a friend; the youngest asked to be dropped off at grandma's house.
The plan was to drop off the second oldest followed by the youngest since grandma's house was on the way to the trail head.
What actually happened: The second oldest left the life vest (for his lake day) at Grandma's house on a previous visit so we ended up dropping off our youngest first which made us about an hour late to the trail head. Long story short...the later reservation turned out to be a good thing.
After some driving behind some very slow people (they're always slow when you're running late) we arrived at the trailhead at 11:00 AM...a little late but still within our reservation time.
Calypso Cascades
The start of the hike started out with a gentle climb with a few rocks and turned into a relatively steep climb consisting of stairs. The trail was also moderately trafficked which meant passing some slower hikers. The good news was that at the top of all the stairs is Calypso Cascades!
The cascades offer a nice view and a great sound of falling water. There are a couple of pools where you can take off your shoes and get your feet wet without getting washed away. There was also a shaded place to sit. We ended up eating lunch here since we were late in starting.
Ouzel Falls
After the cascades the hike continued to be moderately steep and moderately trafficked. There were a few narrow (and shallow) water crossings; otherwise it was an easy mile.
We came upon the falls very suddenly. It was like: BOOM OUZEL FALLS!
Ouzel Falls is only partially visible from the bridge on the trail. To see them fully I had to hike up a bit.
Ouzel Lake
The last part of the hike transitions into a green meadow where the native grass partially "takes over" the trail.
We reached the lake at 2:30 PM. The whole area was calm and relaxing but a storm was rolling in so we only had time for a snack and a few pictures before we headed back down.
Going Down
The trip down was uneventful except for some light rain, two F-16s buzzing Longs Peak, and a guy making his way up the trail on a mountain bike (that's not allowed).
We made it back to the trailhead by 4:30 PM and headed into Estes for some chocolate and candy.
The hike was moderately challenging going up and easy going down. There are camping sites available so we may try to use them sometime in the future.
