6 Best Sights in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

Thanks to its picturesque location, easy accessibility, and the good hiking trails nearby, this small alpine lake below Flattop Mountain and Hallett Peak is one of the most popular destinations in the park. Free park shuttle buses can take you there May through October.

The 6-mile climb from the Wild Basin trailhead to Bluebird Lake (2,478-foot elevation gain) is especially scenic. You pass Copeland Falls, Calypso Cascades, and Ouzel Falls, plus an area that was burned in a lightning-instigated fire in 1978—today it's a mix of bright pink fireweed and charred tree trunks. Difficult.

With 32 tables and 30 fire grates, this is the largest picnic area in the park. Here, you'll find aspen groves, nice views of Fall River Pass—and lovely Fan Lake a short hike away.

A moderate, 1.4-mile hike through aspen and evergreen groves takes you to this abandoned mine, where there are some scattered tailings and the remains of a single cabin.

In a meadow near Mill Creek, this lovely spot for a picnic has 10 tables and is open year-round. It's also close to the Hollowell Park and Mill Creek Basin Trailheads.

With 27 tables and 16 pedestal grills, this alfresco dining spot is open year-round, with flush toilets in the summer and vault toilets the rest of the year.