Beautiful Estes Park,
Colorado Beckons to Those Seeking Outdoor Lifestyle in
Mountain Setting
Cost of Living: Above the National
Average
Anyone who has seen the movie The
Shining is at least familiar with the most prominent landmark
in town, the glimmering white, 5-star Stanley Hotel, which sits
upon a hill and can not be missed as one drives into town from the
south. Visitors also cannot miss the herds of elk who come
down from the surrounding hills during mating season each
September and October. Roads clog as people stop to watch
the male elk declare their love for the females with bugling that
begins deep and resonant and becomes a high pitched squeal before
ending in a succession of grunts. It is quite a spectacle!
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Estes Park is roughly 90 minutes
north of Denver and is reached via a well-maintained two lane
highway that winds through gorgeous mountain terrain (there is no
airplane access). The town sits in an alpine valley and has
one main street that runs from south to north and is lined with
restaurants, gift shops, ice cream parlors, coffee shops, antique
boutiques and galleries. This road heads into Rocky Mountain
National Park north of town, and residents know to stay away from
this downtown area in the summer when traffic can be a headache.
Once off this main drag, though, Estes is quaint and charming, and
cute shops and restaurants with delicious fare are tucked along
narrow streets. The town runs along the Big Thompson River
(which flooded in 1982) and there are several delightful parks
where residents picnic and soak up mountain sunshine. Lake Estes also provides a spot for strolling and fishing.
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This is definitely a small town, and shopping is
somewhat limited. For groceries its Country Market or
Safeway; there is no Wal-Mart! There are a number of very
good restaurants, serving everything from Mexican to big game, and
Estes has a number of top-notch art galleries, three wineries,
movie houses and a historical museum. There are
several festivals each year, including the Scottish Festival in
September and the Elk Fest in October. There
is no public transportation, which really is not an issue since
most of Estes can be reached on foot; the city offers several free
parking lots near downtown for those who want to drive to the
center of things. Golfers will love the thin air and
can partake in 27 holes on two separate courses with mountain
backdrops (the elk may play, too). The local
library has internet terminals available for walk-in use; Kind
Coffee has free wireless Internet.
Click here
for school information.
Estes primarily beckons to those
who love the outdoors and healthy living. Living in the
gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park provides residents a
picture postcard playground for fishing, camping, hiking, cross
country skiing, bicycling, horseback riding, mountain climbing and
birding. The Park is home to snowcapped peaks and abundant
wildlife, including bighorn sheep and mule deer, and is not a good
place to get lost.
Trail Ridge Road, the highest
continuous road in the United States, starts just inside the Park
and is breathtaking. Alpine meadows, turquoise lakes
and heart-stopping cliffs and hairpin curves make for an
adventurous drive! Tall poles have been planted to
outline the two lane road so that it can be found in the winter
because winter at 12,000 feet comes with a vengeance (Trail Ridge
is only open to the public in the summer). Drivers cross the
Continental Divide at Milner Pass and then drop down into Grand
Lake, a lovely mountain community nestled along a shimmering body
of water.
The main medical facility is the
Estes Park Medical Facility, a 15-bed "critical access
acute care facility with a 24-hour emergency department, 24-hour
ambulance service, emergency air transport, medical/surgical
services, obstetrics, home health care and hospice.
Services are available in allergy/asthma, cardiology, dietetics,
gastroenterology, neurology, oncology, ophthalmology, orthopedics,
otolaryngology, psychiatry, podiatry, pulmonology and
urology."
Summers in Estes
are short, and despite its elevation, temperatures can reach the
low 90s. It's much cooler in the surrounding
high country (and Trail Ridge is always a little chilly, even in
July and August). Mornings are usually clear
with cloud build up in the afternoons. Winters are cold with
temperatures in the teens, 20s and 30s. Precipitation
primarily comes in the form of snow; February and March are the
whitest months with 6 to 12 inches of snow each, but over the
entire year, Estes receives only 12-15 inches of moisture.
There is very little humidity.
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