GC230BHPaternoster Lakes
Type: Earth
| Size: Other
| Difficulty:
| Terrain:
By: Me & Bucky@
| Hide Date: 01/15/2010
| Status: Available
Country: United States
| State: Colorado Coordinates: N40° 18.573 W105° 40.019 | Last updated: 08/30/2019 | Fav points: 0
Rocky Mountain National Park is located west of Estes Park and north and east of Grand Lake. This is a fee area of the National Park Service, and costs $30 per vehicle. This fee is covered in the Rocky Mountain National Park Annual Pass, the Rocky Mountain National Park/Arapaho National Recreation Area Annual Pass, and the America the Beautiful Pass. Please see the following website http://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/feesandreservations.htm for the entire fee schedule. The park is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Road and Trail Conditions and Closures can be found at: http://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/road_conditions.htm. Recorded information for the condition of Trail Ridge Road can be found by calling (970) 586-1222. Please remember that all geologic features within the borders of Rocky Mountain National Park are protected by law, as are all natural and historic features. Please do not disturb, damage, or remove any rocks, plants, or animals.
Parking is located at the Bear Lake Trailhead, Bierstadt Lake Trailhead, or you can park at one of the several shuttle bus parking lots and take the shuttle to Bear Lake and hike in from here.
Emerald Lake and Dream Lake are examples of “paternoster” lakes. These lakes have received this name since they are part of a chain of lakes connected by a stream, and are therefore said to look like the beads of a rosary.
The pattern of chains of lakes connected by a single stream is a hallmark of many glacial valleys in Rocky Mountain National Park. As the glaciers retreated up their respective valleys, rock-basin lakes were left behind. These lakes may have been formed by moraines or rock dams, and may include kettle lakes. They have been described as rising in elevation like a staircase as one moves up towards the head of the valley.
Other nearby examples of paternoster lakes include the string of Frozen Lake, Black Lake, Jewel Lake, and Mills Lake in the Glacier Gorge area.
1.) To receive credit for this EarthCache, measure the elevational difference between Emerald Lake and Dream Lake, and send the answer to me in an email.
Please consider posting photos of yourself, or the local geology, when you log this EarthCache. Photos can be an additional rewarding part of your journey, but posting them is not a requirement for logging this EarthCache, and is strictly optional.
The above information was compiled from the following sources:
2004. Rocky Mountain National Park. In Harris, A.G. et al., editors. Geology of National Parks, Sixth Ed. P. 337-356. Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.
Cole, J.C., and Braddock, W.A. 2009. Geologic map of the Estes Park 30’ x 60’ quadrangle, north-central Colorado: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Map 3039, 1 sheet, scale 1:100,000, 1 pamphlet, 56 p.
KellererLynn, K. 2004. Rocky Mountain National Park. Geologic Resource Evaluation Report. NPS D307, September 2004. Online at: http://www.nps.gov/romo/parkmgmt/upload/romo_geo_overview.pdf
Rocky Mountain National Park. Online at: http://www.nps.gov/romo
Rocky Mountain National Park was most helpful in the background discussion, aid in the choosing of sites, and review of this EarthCache. My thanks to the Park for allowing the placement of this EarthCache!
06/09/2019 By lasouthpaw All week long Nocogirl and I talked about hiking, but we didn't want to go too high because neither one of us is overly fond of the snow. So it comes down to decision time and what do we do? Hey, let's go to Emerald Lake! She did warn me we'd likely hit snow, so luckily I was prepared with some layers. It didn't take long to hit snow, and not long after that the whole trail was snow. The air temps have warmed up, so we were slipping and sliding along, but having fun. The snow melt is in full swing, too. But we loved the hike, loved the company, and had the chance to grab a few caches along the way. The more I do Earth caches, the more I like them. Thank you for having one at such a beautiful place. Answers already sent for Nocogirl and myself.
05/27/2019 By jeremeh We finally made it to the top! And what an exciting way to finish. As we finally lay eyes on the frozen lake the temperature drops drastically, the winds pick up, and the snow is now no longer soft and fluffy but blowing and piercing on the skin. The small group that had gathered before we arrived bolted and we had to take a selfie to document our accomplishment. The smallest two junior cachers struggled a bit until we could get back down the path and the storm past. Even heard thunder. But that wind speeding across the frozen pond was a drastic change. Thanks for the earthcache!
05/24/2019 By ncguy67 TFTVC in Rocky Mountain NP. We were on a road trip from NC of the 4 corner states. We hiked the lakes loop from Bear to Nymph to Dream to Emerald in lots of snow. Luckily we had brought winter coats and crampons. Who knew the weather for the end of May? It was 94 degrees in NC.
04/07/2019 By Giant Teddy Freaking beautiful hike with shoe spikes.
03/27/2019 By LiveWire77 Short Circuit 77 and I out on a beautiful day in the Estes Park/Fort Collins area finding high favorite caches to fulfill the Creation Celebration/Mardi Gras requirements. Short Circuit 77 has emailed our answer.
09/10/2018 By thursnext Got up early this morning on my last day in Colorado and headed to the Bear lake trailheads for a sunrise/early morning hike. I'm not sure what I was anticipating but this hike far surpassed my expectations! Awesome last cache of my trip! Thank you for placing and maintaining so many superb ECs in RMNP! Answers coming your way next.
07/30/2018 By Lelunka Together with mip007 visited on our nice trip. TFTC
07/29/2018 By mip007 TFTC. Lelunka will send the answer
07/20/2018 By geowinnies Didn't plan on making it this far today but the trail was one of the top 5 of all the places we've been to - definitely worth it and will be back next time in RMNP.
07/15/2018 By IMaCheesehead Took the hike to Emerald lake today with grand child. She was really good in the backpack.
07/13/2018 By BethKatzPA My #2509 with David, Helen, and Ben on a 10-mile adventure visiting Bear Lake, Nymph Lake, Dream Lake, Emerald Lake, Lake Haiyaha, and Bierstadt Lake. Beautiful day in Rocky Mountain National Park. David and I were here in 2013 but did only the Mills Lake Erratic Earthcache. Today, some grey jays (juveniles?) were making quite a racket. I think I have some nice reflection pictures to post later. Answers sent. TFTC.