Location:     Rocky Mountain Nature Association Field Seminar & Conference Center

                        1895 Fall River Road, Estes Park, Colorado

Time:  8:30 A.M. – 1:30 P.M.

Course Description:  The purpose of this course is to provide participants with a working knowledge of the history of the Estes Valley and Rocky Mountain National Park by visiting a number of the key sites where that history took place.  We will begin at the site of the Joel Estes-Griff Evans ranch on lower Fish Creek Road.  We will then visit the site of the Earl of Dunraven’s Estes Park Hotel and one of Estes Park’s currently-operating historic hotels (TBA) before entering Rocky Mountain National Park.  Our in-park destination will be Horseshoe Park where we will visit the sites of both Horseshoe Lodge and Fall River Lodge (to talk about two of the popular resorts that once were a prominent feature of Rocky Mountain National Park and the “Estes Park experience”); the site where the Park was dedicated in 1915 (to talk about the six year campaign that led to its creation); Roaring River (to discuss the Lawn Lake flood of 1982 and its impact upon both park and town); the convict cabins of 1913 (to talk about the building of Fall River Road up and over the Continental Divide); and the March homestead site (to talk about early homesteading in what is now RMNP). Along the way, we will also discuss the contributions of such individuals as F. O. Stanley and Enos Mills and other important events such as the Colorado Big Thompson transmountain irrigation project.  Historic photographs will be used to illustrate the contrast between “then” and “now.”  Our caravan tour will end at the Endovalley picnic area, but those who would like to continue the discussions of the morning are invited to bring a sack lunch and beverage to enjoy at one of the tables.

Course Level:  II

Short-distance walks throughout the day on primarily level terrain.

Brief Instructor Biography (additional information available at www.rmna.org):  Jim is historian laureate of the Town of Estes Park and professor of English at the University of Houston where he has also served as dean, provost, and president.  To date he has written or edited 28 books on the RMNP-Estes Park region, Colorado, and the West, several of which have received awards.   He holds degrees from Williams College and Northwestern University.  His most recent books are (2012) The Memoirs of Jim Durward and (2011) Shared Moments: Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park Remembered in Postcards.  He is currently completing a biography of Enoch Josiah (“Joe”) Mills (1880-1935), the builder-owner of the Crags Hotel and the younger brother of Enos Mills.

Instructor’s Website:  Questions concerning the course are invited at jhpick@earthlink.net.

Expectations:  Professional conduct will be expected from participants at all times.  Individual ideas will be respected.  Except during course breaks, cellular phones, pagers, and personal entertainment devices are strictly prohibited in the classroom and during field sessions.

Car-pooling:  Rocky Mountain Field Seminars courses utilize car-pooling to limit vehicles traveling into the Park.  Car-pooling makes it easier to keep the group together, reduces transit time, and allows courses greater access because fewer parking spaces are required at destinations.  In addition, it provides an opportunity for participants to discuss course             material in small groups during transit.  Typically, a few participants from each course volunteer the use of their vehicles for car-pooling to course locations.

Tentative Course Schedule:

What to Bring:

     Snacks, energy bars,Water  

     Binoculars                           

     Notebook                            

          Pen/pencil

     Camera (optional)

Remember to Bring the 10 Essentials:

Rocky Mountain National Park recommends that hikers always carry the 10 essentials in their daypacks.

Note:  Rocky Mountain Field Seminars recommends that participants for all courses dress in layers and wear comfortable, sturdy hiking boots/shoes.  Participants should be prepared for sudden changes in temperature and weather conditions.

Recommended Reading:

Pickering, James H.  This Blue Hollow": Estes Park, The Early Years, 1859-1915. 321 pages (Niwot, CO:     

     University Press of Colorado, 1999).

Pickering, James H. America’s Switzerland: Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park: The GrowthYears.

      (Boulder, CO: University Press of Colorado, 2005).  

Pickering, James H.  Early Estes Park, Volume I: Narratives of Discovery, Settlement, and Recreation.  (Estes

     Park, CO: Alpenaire Publishing/Estes Park Park Museum, 2004).   

Pickering, James H.  Early Estes Park, Volume II: Narratives of Discovery, Settlement, and Recreation.  (Estes

     Park, CO: Alpenaire Publishing/Estes Park Park Museum, 2004).