- Trail Ridge Road in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park is the US' highest continuous paved highway, cresting at just over 12,000 feet.
- It's also earned the title of the most scenic drive in Colorado, Insider previously reported.
- I recently drove along the mountain road, where I saw hair-raising views of the Rockies and vivid fall foliage.
A friend and I recently set out to explore Colorado's most scenic road, Trail Ridge Road. Along the way, we experienced breathtaking views of fall foliage and the adrenaline rush of driving a high, winding mountain pass.
Source: Insider, US National Park Service (NPS)
Nicknamed the "highway to the sky," the 48-mile road is the highest continuous paved highway in the US, according to the US National Park Service.
Source: NPS, World Atlas
Insider also called the road Colorado's most scenic drive for its breathtaking vistas and incredible landscapes.
Source: Insider
We started at the Beaver Meadows Entrance Station and paid the $25 entry fee into the national park. After a ranger waved us in, we headed to the start of Trail Ridge Road.
Nestled in Rocky Mountain National Park, the road took us just over two hours to drive, and we reached 12,183 feet at its highest point.
Source: NPS
The road starts around 8,000 feet, and ponderosa pine trees line each side of the road. Fall foliage peeked through the forest as we drove along the paved path.
Source: NPS
Throughout our drive, we stopped at the handful of overlooks dotting the road. We could see as far as Wyoming to the north, Denver and the Great Plains to the east, and the Southern Rocky Mountains to the south and west.
After driving for a few minutes and climbing a few thousand feet, we pulled off at an overlook and saw what we thought were some of the best views of fall foliage throughout the entire ride.
We had astonishing views of the aspen trees' bright-green leaves turning gold, orange, and red in every direction.
As we climbed to 11,500 feet, we passed the tree line and were officially in the alpine tundra section of the park. Here, the temperature dropped significantly, our ears popped, and I felt a pain behind my left eye that reminded me how high up I was.
Source: NPS
In this section, driving Trail Ridge Road felt drastically more dangerous. I was shocked that the road lacked any guardrails, offering a clear view down the entire mountain and into the valley. It was intense, but the views were breathtaking.
We also found the drive along Trail Ridge Road to be adrenaline-inducing due to its high elevation and seemingly sharp bends.
While the road closes in wintertime due to extreme weather conditions, the NPS also advises drivers to prepare for dangerous winter driving conditions like slick ice and heavy snowfalls at any time of year.
After we reached the highest point of the road more than 12,000 feet in the air, we felt accomplished and decided to turn around.
While my friend and I left the car white-knuckled from gripping the steering wheel and door handle, we thought the views were unimaginable and well worth the nerves.
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