The Lawn Lake Flood

In 1903 a 26-foot high earthen dam was built at Lawn Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park to enhance the natural lake from 16.4 acres to 48 acres. This was done to help with crop irrigation in the Loveland area. Nearly 80 years later, on July 15, 1982, the dam catastrophically failed, which released more than 300 million gallons of water down the Roaring River valley. Some witnesses claim the failure created a wall of water 25 to 30 feet high! As the water ripped through the landscape it created the Alluvial Fan near the confluence with Fall River in Horseshoe Park. After killing three campers the water rushed down Elkhorn Avenue in Estes Park (see photos below) before stopping at Lake Estes. In all, damages to the area totaled roughly $31 million. Even today sections of the Roaring River's high gully walls remain unstable and prone to sudden collapse. The dam failure led to the removal of three other man-made dams within the park, including Pear Lake, Sandbeach Lake and Bluebird Lake.

Evidence of some of the destruction from the infamous Lawn Lake Flood are still on display along the Lawn Lake Trail, but the lake itself appears to have fully recovered. In my opinion, Lawn Lake is one of the more scenic lakes in the park.

Photos courtesy of the Denver and Coloradoan Libraries.



                *******************************************************************************

From Montana to New Mexico, the American Rockies stretch for more than a thousand miles. Within this spectacular mountain range are thousands of miles of hiking trails. With such an overwhelming number of options, how will you find and choose the most scenic and rewarding hikes?

Ultimate Hiking Guide to the Rocky Mountains takes all the guesswork out by focusing on some of the most amazing hikes across this range, and provides you with a handpicked list of options that will allow you to make the most of your trips in the Rockies: