Quick Stats
Creation Date
January 26, 1915
Entrance Fee
$20 per vehicle per week
Time Zone
Mountain (GMT-6 Daylight, GMT-7 Standard)
Lowest Elevation
7,630 feet at Big Thompson River
Highest Elevation
14,259 feet on Longs Peak
Lowest Average Temp
18°F in January
Record Low Temp
-39°F in 1951
Highest Average Temp
79°F in July
Record High Temp
96°F in 1989
Park Creation Timeline
1915
On January 26, 1915 President Woodrow Wilson signs the bill that creates the park.
1976
International Biosphere Reserve status is given to the park by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization).
Animals and Plants
There are 63 known species of mammals, including mule deer, elk, black bears, bighorn sheep, pronghorn, coyotes, several types of fox, mountain lions, bobcats, squirrels, chipmunks, rabbits, and voles.
Reptiles and amphibians are fairly uncommon in the park due to the prolonged cold spells, but include tiger salamanders, boreal toads, western chorus frogs, wood frogs, and garter snakes.
In 2000, Rocky Mountain National Park was designated as a Globally Important Bird Area. 280 species have been found here since the park's creation. Along with a huge variety of common and migratory species, many of the species of the park are unique to the mountainous habitats of the Southern Rocky Mountains. Specialty species include white-tailed ptarmigan, blue grouse, gray jay, Clark's nutcracker, Williamson's sapsucker, three-toed woodpecker, mountain chickadee, pygmy nuthatch, American dipper, western tanager, pine grosbeak, red crossbill, Townsend's solitare, Wilson's, MacGillivray's and Virginia's warblers, brown-capped rosy finch, black swift and northern pygmy owl.
Plants are heavily controlled by the elevations. The lowest elevations in the park are montane forests and grassland. Ponderosa pine is most common. At higher elevations douglas fir trees are found. Above 9,000 is the subalpine forest, including Engelmann spruce and subalpine fir. Above tree line (about 11,500 feet) is the vast alpine tundra of mostly grasses and small flowering plants.
Rocky Mountain National Park
Info at (970) 586-1206
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