The Coyote Valley Trail is within Rocky Mountain National Park, about nine kilometers (5.5 miles) north of the park's southern entrance at Grand Lake. About one and a half kilometers long (a mile), the path overlooks the Kawuneeche Valley and crosses the Colorado River.
The open meadow below the mountain is created when the weather is too dry or too humid and prevents the growth of trees. Since the soil is very moist, grass and herbs grow here, feeding many animals. The valley is home to herds of elks, moose, deer, eagles, hawks, beavers, coyotes, and kingfishers. Until the 1870s, when thousands of settlers arrived in search of gold and minerals, the place was used in the summer as a hunting ground for the Ute and Arapaho Indian tribes, who also gave the valley its name: "Kawuneeche" in the language of the Arapaho means "the valley of the coyotes."
As we walked, we saw a group of professional photographers with huge lenses photographing herds of elks and moose that rested far away. If you have binoculars - you should equip them. We didn't have one, and we asked one of the photographers to show us through the camera lens.
The route is accessible to wheelchairs, with places to sit and rest.
At the entrance to the track, there is parking and toilets.
It is an easy, accessible, and fun route.
Just to let you know, entrance to the Rocky Mountains is not free - it requires payment of an entrance fee and coordination of a time slot for entering the reserve. It is impossible to enter before or after the time slot you registered in advance. You can read all the details here: How to coordinate entry to the Rocky Mountains Nature Reserve.
