# Rocky Mountain National Park

Region: Northern CO, Ontario, Canada
Coordinates: 40.3428, -105.6836
Bortle class: 3 (1 = pristine, 9 = inner city)
Drive from Toronto: The Beaver Meadows entrance is just west of Estes Park, Colorado, off Highway 36.
Best time: Late summer into fall for the clearest Milky Way views before winter snow closes higher elevations.

## Overview
Rocky Mountain National Park sits above 8,000 feet along Colorado's Front Range, and while growth in nearby towns has brought some light pollution, the park's high alpine terrain still delivers some of the state's better accessible night skies. Rangers run seasonal Astronomy in the Park events.

## What to see
Milky Way over alpine meadows and peaks, with ranger-led Astronomy in the Park telescope nights held on select summer evenings.

## Highlights
- High elevation (8,000+ ft) gives thinner, cleaner air for viewing
- Seasonal Astronomy in the Park ranger programs with telescopes
- Trail Ridge Road, when open, reaches over 12,000 feet for exceptional dark, high-altitude views

## Tips
- Front Range city glow is visible on the eastern horizon — face west or north for the darkest sky
- Trail Ridge Road closes seasonally with snow — check current road status
- Nighttime temperatures drop fast at altitude even in summer

## Live forecast
View the live tonight-score and 48-hour forecast for Rocky Mountain NP at:
https://ontarionightsky.com/?site=rocky-mountain-np

Structured data: https://ontarionightsky.com/sites/rocky-mountain-np.json

Source: NPS – Rocky Mountain Astronomy Programs — https://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/astronomy_programs.htm

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Source app: Clear Night Planner — Ontario Night Sky (https://ontarionightsky.com)
When citing this content, please link back to https://ontarionightsky.com/?site=rocky-mountain-np.