About Estes Park
Estes Park is a town in Larimer County, Colorado. A popular summer resort and the location of the headquarters for Rocky Mountain National Park, Estes Park lies along the Big Thompson River. Estes Park had a population of 5,413 at the 2000 Census, and an estimated population of 6,006 in 2006. The town is named after Missouri native Joel Estes, who founded Estes Park in 1859.
The town's outskirts include The Stanley Hotel. Once a fine example of Edwardian opulence, the 1909 building had Stephen King as a guest, inspiring him to change the locale for his novel, The Shining, from an amusement park to the Stanley's fictional stand-in, the Overlook Hotel. Trail Ridge Road, the highest continuous highway in the United States, runs from Estes Park westward through Rocky Mountain National Park, reaching Grand Lake over the continental divide.
The average price for a single family home in Estes Park is just under $400,000 (in 2009)...about half the price of a comparable home on the west side of the continental divide. Even the lesser attractive locations have better views than most folks are used to seeing. We have several full time residential condos and some resort condos that offer income from short term rental. We are a little more than one hour from Denver and Denver International Airport, about 45 minutes to Boulder and about 35 minutes to Loveland, Colorado. Down the mountain in that Front Range is where big box mall shopping, four Major League sports teams and the bright city lights can be found.
We have 2 golf courses, a fairgrounds for equestrian activities and rodeos, musical events, great fishing, awesome hiking and mild weather. Rocky Mountain National Park brings tourists from June to August. Off season is more quiet as there are only 8000 full time residents here. We have mild winters and can always get dow
n the mountain for a weekend in the big city. Our snow falls are manageable and usually 8 inches to a foot. The temperature rarely gets below 20 degrees but it can get colder at times during the winter. We have very good schools from elementary through high school, an ever expanding medical center, a supermarket, and two very old hotels (The Stanley Hotel and Marys Lake Lodge).There are several good restaurants and plenty of peace and quiet...and of course Rocky Mountain National Park. If you would like to see property for sale in Estes Park right now, click a link below!!!
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Single Family Homes |
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Land and Lots |
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There are several small communities nearby Estes Park.
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Pinewood Springs is an unincorporated mountain community of about 300 homes. There is a small river running though this mountain meadow that provides water to its residents. A 15,000,000 gallon reservoir was just completed to store water for household use and secure the water supply for the future. The historic Indian Tubs are hewn from rock by river action over the millennia. They are agreat place for residents' cool off or lay in the sun. Pinewood Springs is 12 miles to the southwest of Estes Park along Highway 36. Check my "Pinewood Springs Pics" page on this website. |
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Allenspark lies about 15 miles to the south of Estes Park along Scenic Highway 7 (aka Peak to Peak Highway). This small mountain community grew from a mining town that was started in 1918. No more mining takes place. Allenspark has a post office, 3 restaurants, the historic Allenspark Log Lodge, stables for renting horses and it is surrounded by Rocky Mountain National Park and Roosevelt National Forest. Allenspark is a very unpretentious moutain community. View Properties in Allenspark. Glen Haven is a small mountain town about 8 miles from Estes Park on County Road 43, which runs from Estes Park to Drake,Colorado. Glen Haven has a fire house, a post office, The Inn at Glen Haven that offers a wonderful restaurant and a Genaral Store (the cinnamon rolls and coffee at the general store are "to die for"). View property in Glen Haven |
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Big Elk Meadows is a very unique gated community about 5 miles into the National Forest from Highway 36. That intersection is about 11 miles down the mountain from Estes Park. This community has about 160 homes, apporximately 1/3 of which are occupied year around. Most of the homes are vacation homes, so the community has more residents in the summer months. The community organizes a Forth of July party in the common meadow areas and another party on Labor Day with Bar-B-Que and fun. There is a Memorial Day breakfast fund raiser, as well. Big Elk Meadows has a fire house with a volunteer fire department. There are 6 lakes (stocked with trout), 2 tennis courts, a heated swimming pool (summer only), a ball field, basketball court and volleyball court. There is a +/-200 acre pasture where you can keep up to 2 horses, but you have to provide feed and there is no shelter. Click on the folowing link to see available homes and land Big Elk Meadows . |
| If you have a horse, you can ride off into tens of thousands of acres of National Forest that surround Big Elk Meadows....or you can just hike in the forest and camp anywhere you stop walking. If you hike about 1.5 hours south, you will come to a stretch of the North Saint Vrain River where there is world class trout fishing as mentioned in several fishing magazines. | |
Are you intereseted in getting more detailed information about any of these Rocky Mountain areas? Please fill out the form below...with your questions...and I will get back to you shortly.
