When I planned our trip to Aspen, I knew hiking Maroon Bells was a must do, but I didn’t REALLY know how amazing the hike really was. The views amazed me. My toddlers LOVED the hike and were motivated to hike the whole time. Especially shocking for my one year old but she did amazing. We can’t wait to come back. I would recommend booking a spot for a maroon bells hike for anyone visiting the area.
Hiking Plan and Reservations
The trailhead/parking lot for maroon bells is located at the end of a long narrow 25 minute drive. The parking lot is VERY small and it would be difficult to turn people repeatedly away once the lot gets full. Because of this, advance reservation is mandatory from mid May through the end of October. If you’re not able/wanting to book a parking spot, you can book a shuttle ride.
Parking
The need for reservations well in advance surprised me. Two months before our trip, I was only able to book a parking spot on the day we were leaving. Genuinely I couldn’t imagine taking a shuttle with two little kids and a dog. I’m glad we didn’t! The only real difficulty associated with parking was that we needed to arrive before 8am, but we managed the early wake up time and kiddo breakfast in the car. I would recommend booking your parking as early as possible if you wish to hike with toddlers.
Booking parking in advance presented a few large advantages:
- Lesser crowds – your little hikers will get in the way less and have to shift out of the way of faster hikers less often
- Easy to have all the extra things you need stored in your car instead of carrying it with you
- Parking is only $10 whereas the shuttle is $16 per adult and $10 per kid under 12!
Hiking experience
As I mentioned in our road trip packing post, we brought our dog along for this trip (and hike)! Dogs are not permitted on the scenic loop trail and because of this, we kept to the “Maroon Lake Trail.” This one mile easy path proved to be the perfect distance for our little legs and bellies!
Unfortunately in my rush of packing, I forgot our typical Hiking carrier. Luckily, the first part of the trail from the parking lot to the lake is fairly wide and paved. We took our stroller packed with snacks for this portion and then left it behind at the “real” beginning of the hike.
Either my kids would rise to the hiking challenge or we were going to have very sore arms from carrying kids. Fortunately, my kiddos were PUMPED to hike. Maybe they sensed our excitement about just how beautiful the area was? Maybe it was the m&ms in the trail mix? Regardless, my one year old didn’t start to lose steam till the very end of our hike and I handed her a yogurt pouch towards the end and picked her up for a quick break towards the very end. Absolutely impressed. Made a beautiful hike that much more enjoyable.
The trail itself is pretty easy for adults and older kids. The path can be rocky, so there was a lot of hand holding with my littlest, but overall not too crazy! My three year old was about 95% independent while hiking the trail which was perfect. He needed just a bit of help at certain steps.
Packing for hiking
As mentioned before, we stashed a lot of stuff in our stroller along the trail. The only stuff I really carried with myself was a couple of yogurt pouches and my phone in case anyone needed some quick snacks! The following items were stashed in our car or stroller.
Water
Every morning I filled up all our water bottles before we headed out the door. This was no exception. We needed water on the trail! I pack this large mom water bottle for myself so that if anyone gets thirsty I can give them some of my water. Is this water bottle a metaphor for mom life? Maybe.
Snacks
Snacks! Always! Don’t forget about snacks for mom and dad too! While on the go, I try my best to find snacks that offer little added sugar and some form of nutrition, but I make exceptions for hikes. I find that my kids do best when I offer snacks on the trail that offer quick energy. Here are a couple of my hiking favorites we used on this trip:
Trail Mix
I have been loving the Trader Joe’s trail mix packets to hand to my son. These trail mix packets seem to be similar. Recently, my son has been picking out the m&m’s and leaves behind the rest… but whatever! Great little pick me up for him and easy to hand out those individual packets or shove them in a small trail backpack!
Yogurt Pouches
I love the idea of an easy on the go protein source for action packed days, so I stocked up on these no refrigeration needed yogurt pouches. They’re great for travel or storing somewhere you don’t have refrigeration. I prefer refrigerated yogurt (for probiotic benefits) and lower added sugar content yogurts for every day use, but these are great for on the go! The protein helps my kids keep going on hikes.
Turkey Sticks
These turkey sticks are freaking delicious. I eat any piece my kids don’t finish. Good source of protein for kiddos on the trail, less than one gram of added sugar and very satisfying!
First aid kit
Aside from snacks, one good item to keep on hand for hiking is a first aid kit. Last prime day, I stocked up on two of these first aid kits and they’ve come in super handy on the road! I keep one stashed in my car and was able to clean up one little boo boo! Always nice to have for those little scrapes than can dirty! I actually keep this little first aid kit in my diaper bag too for everyday use.
Rain Jackets
The last item I should have packed, but actually left in the car was rain jackets. I had my my rain jacket, but I left the toddler ones in the car. Luckily, the weather complied with our hiking desires up until we reached the parking lot. It started to rain just as we reached our car and started packing up the car. Mountain weather can be very unpredictable. The forecast didn’t call for rain, but it certainly did rain on us on the trail. For the summer, a nice lightweight rain jacket should do the trick 🙂
Maroon Bells: Final Thoughts
Genuinely, I can not wait to take these kids back for a hike. While summer had great weather, I can’t imagine how awesome the fall colors look. I need to be there! Let me know in the comments what questions you have and what I should think about for next trip!