Recently Viewed
Private Elk Rut Tour: Rocky Mountain Exploration
5.0
14 Ratings
Rocky Mountain National Park
Experience the elk rut in Rocky Mountain National Park on a private 4-5 hour tour. Enjoy stunning views, wildlife, and scenic drives.
Duration:
5 hours
Cancellation:
1 day
learn more
Highlights
- Rocky Mountain National Park - Our Elk Rut tour in Estes Park is all about taking a beautiful drive into the Rocky Mountain National Park. We’ll take you as high up the mountain as the weather allows through beautiful scenic mountain passes. You’ll see the city of Estes Park from above, beautiful lakes, meadows, waterfalls, and wildlife. At sunset, you will get to witness the elk gather in Moraine Park for the elk rut. Don’t worry about the timed entry permit, your entrance and permit into the Rocky Mountain National Park are included!
- Old Fall River Road - When open, (typically July through September) our driver Riley will take you up Old Fall River Road, a one-way dirt road that goes up to the Alpine Visitor Center. You’ll experience thrilling cliff-side mountain driving, see beautiful wildlife, flowing waterfalls, and more! When Old Fall River Road is not open, you will drive up Trail Ridge Road as far as it is open for the season.
- Alpine Visitor Center - When open, take a short stop at the highest Visitor Center in all of the US National Park System (typically June through September)! Our driver will spend 20 minutes here for you to shop. Grab a snack, snap some photos, or get your National Park Passport stamped!
- Trail Ridge Road - On the drive to Moraine Park, our driver will take you down the highest continuous paved road in the United States, Trail Ridge Road. Witness the changing beauty of the ecosystems within the Rocky Mountain National Park from the upper tundra to the lower montane. In October, you will drive up Trail Ridge Road as far as it is open for the season.
- Moraine Park Museum - To finish your tour, you will stop around sunset time in the Moraine Park to witness the elk rut. Here, you can see the winding Big Thompson River with the elk fighting for their harems!
What's Included
- Timed Entry Permit
- Private transportation
- Bottled water
- In-vehicle air conditioning
- All fees and/or taxes
- Binoculars / Spotting Scope
What's Not Included
- Lunch
Additional Information
Join us for a safari-like experience during the the elk rut! Drive through Rocky Mountain National Park on a 4 - 5 hour private tour with only your party & your guide! On our Rut Tour, you will be taken up the famous Old Fall River Road where you will see beautiful mountain views & waterfalls, stop at the highest visitor center in the US National Park System, drive back down the highest continuous paved road in the United States, Trail Ridge Road and witness the elk rut mating season in Moraine Park. When Old Fall River Road isn’t open, you will drive up & back down Trail Ridge Road. This tour is NOT a hiking tour, and focuses more on driving in the National Park with small strolls throughout. *Wildlife is unpredictable & we cannot guarantee sightings, but we try our best to scout the prime locations!
We only offer pickup for guests staying in Estes Park. If you are staying outside of Estes Park, we can meet you at the free parking garage for the Estes Park Visitor Center for pickup.
- Carseat must be provided for infants
Location
Rocky Mountain National Park
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Customer Ratings
5.0
(14 Ratings)
5 stars
4 stars
3 stars
2 stars
1 star
Linda_h
Oct 24, 2023
The perfect tour - Loved the scenery and the elk. I have never seen so many in one place. We really enjoyed this tour and our guide was very informative. I would love to make a trip back to make it to the Alpine visitor center as it was closed on this trip. I would definitely pick Riley for another perfect tour.
Review provided by Viator
Gruyter
Oct 20, 2023
Skip the rest and book the best tour of Rocky Mountain National Park - Explore Estes is a great service that I highly recommend. Riley gave my wife and I a fantastic and informative tour of RMNP. I booked the tour for our first day in Estes Park/RMNP so we could have an intimate tour from a local guide who knows the area. The idea being we could have the best information to make the most of our trip. Riley from Explore Estes delivered. Riley was conversational and provided history and local lore to complement the tour. Another aspect of Explore Estes is the blog on their website which provides tips and information for planning your visit. When my wife and I return to Estes Park for another visit, I would book a tour with them again. We did not use their transportation service on this trip, but that is another service they offer.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
221donalds
Oct 7, 2023
RMNP excellent tour and guide - Excellent tour. Highly knowledgeable guide. Very flexible. Strongly recommend. He showed us the highlights of the park
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Kittenreindeer
Sep 28, 2023
Highly recommend this tour! - This was an amazing experience! I highly recommend this tour. Riley picked us us up a t our hotel. He was professional, personable and engaging. We felt very comfortable in his Subaru Ascent. He is a careful driver and he knew the best places to show us as we made our way up the mountain. We heard about the history of the park, and he made sure to show us the wildlife, we saw the pika, marmots, and of course elk. It was a spectacular experience and we learned so much! Having our own personal driver and tour guide allowed us to relax and enjoy the park. Thank you Riley for making our visit to the park such a memorable one!!!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Johnzk2511hn
Sep 27, 2023
Rocky Mountain National Park Tour - We had a great time during this tour. Riley our guide was very informative and showed us many unique and interesting things about the park. We would definitely recommend this for anyone who is new to the park. It is a great way to get to know what is available to do in the park and where it is located. We saw lots of elk and big horn sheep which was also a great plus.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Michaelox4003mb
Sep 24, 2023
Outstanding excursion - Outstanding. Riley, our guide, did an outstatanding job of telling us all about RMNP. We saw a wide variety of animals, learned about the history of the park, and were able to take some great photographs. This was our second year visiting the park and we saw and learned more in these five ours than in our previous visits. If you visit RMNP this tour is a must thing to do.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Mike
Sep 14, 2023
Best way to experience RMNP - My wife and I went on Elk rut and RMNP tour with Riley, he is an awesome guide and very knowledgeable about the park history, wildlife and ecosystem. Visited areas we would not have been able to on our own. Wonderful experience.
Review provided by Tripadvisor
Amy_d
Sep 13, 2023
Highlight of our trip! - Riley was an awesome tour guide! Very knowledgeable about Rocky Mountain National Park! He educated us on the history of the park, the various mountain ranges, the wildlife and SO MUCH MORE! We were able to get out of the car periodically and soak it all in. Even though heights terrify me, Riley put my mind at ease and there were only a few spots I couldn't look. Riley is a great tour guide, we absolutely loved our trip with him and would recommend it in a heartbeat!
Review provided by Viator
Amy_d
Sep 11, 2023
Great experience! - My fiancé and I had a great time on our tour! We're not necessarily hikers, but wanted to get a good glimpse of all that RMNP had to offer and Riley, our tour guide, did a great job. He was friendly, informative, and made sure to show us some great spots. He had binoculars and a scope, so while we didn't get a ton of photos of the elk, we did end up seeing a whole lot of them! Definitely recommend.
Review provided by Viator
300deannag
Sep 11, 2023
You've got to do this! - Amazing! From start to finish, the experience was easy to book, convenient and Riley was an exceptional guide. I highly recommend this tour!
Review provided by Tripadvisor
More activities from this operator
