CHAPTER ONE ELK AND ECOSYSTEMS Snow capped mountains pine covered slopes and treeless tundra greet visitors to Rocky Mountain National Park RMNP in Colorado The park's 415 square miles 1,075 square kilometers are 95 percent wilderness More than 100 of its mountain peaks stand more than 10,000 feet 3,048 meters tall Hikers can follow many miles of backcountry trails while park roads allow drivers to enjoy scenery and wildlife from their cars Rocky Mountain National Park COLORADO
The granite of RMNP's high peaks was formed more than one billion years ago Geologists study the structure and content of these rocks to learn how Earth and its landscapes were formed High in the Rockies Most of RMNP lies more than 9,000 feet 2,743 meters above sea level The park's highest point Longs Peak is 14,259 feet 4,346 meters tall Trail Ridge Road North America's highest continuous paved highway goes up to 12,183 feet 3,713 meters Trail Ridge Road running through RMNP
Each year more than four million people visit RMNP To preserve the park's natural resources the National Park Service depends on scientists Biologists ecologists and other researchers study the park's ecosystems and the plants and animals living there from elk in the highway to algae in mountain lakes Their findings help form park policies Drivers and bikers must be on the lookout for elk green algae lake in RMNP
For the safety of visitors and elk RMNP managers recommend that if you spot an elk you should pull off the road turn off the engine sit tight and enjoy the sight Don't get too close because elk can be aggressive It's hard to miss RMNP's herds of elk Antlered males stand up to five feet 1.5 meters tall at the shoulders and can weigh more than 1,100 pounds 499 kilograms Elk often graze by roadsides Sometimes they stop in the middle of the road Male elk called bulls grow a new set of antlers each spring
