Old Hermit's Park Offers Perfect Hideaway

Just outside of Rocky Mountain National Park in Larimer County is a retreat fit for a hermit. Fittingly it is called Hermit Park.

It's located just two miles east of Estes Park and sits across 1,362 acres. It has four campgrounds, a group use area and 15 camper cabins.

"I think people are coming up here to have a different experience than Rocky Mountain," said ranger Chris Fleming who manages Hermit Park.

"The ecosystem is the same. The layout is fairly similar, however there is a little bit more solitude here. Our campsites are pretty nicely spaced out. You can be in one of our camper cabins and feel like you're all by yourself. I think the sense of solitude and just experiencing nature is really what Hermit Park is all about."

And Hermit Park owes its past to a man who valued his solitude.

"Hermit Park was operated as a cattle ranch by the Crocker Ranch for a number of years," Fleming said. "It got its name from a hermit that actually squatted on the property named Dutch Louis. Over the years they kind of left him alone until he acquired a taste for beef and he was hung allegedly on the property."

The campers at the park agree saying they love not having cell service, not having electricity or any of the noise associated with modern life.

Two trails in the park should be open by the 4th of July.