A lightning strike at a popular destination in Rocky Mountain National Park injured 3 hikers Tuesday.

The hikers say the lightning literally knocked them off their feet.

It happened to a group of eight hikers from Houston, around 12:30 in the afternoon.

They were on the Glacier Gorge Trail to Mills Lake.

Initially, the weather was nice. then dark clouds rolled in and a bolt of lightning came out of the sky, hitting the ground near the hikers.

Two men, 46 and 52 years old, suffered minor burns to their feet and legs.

A 46-year-old woman suffered minor burns to her arm.

They all made it down the trail safely and refused medical treatment.

"He seemed to be pretty startled and surprised to be alive is what he was saying to us," said Matt Kuzaj, who says he ran into one of the injured men on his way down. Kuzaj says he didn't believe it at first but soon realized it was no joke.

"He mentioned that his feet had burned and it had gone through his shoes."

The incident brings to mind that up here the weather can change at any moment and lightning is something to consider when hiking.

"Certainly people need to be well aware of the weather forecasts," said park ranger Kyle Patterson.

"We encourage those who are going to summit destinations above tree line you need to start very early in the morning and get off the summit before these lightning storms move through."