Trappers Lake

The amphitheater is the most recognized feature around Trappers Lake

Trappers Lake is at the heart of the Flat Tops Wilderness. Once a gem of phenomenal beauty, it is now scared by the skeletal remains of the 2002 Big Fish Fire. When I chose this destination, I had no idea of this fire. Most guidebooks of the area were written before this date and don't include it in their descriptions.

Crossing the outlet

Looking southeast from across the outlet

The lake, which is a true wilderness lake, must be walked into although the walks are as short as 1/4 mile. I took pictures at two common areas. The first is from the Outlet Trail on the north side of the lake. As you drive in, the road forks just past the local lodge. The left fork dead ends at a berm. The outlet trail climbs up this berm and then circumnavigates the lake. There are many pretty spots within a half mile for those not interested in walking far. The second spot was past the campgrounds on the right fork. We followed the road to the Wall Lake Trailhead, turned left and parked in the large parking area. There is a short trail out to an overlook.

A close up of the same formation

Trapper's Lake is also known as the beginning of the Wilderness movement. In 1920, the Forest Service hired Arthur Carhart to survey the area for potential development. Carhart was so moved by the beauty of the area that the lake was protected from all development. This concept was quite new at the time and served as the seed for the establishment of the Wilderness Act.

From the southern overlook

A close up of the willows in the fading light

There is a lodge near the lake that has cabins and a small restaurant. The lake is 1.5 miles by 0.5 miles wide and is 180 ft deep. There are numerous trails in and around the area. We hiked Skinny Fish Lake, which is a few miles before the lake.

Skinny Fish Lake Hike

Distance: 5 miles round trip
Elevation: 9,269 ft - 10,269 ft
Elevation Gain: 1,000 ft (net), 1,432 ft (cumulative)
Dogs: Voice and Sight Control (Flat Tops Wilderness)

The right-hand side of Skinny Fish Lake. There was one tent on the far end but not another soul around.

Skinny Fish Lake is a short (but not nearly as short as the Forest Service advertises) trip to a scenic lake surrounded by the infamous Chinese Wall, a unique geologic formation in the Flat Tops Wilderness. We chose this trail because we thought it was really short (advertised distance is 3 miles round trip) and we just wanted to stretch our legs after driving the Flat Tops Scenic Byway.

Looking south from the parking area

Looking up the drainage from the parking area

The trailhead for this hike is located on Trappers Lake Road in the Flat Tops Wilderness. It is clearly marked on the map and the parking area is quite obvious.

The initial pitch. The sky is still blue, but storm clouds are brewing to our left.

The lower portion of the trail winds through Aspens. The forest was damp and earthy, just what I want in the fall.

The trail begins by heading up a steep hill filled with Aspens. On this rainy fall day, they were in full color. At 0.9 miles is the junction with the Lost Lake Trail. Lost Lake is on the other side of the wall and this trail goes around it reach the lake. After crossing a small stream (nice bridge), the trail enters a broad, grassy meadow. Here the eastern portion of the wall comes quickly into view. Its stair-stepped features are both interesting and intimidating. This is one large hunk of rock. At 2.11 miles is the intersection between the Skinny Fish and McGinnis Lakes.

Even the undergrowth was putting on a show

Looking back down the drainage. The sky is getting more threatening

Since our time was short, we chose to head towards Skinny Fish Lake since we guessed that it would not be totally in the trees. This turned out to be a good choice. The lake is surrounded on 2 sides by the Chinese Wall. It is broad and welcoming. I can not report what McGinnis Lake looks like, but if you go all the way to Skinny Fish, you might as well pop over to McGinnis.

Our first glimpse of the effects of the Big Fish Fire

A scenic creek. It is raining by now.

A good portion of the trail traverses the 2002 Big Fish Fire area. This lighting sparked fire burned over 17K acres of prime wilderness. The skeletal remains of Aspen and Lodgepole stand as a stark reminder to the transience of Nature. Nothing is permanent.

Fall willows and dead trees make a startling contrast

The Chinese Wall comes into view. This picture does nothing to capture the scale. The wall dominates the valley and seems to loom over everything.

This trail held another surprise for me. In the Flat Tops Wilderness, dogs do not have to be on leash if they are under voice control. I guess it is only the crowded Front Range Wilderness Areas where the leash law is mandatory.

Looking back towards the trailhead from the middle of the meadow.

Looking straight across Skinny Fish Lake to the Chinese Wall beyond. Blue skies return. Such is Colorado and why we always carry rain gear.

On this trip, this was the only hike we did in the Trappers Lake area. There may be others that are more scenic, but for us, this trail hit the spot. It got our legs moving and we got close to the Chinese Wall, which was another objective. Little did we know that the following day we would climb to the top of the wall on our harrowing trip to the Devil's Causeway.

Native Lake Hike

Distance: 8.4 miles round trip
Elevation: 10,800 ft (trailhead), 11,879 ft (on the plateau), 11,293 ft (at the lake)
Elevation Gain: 1,665 ft (cumulative)
Dogs: On Leash (Wilderness)
Tags: #coloradooutdoors, #travel, #mountainlake, #leadville, #hiking

The approach to Native Lake. We ate lunch on that large boulder that surveys the scene.

Native Lake in the Mount Massive Wilderness near Leadville, CO is a wonderful trail filled with variety. The initial part of the trail switchbacks 2 miles through a Spruce/Fir forest. It is damp, mysterious, and filled with pizza-sized mushrooms, many of them edible. At 2.18 miles, you break out onto a wide tundra plateau. Here the edifice that is Mt. Massive (14,443 ft) dominates the western skyline. I did this hike in the fall when the tundra grasses were golden. I can imagine them being verdant in the spring. The views of Leadville from this plateau are expansive. The western skyline is filled with 14,000 ft peaks. Across the plateau, the trail descends 500 ft to a valley. It is there that Native Lake rests.

The start of the route

Several early switchbacks are narrow and precipitous

Looking west at Hagerman Road

The lake itself is slowly receding and is being replaced by meadow grasses. The hike down to the lake was somewhat laborious too. If I were to do this hike again, I would stop part way down where you can see the lake from the ridge. That view is quite nice.

Looking down the drainage. You can see the trail far below.

Crossing a pleasant open area

The first view of the tundra

You get to the trailhead by driving west along Turquoise Lake to Hagerman Tunnel Road. This dirt road is narrow in places but is passable by a passenger car. Hagerman Pass road traces a long and narrow U. At the apex of the U is a wide area that contains 2 trailheads. Native lake is the first trailhead. It is situated slightly back from the road. The second parking area spans the road and is for ATVers heading up to the pass, and hardy hikers attempting the steep but scenic Windsor Lake. Farther up the road is the trail for Hagerman Tunnel.

Mount Massive comes into view

Looking east off the plateau towards Leadville and the Mosquito Range.

Several small ponds dotted the tundra

This trail was a treat because of its flora. There is something about hiking in a Spruce/Fir forest in the fall. This forest ecosystem is more shaded than the Lodgepole forest that dominates much of the state. As such, it was cooler, damp, and definitely fall like. At the request of my hiking partner, I started taking pictures of all the mushrooms. I have never seen so many mushrooms in Colorado before. King Boleta and Scaly Urchins were particularly common. I discovered after the fact, that King Boleta is highly prized by wild mushroom connoisseurs. That is probably why I have not seen it before. They have been quickly snatched up by fanatical fungi followers.

Heading down the other side

The first view of the lake

Looking west on the route down to the lake

The first 2 miles of the trail switchbacks up a single drainage as the trail climbs higher. It was obvious that some people chose to walk parallel to the creek and head straight up the hillside. The Forest Service has put dead fall all along this narrow social trail as a deterrent. Please stay on the trail even though it is much longer. The views of Hagerman Tunnel and pass are worth the extra effort.

A trail segment down in the valley

The lake comes into view

Admiring the grasses on the lake floor

I would recommend Native Lake to anyone. It is unpopulated and filled with changing views. If you are camping at Turquoise Lake, then you have no excuse what-so-ever!

Thunder Lake Hike

Distance: 13.6 miles round trip via Ouzel Falls or 12.2 miles round trip via the fire trail
Elevation: 8,500 ft -10,574 ft
Elevation Gain: 2,074 ft net, 2,318 ft cumulative

Thunder Lake

I confess that I was trepidatious about hiking to Thunder Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park. Ten miles with a heavy pack and stiff boots is a haul. 14 miles seemed overwhelming. On top of that, I was mobilized with the National Guard for the two weeks prior in support of the Democratic National Convention. I worked nights and did not get a chance to exercise. Not what I prefer to do before a death march.

Getting the Llamas ready to go

My friends saved me, however, by bringing Llamas along to carry a huge potluck lunch and all our gear. All I had to do was carry one liter of water and my camera. I even wore lighter boots since I was carrying no weight. The trail itself is a gradual climb with only a few short stints of quad busting effort. By the end, the distance did not seem so bad, which tells you how much pack weight affects the body.

View of the trail

Thunder Lake is a pretty destination that everyone should do at least once. It is surrounded on two sides by crenelated ridges and on the other two sides by large grassy meadows. The downside of the lake, however is that there is no place to sit and lounge near the lake itself. You can walk down to the shoreline and bushwhack through the shrubbery to view the lake but there is no place to sit. We ended up having our party on the porch of the backcountry cabin that looks out onto one of the meadows.

Stream along the trail

Llamas crossing a stream

There are two routes you can take to Thunder Lake, both start in the Wild Basin side of Rocky Mountain National Park. The most common route takes you by the Calypso Cascades and Ouzel Falls. While adding some variety, it is also 0.7 miles longer. On this trip we chose to take the fire trail by pass instead. This trail is steeper and rockier but also shorter. We did this not only to save mileage on the long hike, but also to minimize pedestrian traffic for the Llamas. Be advised that this route is in the trees the entire time with only occasional brief glimpses to the south of Meadow Mountain (11,634 ft) and St. Vrain Mountain (11,391 ft). The views do get better for the last two miles with occasional stream crossings to lighten the mood.

Farther along the trail

The ranger cabin with the lake in the background

If you have not been to Wild Basin in a while, you will notice that the National Park Service has improved the parking situation. In addition to more parking slots, there was a small army of volunteers telling you precisely where to park. The lot, while large, does fill up by 9:30 on the weekends so get there early if you want a spot.

Thunder Lake

Meadow as seen from the cabin

Despite a forecast with a low probability of rain, it rained the entire way back to the car. My Marmot raincoat leaked like a sieve and I was soaked through. This is my second rain jacket. The other one, an REI brand also leaked badly. My friends did believe when I say this happens. Am I cursed or have others run into leaky jackets? For several hundred dollars, I expect more.

The right side of the lake

Traveling with Llamas was a hoot. Each one has a unique personality and facial expressions. I enjoyed watching their feet as they walked. They have soft pads on the bottom of their feet, which makes them ideal wilderness packers. Their impact is less than a hiking boot and their hooves are so small that they are comical in appearance. They would hum when not together as if whining for their buddies. As members of the camel family, they don’t drink much water and did not eat the grain that was brought along for them. They can carry a third of their body weight, roughly 50-75 pounds, and will literally crawl into your minivan. The gal who owned these Llamas does not own a commercial business but loans them out to the Forest Service. If you find a commercial outfitter, they run about $50/day per Llama.