The Crystal Lakes are located south of Breckenridge at the head of a large glacial valley in the Ten Mile Range. Lower Crystal Lake occupies a shallow basin in a wide berth midway up the Crystal Creek drainage, and Upper Crystal Lake is located 1.9 miles and 900' up in a high-walled cirque carved from the slopes of Father Dyer Peak (13,615') and Crystal Peak (13,852').

Male mountain goats, or Billies, can stand three and a half feet at the shoulder and weigh 300 lbs

Upper Crystal Lake (12,874') fills a cirque carved from the saddle between Father Dyer Peak and Crystal Peak

The Crystal Lakes valley is framed by Mount Helen (13,164'), Father Dyer Peak (13,615'), Crystal Peak (13,852') and Peak 10 (13,633')

The Crystal Lakes occupy one of four major E-W drainages between Breckenridge (north) and Hoosier Pass (south)

Mountain goats have few natural predators; primary causes of death are avalanches, rockslides and old age

The Tenmile Range is named so for 10 numbered peaks in the range, though the range itself runs longer than ten miles

The Crystal Creek drainage joins the Spruce Creek drainage and forms a major tributary to the Blue River

The diet of a Mountain Goat consists mainly of grasses, woody plants, mosses, lichen and other alpine and sub-alpine vegetation

Scenic mining cabin remains on a knoll over upper Crystal Lake

The Tenmile Range is distinguished by 5 Centennial 13ers and its tallest summit, Quandary Peak (14,265')

Upper Crystal Lake (12,874') occupies a cirque carved from the saddle between Father Dyer Peak and Crystal Peak

Harsh alpine weather can thwart growth on the windward side of trees, with permanent growth only occurring on the lee side; trees with branches on only one side are called flag trees

Looking through a window from an old cabin at Upper Crystal Lake

Each mountain goat has a rank - their rank determines who gets the best bedding spots and who can eat first

Numbered peaks of the Tenmile Range range from 12,805' (Peak 1) to 13,633' (Peak 10)