Blue Lake - 11.0 Miles Round-Trip

Blue Lake (11,165') is located 5.5 miles from Glacier Gorge Trailhead in Rocky Mountain National Park. It's one of three alpine lakes in upper Glacier Gorge accessible by cross-country routes, and arguably the easiest of them to reach.

Trail Map | Photo Gallery

The hike follows a heavily used trail past Mills and Jewel Lake to Black Lake, where an unmaintained trail continues steeply into open tundra. Basic navigation skills are needed in this open but rugged landscape to reach the lake, which fills a shallow granite bowl along the east valley wall:

The Loch Vale Trail rises steadily through young aspen and pine to Alberta Falls (.85 miles : 9,423'). A moderate climb continues to the North Longs Peak Trail (1.6 miles : 9,768'), where it banks SW and levels through a narrow gorge between Thatchtop Mountain (12,668') and the Glacier Knobs.

The trail drops to Glacier Junction and bears left to Mills Lake (2.1 miles : 9,804'). It turns south, crossing Glacier Creek twice and sections of cairn-marked rock slabs to Mills Lake (2.65 miles : 9,955').

The trail - now variously rugged and undulating - follows the lake's east shore to its marshy juxtaposition with Jewel Lake (3.1 miles : 9,967'). It continues past Jewel through a string of marshes aided by narrow, elevated planks. Thick timber reclaims the trail (3.2 miles), which closely follows Glacier Creek all the way to Black Lake.

Anticipate steep undulations and occasional loss of clarity over the next 1.5 miles; when in doubt, simply hold your line and follow the creek.

You'll pass the Glacier Gorge Backcountry Campsite (3.35 miles : 10,068') and scale newly built stairs. Travel intensifies in a thick forest to a cairn-marked rock slab (3.85 miles : 10,205'), then moderates across a meadow with good views of the upper gorge (4.1 miles).

The Arrowhead (12,387'), Powell Peak (13,208) and McHenrys Peak (13,327') frame the west, while Pagoda Mountain (13,497') and Keyboard of the Winds - a line of pinnacles near the summit of Longs Peak - rise to the east. Chiefs Head Peak (13,579') and The Spearhead (12,575') cap the upper valley.

Uneven travel continues to the base of Ribbon Falls (4.7 miles : 10,540'), which spill from the north shore of Black Lake. The trail twists steeply beside the falls and hops a line of flat boulders across the outlet to Black Lake (4.8 miles : 10,630').

It scales a small knoll to the east shore (4.85 miles), where you'll turn east for a strenuous climb up Black Lake's inlet into the tundra.

The initial climb follows a well-defined path beside the inlet with exceptional views of the cirque below. It reaches an unmarked fork (5.15 miles : 11,980'), at which point you'll ignore both options and turn sharply left off-trail and up the hillside (north).

The informal route negotiates some minor obstacles (rock crevices, talus, willow thickets), but other than a steep pitch, is fairly moderate and intuitive. A handful of cairns prove useful, but needn't be followed precisely. The route crests a small ridge (5.4 miles : 11,210') and drops to Blue Lake (5.5 miles : 11,165').

Blue Lake's shore is mostly open rock slab that's prone to strong wind. The south shore provides good views of Mills Lake, Jewel Lake and Mount Chiquita (13,069'), Ypsilon Mountain (13,514'), and Fairchild Mountain (13,502') on the northern horizon.