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Album Published April 21, 2019

Two Rivers Lake

Trailhead: Bear Lake
Distance: 3.1 mi
Elevation Change: 1,170' From Bear Lake take the Flattop Mtn trail about a mile to the Fern-Odessa trail junction. Follow this trail as it traverses the northern side of Flattop Mtn. Shortly after the Sourdough campsite, the lake can be found a short distance off the trail to the left.

Album Published April 21, 2019

Tourmaline Lake

Trailhead: Fern Lake
Via: Odessa Lake
Distance: 5.4 mi
Elevation Change: 2,430' At Odessa Lake, circle west and south until reaching Tourmaline Creek. Follow the creek steeply uphill. There's a trail there, but it's intermittent. The climb levels off and passes through a meadow before getting steep once again before arriving at Tourmaline.

Album Published April 21, 2019

Spruce Lake

Trailhead: Fern Lake
Via: Fern Lake
Distance: 4.8 mi
Elevation Change: 1,510'
The spur trail to Spruce Lake is actually a hundred yards or so short of Fern Lake. This is a very pretty trail but can be difficult to follow at times, particularly a cairn marked section through a boulder field. The trail also passes through a few marshy spots with boardwalks.

Album Published April 21, 2019

Iceberg Lake

Trailhead: Lava Cliffs parking area
Distance: 0.2 mi
Elevation Change: -220' Hundreds of people see this lake every day from the Lava Cliffs parking area, but few bother to visit it because there is no trail. Follow one of the steep grassy ramps to the loose volcanic rocks, then down to the lake.

Album Published April 21, 2019

Lake Helene

Trailhead: Bear Lake
Distance: 3.2 mi
Elevation Change: 1,130' The trail climbs the ridge north of Bear Lake and shortly after attaining the north side reaches the junction with the Flattop Mtn trail. Continue to the right; the trail bends from the east flank of Flattop to the north. Not far after crossing Mill Creek, on the flank of Joe Mills Mtn, the trail begins to descend. Where the trail makes a sharp right turn to descend Odessa Gorge, head off trail to the southwest to reach the lake.

Album Published April 20, 2019

Hallett Peak

Trailhead: Bear Lake
Via: Flattop Mtn
Distance: 5.1 mi
Elevation Change: 3,263'
From the trail junction that marks the summit of Flattop, head south to pass above Tyndall Glacier. Follow the fairly well-defined but unofficial trail to the large cairn at the summit of Hallett Peak.

Album Published April 20, 2019

Shelf and Solitude Lakes

Trailhead: Glacier Gorge
Via: Mills Lake

Shelf Lake
Distance: 4.7 mi
Elevation Change: 2,040' Roughly a mile and a half up the trail from Mills Lake there's a meadow on the west (right) side of the trail. Here a faint trail heads to Glacier Creek. There's a large flat boulder in the middle of the creek that makes crossing fairly easy. The faint trail then climbs pretty much straight up the side of the gorge alongside the outlet stream from Shelf Lake. After the trail tops a granite shelf, cross the creek.

Solitude Lake
Distance: 5.0 mi
Elevation Change: 2,240'
From Shelf Lake, head southwest over rock slabs. The outlet of Solitude Lake cascades over the slabs between the lakes.

Album Published April 20, 2019

Odessa Lake

**Trailhead:** Fern Lake
**Distance:** 4.8 mi
**Elevation Change:** 1,870'

**Trailhead:** Bear Lake
**Distance:** 3.9 mi
**Elevation Change:** 570' (net)
Two routes available for Odessa Lake. From Bear Lake, take the Flattop Mtn trail until the Odessa Lake junction. After passing by Two Rivers Lake and Lake Helene, the trail makes a right turn and traverses the flank of Joe Mills Mtn. Make a u-turn on the Odessa Lake spur trail. Or take the Fern Lake trailhead to Fern Lake. From there, the trail ascends through a pile of boulders and back into the trees, climbing steadily. Take the Odessa Lake spur trail.

Album Published April 20, 2019

Chaos Tarn

Trailhead: Bear Lake
Via: Lake Haiyaha
Distance: 4.4 mi
Elevation Change: 1,803' From the south side of Lake Haiyaha, proceed up Chaos Canyon staying to the left slopes. No trail is possible here, it's rock hopping all the way up.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Colorado

Album Published April 19, 2019

Lake Haiyaha

Trailhead: Bear Lake
Via: Dream Lake
Distance: 3.3 mi
Elevation Change: 1,040' At Dream Lake the trail branches - Emerald to the right, Haiyaha to the left. The trail rises above Dream Lake (sometimes visible through thick trees) before coming to a rocky outcroping affording a nice view of Longs Peak. After the trail junction (with the unimproved trail that descends to the Mills/Loch trail junction), continue to the right. The trail goes through a boulder field before ending at the lake.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Mills Lake

Trailhead: Glacier Gorge
Distance: 2.7 mi
Elevation Change: 760' This heavily traveled trail passes Alberta Falls then the south side of East Glacier Knob before reaching a junction with the Loch Vale, Lake Haiyaha, and Fire trails. Bear left here, cross the stream and large granite slabs to arrive at the outlet of Mills Lake.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Green and "Italy" Lakes

Trailhead: Glacier Gorge
Via:Black Lake

Green Lake
Distance: 6.0 mi
Elevation Change: 2,360' From Black Lake, follow the trail up the inlet. After climbing about 400', the trail along the stream turns south into the bowl immediately beneath Longs Peak. Continue along the stream, navigating granite slabs and sometimes dense krummholz to Green Lake.

"Italy" Lake
Distance: 6.2 mi
Elevation Change: 2,440'
"Italy" Lake is not officially named. It lies a couple hundred yards south and slightly above Green Lake.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Gorge Lakes

Trailhead: Milner Pass
Distance: 6.8 mi
Elevation Change: 3,130' Although net elevation change is only 362', the route takes the hiker to about 300' below the summit of Mount Ida before heading downhill to the lakes. Climb 1,750' in the morning on the way in, another 1,380' in the afternoon on the way out. Climb the Mount Ida trail to about 12,500' elevation, then leave the trail and contour along the ridge below 'Jagor Point'. Hike north along the spine of the ridge to treeline and a grassy ramp down to 'Lake Amore'. Go south to Love Lake and Arrowhead Lake. An ambitious hiker can continue on to Doughnut Lake, Inkwell Lake, Azure Lake, and Highest Lake.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Sky Pond

Trailhead: Glacier Gorge
Via: Glass Lake
Distance: 4.4 mi
Elevation Change: 1,720'
After reaching Glass Lake, the trail goes over rock slabs northwest of the lake before descending again toward the western shore. After this, the trail undulates a bit, passing through dense shrubbery before topping out on the bench holding Sky Pond.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Glass Lake

Also sometimes called Lake of Glass.
Trailhead: Glacier Gorge
Via: The Loch
Distance: 4.2 mi
Elevation Change: 1,640' The trail continues past the Loch, crossing Andrews Creek and meeting the spur trail to Andrews Tarn. Stay on the main trail as it bends south. When the trail exits the trees it gets quite steep, ascending numerous stone steps to Timberline Falls. A few yards west of the falls, the trail ascends a steep broken cliff and is often wet with falling water. From the top of the falls, Glass Lake is just a few more steps.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Frozen Lake

Trailhead: Glacier Gorge
Via: Black Lake
Distance: 6.1 mi
Elevation Change: 2,400' From Black Lake, follow the unimproved trail up the inlet, climbing about four hundred feet. The creek bends to the south. Cross the creek and follow cairns over granite slabs to the southwest, topping a bench north of the Spearhead.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Mesa Verde National Park

Established in 1906 by Teddy Roosevelt, Mesa Verde is not only a National Park, but a UNESCO World Heritage site. The park protects some of the best-preserved Ancestral Puebloan archaeological sites in the United States and is is the largest archaeological preserve in the United States.

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Album Published April 19, 2019

Joshua Tree National Park

Franklin D. Roosevelt used the power of the 1906 Antiquities Act to establish Joshua Tree National Monument. In 1950, the size of the park was reduced by about 290,000 acres to open the land to more mining. The monument was redesignated as a national park on October 31, 1994, by the Desert Protection Act, which also added back 234,000 acres. Two distinct desert ecosystems, the Mojave and the Colorado, come together in Joshua Tree National Park. A fascinating variety of plants and animals make their homes in a land sculpted by strong winds and occasional torrents of rain.

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Album Published April 19, 2019

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve protects the tallest sand dunes in the USA, rising up to 750' and covering some 30 square miles. It has only been a National Park since 2004; before that was a National Monument since 1932. Bounded on the east by the rugged Sangre de Cristo mountains, the dunes make a stunning picture.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Grand Canyon National Park

Theodore Roosevelt created the Grand Canyon National Monument in 1908, but it didn't become a National Park until 1919. Obviously, the Park's central feature is the Grand Canyon, a gorge of the Colorado River, which is often considered one of the Wonders of the World. Unique combinations of geologic color and erosional forms decorate a canyon that is 277 river miles long, up to 18 miles wide, and a mile deep. Grand Canyon overwhelms our senses through its immense size.

Album Published April 19, 2019

Capitol Reef National Park

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Album Published April 19, 2019

Arches National Park

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Album Published April 19, 2019

Point Lobos State Natural Reserve

Anyone visiting Monterey should make the short side-trip a few miles south to Point Lobos. It's not a large park, but contains many interseting sights. There are rare plant communities, endangered archeological sites, unique geological formations, and incredibly rich flora and fauna of both land and sea.

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