Blue Lake Trail

Blue Lake starts quietly, on an old logging road that climbs at an easy grade through spruce and fir off CO-14 near Long Draw. Then, about a mile in, the forest opens and the country changes: you step into the scar of the 2020 Cameron Peak Fire, and for the next three miles the trail runs through blackened timber and silvered snags — severe burn that left the tread hard to follow in places, so keep an eye on the route and don't count on shade. Around mile 1.8 a little rise to the east hands you an overlook of Chambers Lake and the full sweep of what the fire touched, and at 2.3 miles you cross a footbridge over Fall Creek and enter the Rawah Wilderness, where the grade leans in and starts to work for its views.

Past the wilderness line the trail brushes out of the burn and, at 4.1 miles, drops you at an unbridged crossing of the North Fork of Fall Creek — a lovely wildflower spot early in the season, but a real wade when the water is high. From there it's a last pull to Blue Lake at mile 5.0, a stunning alpine basin ringed with summer flowers and closed to camping within a quarter mile to let the shoreline heal. This is exposed high country: watch the afternoon sky for lightning above treeline, give the resident moose a wide berth, treat every drop of water for giardia, and turn back rather than force the North Fork or the West Branch when they're running full.

Trail Facts

Getting There

From Ted's Place, drive 53.7 miles up CO-14 to milepost 69.5, just beyond Long Draw Road. The Blue Lake parking lot and trailhead are on your right (the west side of the highway) — a drive-through lot with two entrances and limited room for stock trailers. Toilets are at the Long Draw Winter Trailhead, with more parking on the east side of CO-14 about a quarter mile northeast of the trailhead. The lot is usually accessible in winter, but come prepared for high-elevation driving and bring snowshoes or skis.

Know Before You Go

• Burn country. This trail ran through the 2020 Cameron Peak Fire (nearly 209,000 acres, the largest in Colorado history) and was severely burned from about mile 1 to mile 4 — watch for falling trees, hidden stump holes, rockslides, and flash flooding after even a light rain, and be ready to route-find where the tread has vanished.
• It's a Rawah Wilderness trail past mile 2.3: no bikes, no wheeled conveyances, no motorized use; group size is capped at 12 people and stock combined.
• No camping near the lakes. A quarter-mile Blue Lake Closure Area around Blue and Hang Lakes (and the ground between them) bans all fires and overnight camping; wood fires are also prohibited above 10,800 ft.
• Unbridged crossings. The North Fork of Fall Creek at mile 4.1 and the West Branch of the Laramie River at the far end have no bridges — both can be an unsafe wade in high flow, so don't force them.
• Exposed and alpine. Much of the upper trail is above treeline — start early, watch the afternoon sky for lightning, and turn around if storms build.
• Wildlife & water. Moose frequent this drainage — keep your distance and leash your dog — and treat all water for giardia.
• Winter route differs. Blue diamonds mark the first 2.3 miles; because of avalanche danger near Blue and Hang Lakes, the winter route leaves the summer trail at the North Fork crossing (mile 4.1) and follows the creek up to the lake.