Hike to Pitkin Lake, Eagles Nest Wilderness, Vail, Colorado
Pitkin Lake
After getting home from our Washington adventure and taking a few days off, I was ready to stretch my legs again. I decided to hike to Pitkin Lake in the Gore Range, right outside of Vail. I took the free Town of Vail bus to the trailhead. The trailhead has a 3 hour parking limit, which for me wouldn’t be enough time to do the 10 mile hike up to the lake and back. So bus it was.
The trail starts out quite steeply, gaining over 500 ft of elevation in the first half mile. From there, it mellows out a little bit, but overall, the trail has a pretty sustained grade. The trail loosely follows Pitkin Creek for much of the hike and offers great views of the surrounding mountains for most of the hike.
After almost exactly 5 miles, I found myself at the lake. There was a tent set up right next to the trail and within 25 feet of the lake and its outlet stream, which bothered me because this violates the regulations of Eagles Nest Wilderness. Campsites must be 100 feet from trails, lakes, and streams, and this tent was within 100 ft of all three of these. There was no one in the tent so unfortunately there was nothing I could do, but this is a friendly reminder to check local wilderness regulations before you camp!
After a lengthy break where I watched a family of mountain goats graze from across the lake, I decided it was time to start my descent. I headed back the way I came and after 5 more miles, I was ready for the bus.
Total Stats: 10 miles, 2900 ft of elevation gain.
