Mirror Lake
Our hike this weekend was to Mirror Lake. The trailhead was accessible via Long Draw Road near Cameron's Pass. Long Draw Road will likely close in the next month due to snow, so since it was still open we wanted to get this one checked off our list before it was too late.
This was a tough hike. It's the most distance than we've ever done before, and we chose it (maybe stupidly) based on the distance. The reason distance was important to us is because we are running out of time to complete our New Year's Resolution. There might be plenty of time left in the year, but it won't be long before the trails are covered in snow and ice making a hike with this much distance even harder.
This hike started off by skirting the 2020 Cameron's Peak burn area. After about a mile, we were completely surrounded by the bur area and continued to hike in the burn area for 4 more miles until we were in an unburned forest for the last mile up to the lake. Hiking in a burn area isn't that great and doesn't really give either of us a positive hiking experience. The views at the lake were terrific, and Mirror Lake truly did live up to its name of being a mirror. But with how far we hiked, the view wasn't worth that much distance. There are shorter hikes with nicer lake views than Mirror Lake. But at least it wasn't a disappointment like some other lakes that we've hiked to.
One really nice thing about this hike was that we were alone for almost all of the hike. We were hoping that this would be a people-less hike, but we saw one other couple also hiking to the lake right before we got to the lake, which meant that we were sharing the lake with them. I don't mind sharing the lake with other people, but we were really hoping for solitude based on how remote of an area this was.
This hike to Mirror Lake beat our previous record for distance by 19%. And as such, we can now say that our 2023 New Year's Resolution is complete! Our New Year's Resolution was to beat our all-time records for mileage, elevation gain, and time hiking by 15%. Prior to this hike, we had already broken our all-time-record for elevation gain and time hiking on our hike to Spectacle Lakes just a month prior. With all 3 of our records broken by 15% or more, our New Year's Resolution is complete.
| Previous Record | 2023 Goal | New Record | |
| Mileage | 11.18 Miles | 12.86 Miles | 13.28 miles |
| Elevation Gain | 2,589 ft | 2,977 ft | 3,458 ft |
| Time Hiking | 5hr, 47min, 42sec | 6hr, 39min, 51sec | 7hr, 37min, 9sec |
13.28 mi
6.3 hrs
11,091 ft
2,411 ft
Mount Richthofen
One nice thing about hiking through the burn area is that there's better views of the surrounding peaks. If these trees were full the view wouldn't be nearly as good.
Almost Unobstructed
I tried very hard to get an unobstructed view of Mount Richthofen. This was the best that I could get, which is almost what I was hoping for.
A Hike Through the Burn
Most of the hike was like this photo - walking through a completely devastated area that was void of life from the 2020 Cameron's Peak fire.
Mare's Tail Clouds
The clouds were very wispy. After the hike I learned that these are specifically Mare's Tale clouds.
Very Rocky Mountain
The mountain that the lake was in was very rocky. Even though this hike wasn't above the tree line, it felt like it because of how rocky it was. Coming up on the lake were plenty of trees and grass (once we got out of the burn area).
Different Angle
I wandered around the lake to get better composition, but the reflection wasn't as strong in any other area other than the location the trail came up on the lake. Must have been something to do with how close we were to the lake and where the sun was that changed the strength of the reflection.
Cache La Poudre
On the way back, the lighting was better for photographing the river in almost every crossing that we had. This is the Poudre river, the one that runs through Fort Colins.
