Snowshoeing at Blue Lake near Cameron Pass
Details
Distance
10 miles
Elevation Gain
1500 ft
Route Type
Out-and-Back
Added by Madalyne Staab
This trail is a beautiful summer hike, but in the winter it is absolutely gorgeous. Most of the time you are traversing through pine forest, but there are a few open meadows that give wonderful views of the surrounding mountain range.
While the trail does have quite a bit of elevation gain you don't really feel it since it is dispersed among five miles of trail.
The first part of the trail is a wider road with a few look out points of nearby Chambers Lake. About two miles in you reach the end of the National Forest area. From here there are no longer blue tree markers on trees telling you where to go, but don't worry, the trail is easy to follow.
By mile three you are getting into the most beautiful part- pine forests with well-dispersed meadows. When I went the weather was absolutely perfect (sunny, no wind) and the meadows were a great place to take a breather and feel the sun on your face. But even if the weather is bad (i.e. windy) most of the trail is in the trees.
The last mile of the trail is definitely less trodden. We were lucky to find a couple fellow snowshoers who had a GPS and were willing to break trail. In the summer getting to the actual Blue Lake is relatively easy (for a 10 mile roundtrip hike at least). In the winter, the trail is definitely not as clear. We got within half a mile of the lake but decided to turn around. But if you have the gumption then I would defnitely attempt to reach the lake.
Blue Lake trail is perfect for anyone wanting to spend a couple hours in the trees. The trail is pretty popular, though we only started to see people later in the day. So I would suggest getting up there early to get a parking spot and the trail mostly to yourself.
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Details
Distance
10 miles
Elevation Gain
1500 ft
Route Type
Out-and-Back
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