Directions:

The Bierstadt Lake Trailhead is located off of Bear Creek Road. Enter the park through the Beaver Meadows entrance and turn left onto Bear Creek Road.  The trailhead is about a 1 ½ miles past the park and ride lot. Depending on when you are visiting, keep in mind that reservations are required and special reservations are required for Bear Creek Road.  Best to avoid the summer and fall crowds by visiting during the week and late in the afternoon, after the storms have moved through.

Hike Description:

Bierstadt Lake is an easy enough and straightforward hike along Bear Creek Road.  The Lake sits at the eastern edge of the Bear Creek / Glacier Gorge area which has some of the most popular and most awe inspiring scenery in the entire park. Since Bierstadt Lake is just outside of the hectic thick of alpine hiking, it is often overlooked or past by.  However, if you manage to be in the right place at the right time, namely late September and late in the day, then this hike is nothing short of magical. I’m writing this description a little while after hiking it and my memory of this hike is almost dreamlike. 

First of all, the initial mile of the hike follows well designed switchbacks up to the forested bench that the lake sits in.  These switchbacks cut through an almost constant grove of aspen trees. When the late afternoon sun hits this spot, the trees glow with amber light. Interspersed are views of Hallett Peak with its razor sharp edges and Longs Peak across the valley lording over the scene. Aspens all along the valley and up the slopes of the mountains glow. It’s really quite remarkable.

When you arrive at the top of the switchbacks, the hike changes entirely. You enter the pine forest where it becomes dark and quiet. Late in the day, there are very few people hiking the trails, even on Fall days when the park is at its busiest. The dark forest is soothing, a bit eerie, and very relaxing.  Then the trail reaches the shores of Bierstadt Lake with another magical scene. Peaks above the trees, afternoon light bouncing off the still water, and in my case, a moose. A large moose, happily eating lake grass and vegetation, spraying water around as it dips its head in and out of the lake, the memories hardly seem real. 

The hike back traverses the aspen switchbacks again, the dying light turning the amber glow to a blue hue. An easy walk back to the trailhead with the temperature dropping quickly. And just like that, you are back in your car, awake again with a feeling of…did that really happen?