Gilpin Lake Trail

The Gilpin Lake trail is half of the Zirkel Circle, the classic loop in the Mount Zirkel Wilderness north of Steamboat: up Gilpin Creek to Gilpin Lake, over a 10,800-foot pass, and down past Gold Creek Lake back to the Slavonia trailhead. The loop is about 10.5 miles with 2,400 feet of gain, the lakes sit under the Sawtooth Range and the Continental Divide, and it is the area's standard first backpack, with camping allowed in the forest below the lakes but not within a quarter mile of either.

From Slavonia, the Gilpin Lake and Gold Creek trails leave the lot together and split within a quarter mile. Most people go up Gilpin, left, to put the steep pass on fresh legs. The trail climbs through spruce and meadow along Gilpin Creek, crossing it on a bridge, past the deadfall of the 1997 blowdown, and reaches Gilpin Lake at 10,300 feet after about 4.5 miles, with the Sawtooth Range rising behind it.

The trail rounds the lake and climbs steeply to the pass on the ridge south of the lake, the loop's high point, then descends the Gold Creek drainage past a waterfall and through meadows to Gold Creek Lake, about 3 miles from the pass. From the lake it is 3 more miles down Gold Creek, with a couple of creek crossings, to the trailhead. The Mica Basin trail leaves the Gilpin side for a third lake for anyone with an extra day.

From Steamboat Springs, take County Road 129 about 20 miles north to Clark, turn onto Seedhouse Road (County Road 60, then Forest Road 400) just beyond town, and follow it about 15 miles, the last part gravel, to the Slavonia trailhead at the road's end, roughly an hour from town. Passenger cars manage it in summer. The lot fills on July and August weekends and overflows along the road. Parking costs $5 per vehicle per day, paid online at Recreation.gov or in cash at the trailhead; there is a vault toilet and a self-registration box. No permit for day hiking.

Dogs are allowed on leash in the wilderness. The full loop is long for young kids; Gilpin Lake alone, about 9 miles round trip, is a reasonable family day. Carry a filter; the creeks and lakes are the water. Camping is prohibited within a quarter mile of Gilpin and Gold Creek lakes, so overnighters camp in the forest below them; expect company at Gilpin on weekends. Deadfall along the trail is a hazard in wind. Moose are common in the willows. Seedhouse and Hinman Park campgrounds are on the access road. The Mount Zirkel trail adds the summit from the pass, and the Mount Zirkel Wilderness page has the access detail.