Heart Lake Trail

From Hiking

Heart Lake Trail
Location:	Rollinsville
Maintained By:	National Forest Service
Starting Elevation:	9300'
Elevation Gain:	2100'
Length:	8.0 miles
Difficulty:	moderate to strenuous
Last Hiked:	7/26/08

[edit] Finding the Trail Head

Take US 93 north from Golden and go left into Golden Gate Canyon and north on CO 119 to Rollinsville (or it may be faster to go left into Coal Creek Canyon (CO 72) and south on CO 119 to Rollinsville), turn left onto the dirt road just next to the railroad tracks (FR 149) and follow it 8 miles to the East Portal of the Moffat Tunnel.

[edit] Description

The trail through the James Peak National Wilderness Area is spectacular and varied. In the lower part, it parallels the South Boulder Creek, crossing numerous tributaries. The terrain is a mix of mountain meadows and pine forest. Near the creek, all the dead pine branches are covered with some sort of moss. The meadows are peppered with Fireweed, Tall Chiming Bells, Cow Parsley, and Lousewort.

After passing side trails branching to the left toward the continental divide for the Forest Lakes Trail and the Crater Lakes Trail, the Heart Lake Trail begins to climb steeply amid Heart Leaf Arnica and Jacob's Ladder. In the upper part of the valley, the trail settles down to a steady climb and the forest looks much healthier. The open forest, with fallen trees and small meadows is some of the prettiest country along the front range.

After crossing several more large tributaries, the trail becomes boggy with Marsh Merigolds, Parry Primroses, and Globe Flowers everywhere. Finally, the trail begins a very steep climb up to Roger's Peak Lake (at about 11,100'). Along this section, the trail comes back to the South Boulder Creek and follows it up to a beautiful cascade. At the top of this section there's camping near a small unnamed lake, another small lake hidden just to the left of the trail and just above around Roger's Peak Lake.

After Roger's Peak Lake, the trail climbs steeply above tree line (through Snow Buttercups, Purple Fringe, and Showy Daisies). Heart Lake is in a large barren cirque. The trail continues up another 1.5 miles to Roger's Pass on the continental divide. Even in late July, there were impressive ice cornices along the top of the cirque.

[edit] Experience

It's important to get started early. With the hour and a quarter drive from Golden, it's easy to get caught in the afternoon thundershowers that make this such lush terrain all summer long. On our first attempt, we ended up turning back after about 3 miles because of thunder and heavy rain. On the second attempt, we made it all the way to Heart Lake, but still caught a little rain at the top.