There are two ways to get to Bierstadt Lake. The most obvious way (and the wrong way in my opinion) is the way followed by most who hike to this lake: the Bierstadt Lake Trail. This trailhead is well labelled, prominent on most maps, and starts at a parking lot on the Bear Lake road. On the map, this trail looks like a clear straightforward hike to the lake. The maps and signs tell you the lake is a 1.9 mile hike from the parking lot. Sounds like an easy hike, right? Wrong!
What the maps and signs fail to tell you is that the first 1.7 miles of that 1.9 miles is an extremely extremely steep rocky climb, and seems like it goes almost straight up! Exertion city. Being around the 10,000 foot elevation, this climb can only be called extremly strenuous.
Luckily I didn't go that way.
I have learned to stop at ranger stations, and ask the rangers for their recommendations. Four different rangers at four different spots in the park all told me the same thing: the best way to get to Bierstadt lake is to start at Bear Lake and take the Fern Lake Trail into the next valley over, then come back on the Hollowell Park trail to the lake.
The Fern Lake trail starts out going uphill too, and it is fairly steep (but nowhere near as steep as the Bierstadt Lake Trail). But after less than half a mile, it levels off. From this point on, the rest of the trip is downhill all the way, quite literally. Of course, by going this way you end up hiking six miles instead of 1.9 miles to the lake. But 5.6 of those 6 miles are either downhill or almost perfectly level. A nice relaxing walk indeed.
Bierstadt Lake is encircled by its own 1.5 mile loop trail, and it too is almost perfectly level, going through some dense forest. After making the circle around the lake, you can then go down the Bierstadt Trail (that most others took UP!), carefully climbing down 1.7 miles to the Bierstadt parking lot, where you can catch a park service shuttlebus to take you the 5 miles back up to the Bear Lake parking area where you left your car.
There are a couple of trail intersections you pass on the way out in the wilderness (Fern Lake, Hollowell, etc.), so you have to have a map to know which trail to take (and a compass too, if you don't have a perfect sense of direction).
What's more, I was VERY lucky in another way, too:
Being advertised as only 1.9 miles from the parking lot, Bierstadt Lake is popular with the general hiking population in spite of its strenuous climb. But this particular morning (Tuesday), the day started out dark with threatening storms, heavy black clouds, and chilly wind. Since this was my last day in the park before having to get busy with my conference, I decided to hike anyway. I purchased a $2 poncho at the visitor center, and figured I'd take shelter in a low spot if lightning started bouncing around.
Talk about fantastically-good luck! I arrived at Bear Lake and started up the Fern Lake trail about 11 in the morning, under dark clouds... but it wasn't raining -- yet. And it didn't rain! It never rained one drop! About noon the sun came out, at 1 pm the clouds cleared out, the sky turned brilliant blue, and by the time I got to Bierstadt Lake about 3, it was gorgeous! And the best part: the storm clouds had kept all the other hikers off the trail! I had the entire area to myself! I took some of the best photos I think I've taken yet. Click on these images for larger versions.
The photo below has got to be one of the best photos I think I've ever taken. But the post below has a few more really good ones, too! This lake is beautiful and I can see why it's so popular, even for those who hike the steep uphill climb!
The trail wound around the lake through a dense spruce forest. Gorgeous.
Since the hike started out uphill for half a mile, then downhill for six, I timed myself. I walk at exactly 1/2 mile per hour when going uphill. (It took me one hour to go the first half mile.) And I walk at 3 miles per hour when going downhill or on level ground, not including time to stop and take some pictures.
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