Family Adventure on the trail to Slide Lake

While we were in Leadville on a family adventure, we took a trip to Slide Lake. This adventure was a super bumpy one.

We came across several hikers, two pickup trucks and a side-by-side.

While we were on the trail to Slide Lake, we didn’t see many tire tracks. We assumed that only one of the trucks made it to the lake.

The trail isn’t for your everyday car. It was very rocky. But we had a great time.

Why should you explore the off-road trail to Slide Lake

The drive to the lake was really pretty. There wasn’t an aspen tree to be found in the forest. The entire forest was evergreen trees. We loved weaving in and out of the trees. There were a lot of spots that a moose should have been, but we didn’t see one. We saw signs in the forest that say you might encounter a moose… not us though.

There was a creek at the end of the trail right before you could hike to the lake. You had to cross it to get to an awesome camp spot.

The trail was rough, but the drive was pretty.

Trail conditions

ROCKY! This trail was very bumpy. There wasn’t a lot of loose gravel but the trail was rocky with dips and deep puddles. To get a better idea of how the trail conditions were visit our Youtube channel and watch the video.

Trail points of interest

A great lunch spot would be at the end of the trail. There was a picnic table under some large evergreen trees. Another great lunch spot would be the camp spot across the creek. In the first picture above is the campsite.

We saw a couple Smurf mushrooms…but no Smurfs.

Then the hike to the lake was amazing! It’s a short hike but oh.my.goodness the views are beautiful!!

The trail to Slide Lake downfalls

Super rocky and bumpy. The off-road trail is short but it took a couple hours to get to the lake. Other than that, no complaints from this group!

Key Takeaways

If you do not mind getting tossed around a bit, going slow and watching your tire placement, then this trail is great for you. At the end of the trail there is a great spot to have lunch and enjoy the creek. Or you can hike past the road onto Slide Lake and enjoy your day there.

The lake and views are breathtaking. It’s worth the hike on the rough road. Or if you drove it like we did, it’s a fun road and worth the drive.

TRAIL INFO:

• Elevation: We have no idea. But you can see Homestake Peak, that elevation is 13,215 ft.
• Road type: Rocky, very bumpy. Go SLOW.
• Ranger District info: Leadville Ranger District 810 Front Street Leadville CO 80462 (719) 486-0749