Frozen Lake - 12.1 Miles Round-Trip

Frozen Lake (11,578') is accessible from Glacier Gorge Trailhead in Rocky Mountain National Park. It's the highest and most challenging of three trail-less lakes located above Black Lake.

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Frozen Lake fills a deep rocky bowl beneath The Spearhead, an aptly named rock formation and renowned climbing destination on the valley headwall.

Cross-country travel in open tundra is required to reach Frozen Lake. Cairns offer guidance, but many run off course to climbing routes, improvised campsites or simply nowhere in particular. A good map is essential to safe, efficient travel between Black and Frozen Lake.

Visitors will enjoy magnificent alpine scenery and well-earned solitude on the trek to Frozen Lake:

The Loch Vale Trail rises steadily through young aspen and mixed pine to Alberta Falls (.85 miles : 9,423'). A moderate climb continues to the North Longs Peak Trail split (1.6 miles : 9,768'), where it banks southwest and flattens through a narrow gorge between Thatchtop Mountain (12,668') and the Glacier Knobs.

The trail drops to Glacier Junction and bears left to Mills Lake (2.1 miles : 9,804'). It turns south, crossing Glacier Creek twice and sections of rock slab to Mills Lake (2.65 miles : 9,955').

The trail - now intermittently rugged, undulating and heavily rooted - follows the lake's east shore to its marshy juxtaposition with Jewel Lake (3.1 miles : 9,967').

It continues past Jewel Lake through a string of marshes aided by narrow, elevated planks. A cluttered forest reclaims the trail (3.2 miles), which closely follows Glacier Creek all the way to Black Lake.

Anticipate steep undulations and spotty clarity over the next 1.5 miles; when in doubt, simply hold your line and follow the creek.

You'll pass the Glacier Gorge Backcountry Campsite spur (3.35 miles : 10,068') and scale newly built stairs. Travel intensifies in a thick forest to a cairn-marked rock slab (3.85 miles : 10,205'), then moderates across a meadow with good views of the upper gorge (4.1 miles).

The Arrowhead (12,387'), Powell Peak (13,208) and McHenrys Peak (13,327') frame the west, while Pagoda Mountain (13,497') and Keyboard of the Winds - a line of pinnacles near the summit of Longs Peak - rise to the east. Chiefs Head Peak (13,579') and The Spearhead (12,575') cap the upper valley.

Uneven travel continues to the base of Ribbon Falls (4.7 miles : 10,540'), which spill from the north shore of Black Lake.

The trail twists steeply beside the falls and hops a line of flattened boulders across the outlet to reach Black Lake (4.8 miles : 10,630'). It scales a small knoll to the east shore (4.85 miles), where you'll turn east and begin a strenuous climb up Black Lake's inlet.

The initial climb follows a well-defined path beside the inlet with views of the cirque below. The trail reaches an unmarked fork at 5.15 miles (11,980'); bear right (south) and cross the stream to regain it.

The trail threads dense willow and large boulders to a second crossing (5.27 miles); once over it twists steeply through a cairn-marked slot and moderates in a vast alpine terrace of rock slabs, meadows, ponds, boulders and streams. The path quickly fades, and you'll now turn southwest for the most direct route to Frozen Lake.

First, identify the Spearhead and steep rock face to its right. No matter the approach, you'll eventually need to scale this wall to reach the lake, located just behind it.

Orient yourself accordingly and look for the clearest path. The seemingly smooth terrain ahead is in fact quite uneven - take no footstep for granted. Favor rock slabs, the tundra's most reliable and eco-sensitive footing.

Head SW toward the Spearhead and rock face at its western base. Select the most favorable pitch up this wall. The most direct route crests at approximately 6.0 miles (11,613') and drops through talus to the NE shore of Frozen Lake (6.05 miles : 11,578').

Frozen Lake's shore is rocky and scrambling can be tedious, but there are many sheltered nooks and high perches worth reaching. Scramble over the south shore for views across the lake and down Glacier Gorge.