Island Lake

Island Lake

After a lovely night of camping at Little Molas Lake I woke with the sun, walked down to the lake to take photos, then returned to camp to pack up the van and get back on the road—I had plans to start checking some of my friend’s hike recommendations off the list.

The hike I chose was the popular Island and Ice Lakes Loop, a hike that my friend was a little hesitant to recommend because of how busy it can get (parking alone is sometimes difficult), but I did some research of my own and what I saw was enough for me to not care one bit about potential crowds—I had to see those lakes for myself. 

I lucked out with the last parking spot, made myself a quick breakfast in the van and then hit the trail. There are various ways to do this hike, but the route I took ended up being just over ten miles long with 3,500 feet of elevation gain. It was busy, yes, but not unpleasantly so. And it was, hands down, one of the most breathtakingly beautiful hikes of my entire life.

The route begins up a steep out-and-back trail, about 2.5 miles long, that eventually connects to a large loop at the top (picture a lollipop). There wasn’t much to see those first 2.5 miles, as the thick forest blocked most of the views, although the trail does pass a large, cascading waterfall, which was easily the highlight of the first segment. Eventually the forest opens up into a large, meadowy basin, which is where the massive mountains finally come into view and the hike begins to get interesting.

Once arriving at the loop section, if you take the counterclockwise route, like I did, after about a mile of pretty rigorous uphill hiking the trail leads right to Island Lake—one of the most beautiful and unique lakes I’ve ever seen (and the one I chose as this weeks photo). As you can see from the photo, the water is aqua blue, crystal clear, with a small island located almost exactly in the middle. Thus, Island Lake. 

The lake itself sits at about 12,400 feet, but this photo was taken from V2, a high ridge, perched at around 13,300 feet, which I decided to climb to because of the unique perspective in which it looks down upon Island Lake. V2 was an exhausting add-on to my hike, and not something that I’d likely feel the need to do again or that I’d recommend to a casual hiker, but if you’re in the area and have some extra gas in the tank it provided a stunning 360-degree view of the entire surrounding area. 

After descending V2 I spent 30 minutes hanging around Island Lake, where I swam (a.k.a hyperventilated) in the frigid, snowmelt water, basked in the sun to warm up and then got back on the trail. My next stop was Ice Lake, which turned out to be another impossibly beautiful body of water. 

Ice Lake, while still not large, is at least two or three times as big as Island Lake (maybe more). It’s crystal blue in color, with high mountain peaks surrounding it. And yes, I went swimming in it as well. Unsurprisingly, it was just as cold. But I didn’t regret it one bit—both lakes reinvigorated my soul and my weary legs.

Eventually I said goodbye to Ice Lake and continued along the loop, descending down the last section of trail I had yet to visit. And, even though I had already left the main attractions, this portion of the hike was a very pleasant surprise, as I passed numerous waterfalls (one of which was one of the more unique waterfalls I’ve ever seen), navigated across multiple flowing streams, admired countless wildflowers and had myself a grand ‘ol time. 

Eventually the loop connected back to the out-and-back trail that I arrived on, at which point I descended through the forest, past the waterfall and made it safely back to my van, filled to the brim with awe and admiration for the insane beauty I had been immersed in for the past ten miles. 

Island Lake turned out to be my favorite lake that I visited in the San Juan Mountains, although the lake I would visit two days later certainly gave it a run for its money.

“A little tranquil lake is more significant to my life than any big city in the world” - Munia Khan