Take a January Hike to Chasm Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park

This winter, why not try a trek to a Rocky Mountain National Park classic, Chasm Lake.

The trail to Chasm Lake in the summer is an iconic Rocky Mountain National Park day hike. It has it all; alpine terrain, big patch of Colorado Columbines, waterfalls, dramatic mountain surroundings, topped off with lunch at the alpine lake at the base of the sheer east face of Longs Peak known as The Diamond.

Chasm Lake is also doable in the winter if the conditions are right. A winter trek is every bit as glorious as the summer hike is, and potentially more challenging. As a winter trek, you immerse yourself in a rocky mountain winter climate and get a taste of winter life for the flora and fauna of the alpine. The challenge of wintering above 11,000' seem to make the summers even more glorious.

It is important to pay attention to the conditions, namely the weather. Besides looking for a sunny day, check the winter weather for the wind forecast; strong winds and blowing snow create hazardous conditions.  

When winter trekking on this trail, plan to bring both snowshoes and good traction devices like spikes, and pay special attention to winter wear. When deciding your winter wear, if it’s a good weather day, the conditions could be anything from almost balmy to bitter cold in the shade. Be prepared to layer up or down. If, for whatever reason, you have decided to go up on a nasty day, goggles are a must. But do check the weather the night before.

The Trail
Out of the car, you are at the Longs Peak trailhead with a beginning elevation of 9,400’. The lake from here is 4.2 miles away and 2,360’ higher. The trail begins in smaller lodge pole pine, the pines are not as tall here because of the higher elevation. Although it is also possible that the area could have been logged during the time of the Enos Mills Longs Peak Inn era of the early 1900’s, and so they may not be that old either. 

The January trail is likely to be completely snow covered and snowshoes work best for this first part in the trees, although depending on how long it’s been since it snowed, you might find the trial is packed enough that snowshoes are not necessary. 'Tis better to carry them and not need them than to not carry them and wished you had. It's also better to wear them than to post hole and wreck the trail.

Not too far up the trail, at 0.3 miles, you will pass your first landmark, the Estes Cone trail cutoff sign. You will be looking for this landmark on the way down, when you see it, you will know the car is not too far away.

Shortly after that, the trail switchbacks at about a 140 degree angle to the south and you begin to steadily gain elevation. You are rewarded at the end of that traverse with a switchback at Alpine Brook, a nice little babbling brook in spruce and probably why the trail goes to this point. It makes for a pleasant early resting spot, even in winter.

The then trail continues on heading north, gaining more elevation before quickly switching back to the south and then bending west, leveling off in short lodge pole pines that are somewhat mis-shapened because they are hitting the top of their life zone. The next landmark to look for here is the sign to the Goblins Forest campsite. 

Not long after, the trail turns left crossing tiny Larkspur Creek and begins a traverse up and across an east facing slope, so there are more spruce now. Four switchbacks more continues to gain elevation before crossing one more notable bridge at Alpine Brook. At this point, you are traveling through the treeline transition zone, an elevation above which no trees grow, about 11,000’.

Isabella Bird wrote upon entering the Estes Valley that, “The scenery is the most glorious I have ever seen, and is above us, around us, at the very door.” So it is as you enter into the open alpine zone and Longs Peak comes into view. Here you will find an entirely different looking landscape than the one you just walked out of, and potentially an entirely different weather situation in the winter. From here, the lake sits another 797’ higher, and the trail is all in open, exposed alpine terrain. ​Consider the weather from this point on.

During the winter months, the summer trail in this open area can be difficult to follow due to the trail being covered over with blowing snow. Even the winter trails made by previous snowshoers can get covered over easily and you may find yourself having to make your way as best you can picking up the trail when it becomes is visible. Because this stretch can be sketchy with the wind blowing the snow off in most areas, while accumulating in other areas, switching over from snowshoes to spikes can make the travel go easier. Also, make sure your wind jacket is handy if you have not put it on yet. 

It is in this open area where Rocky Mountain Jim brought Isabella Bird off of Longs Peak. Having successfully summited with a great deal of effort as described by Ms. Bird, the descent proved difficult and long. When they had finally crossed through the Boulder Field and made their way on horse to an area marked on the map as Jim’s Grove below Granite Pass, Bird was exhausted and quickly fell into sleep.

She woke in the night, cold, and went to sit by the blazing fire being tended to by “the students” that had accompanied Mountain Jim and Bird. She describes the scene for us.

KristinFrostArt

“When I woke, the moon was high shining through the silvery branches, whitening the bald Peak above, and glittering on the great abyss of snow behind, and pine logs were blazing like a bonfire in the cold still air. My feet were icy cold that I could not sleep again, and getting some blankets to sit in, and making a roll of them for my back, I sat for two-hours by the campfire. It was weird and gloriously beautiful.”

You will be traveling in a west to south west direction, steadily gaining elevation as you go. You are looking for a saddle of sorts on the south ridge of Mt Lady Washington up ahead. Once reaching that low spot on the ridge, you will find a trail sign indicating a trail branching off to the right, leading towards Granite Pass for Longs Peak and traversing the north eastern side of Mt. Lady Washington. However, our trail at this point starts across and under the south east ridge to begin the last third of your hike.

Snow accumulates along this next stretch of trail. Snow blows over the ridge you are now trekking under and settles, creating a snowfield that can last clear into June. ​Thus, the snow that falls here can be wind protected and softer, allowing for ​White-tailed Ptarmigan to nestle into the hillside among the rocks. Besides being somewhat wind protected, there are many days of sun along here and you might notice them sunning while nestling. But they can be amazingly difficult to see. You may see one at first, but then as you stare at it, you might notice a few more black eyes blinking at you. They might also be sitting on willow branches that they can poke their beaks down to and nibble on. According to the Rocky NPS website, they predominantly eat buds, leaves, and seeds, and are highly dependent on willow, especially in the winter.

​"They have been known, like other members of this group, to swallow grit to help grind coarse food in their gizzards. White-tailed Ptarmigans are permanent residents and lead a very sedentary lifestyle in winter. Warm weather may stress the White-tailed Ptarmigan. It can be seen bathing in snow when the temperature is higher than 21° C (70° F)." Rocky NPS

Either at the trail junction or just a little further on, you will have to make a decision about staying in traction devices or switching back over to snowshoes. 

Previous hikers may have notched in steps to follow. ​The slope on this snowfield is enough to cause you to slide a long way down at considerable speed if you don’t keep your footing. I have never heard of any one do this, I’ve just imagined it. 

The kind of snowshoes that work best for traversing here have sharpened edges and not rounded like mine. Rounded or tubular edges make the snowshoe feel like it can’t get an edge and grip the snow. With this type of snowshoe, it is all the more important to keep the feet flat and not lean into the slope too much, use a pole on the uphill side to keep you standing straight. 

After a couple of tricky spots on this snowfield, you finish the traverse and cross onto an open flat alpine meadow, a large ledge left long ago by glacial retreat. The water from Chasm Lake, still higher up and not in sight, travels through this narrow spot before waterfalling down to Peacock Pool below. You will have to find a way across this very short stretch of frozen water, which can be polished and quite slick. But soon enough you are onto the open flat area and looking up at the looming cliff walls that is The Ships Prow emerging between Meeker Mtn and Longs. Searching for the final way up to the Lake, the direction to head is south, across the meadow. The trail here is often blown clear and easy enough to follow. It will take you to the base of a rocky area. Carefully work your way up. And then finally the frozen Chasm Lake.

Unless you happen to come up not long after a snow fall and before any wind, the lake will be clear of snow. There are very large rock areas all over along the eastern edge of the lake that are enjoyable to hang out on in the summer, but you could be greeted with a cold steady breeze during the winter. Also, the sun sets behind Longs very early in the day this time of year and once that sun is gone, the temps can drop quickly.

​Sometimes sunny pockets protected from wind can be found among the rocks to re-hydrate and re-nourish before making the return trek. It can also be a good spot to pull out a thermous of something warm to drink or even fire up a small cook stove to heat up water for soup. 

Because once are here, you have made it, and it is worth clinking your water bottle with the rocks to celebrate this place. This amazing place. This weird and gloriously beautiful place.