Parking
From Kawuneeche Visitor Center, take US 34 south about 1.7 miles to West Portal Road. Turn left and continue about 2 miles to East Inlet Trailhead, at the east end of Grand Lake and the end of the road.
Overview
About Lone Pine Lake Trail
Why go
- A rewarding lake destination after a varied meadow-and-creek approach.
- Adams Falls makes a worthwhile optional early side trip.
Heads up
- Nearly 11 miles at high elevation.
- The upper climb is rockier and steeper than the lower valley.
Map & elevation
The route
Loading the Rocky Mountain map
Full mapElevation8,419–9,892 ft
Plan your hike
Before you go
Parking
Safety
3 active Rocky Mountain alerts
- ClosureOld Fall River Road closed to vehiclesOld Fall River Road is closed to motor vehicles for the season.Official details
- ClosureSun Valley burn-area access remains closedThe area and trail west of Sun Valley Trail remain closed, including the route used for angler access to the Colorado River, because of impacts from the 2020 East Troublesome and Cameron Peak Fires;…Official details
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
Rocky Mountain Tour Guide
Your drive to Lone Pine Lake Trail, narrated.
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Rocky Mountain National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the Rocky Mountain audio tourRecorded for this trailhead
East Inlet: Two Views of Adams Falls0:00 / 0:26
“You're approaching East Inlet Trailhead, the start of the short walk to Adams Falls. Allow thirty to forty-five minutes for about eight-tenths of a mile round trip, with rocky steps and uneven footing near the falls.”
Plays as you drive up to this trailhead in the Parkwolf Rocky Mountain Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
- North Inlet: The Walk to Cascade Falls
- Water Beneath the Mountains
- Kawuneeche Visitor Center: Get Your Bearings
- Harbison Meadows: Lunch at the Sisters' Ranch
- 79 audio storiesacross Rocky Mountain’s roads, triggered by GPS as you drive
- Wildlife heatmapsfor Elk, Moose, Mountain Goat, and 13 more
- Works offlinemaps, 136 trails, 88 places, and audio download before you lose signal
- CarPlay readysimple controls built for the drive
“…No cell service for majority of the day but had continuous access to the app - the maps, the tour guide as you drive is amazing. Highly recommend purchasing the subscription.”
Trail guide
Hiking Lone Pine Lake Trail
The long way to the lakeLone Pine Lake Trail is an out-and-back from East Inlet Trailhead to Lone Pine Lake on the…
Lone Pine Lake Trail is an out-and-back from East Inlet Trailhead to Lone Pine Lake on the park’s west side. The mapped corridor is 5.4 miles each way, or 10.8 miles round trip, with about 1,500 feet of climbing. Allow around six hours; a slower pace or a long lake stop can push it toward seven. The route starts near 8,400 feet and reaches nearly 9,900, so the altitude and late climb make this a hard day. Published figures range from about 10.6 to 11 miles round trip; this one follows the mapped trail to the lake and back.
The right turnaroundThe route starts at East Inlet Trailhead, at the end of West Portal Road.
The route starts at East Inlet Trailhead, at the end of West Portal Road. East Inlet Trail continues about 1.5 miles past Lone Pine Lake toward Lake Verna, but that is a longer hike. The distance here ends at Lone Pine Lake. Pets are prohibited on all Rocky Mountain National Park trails. Snow and ice can linger on high trails into summer.
Adams Falls is a side tripAbout a third of a mile from the trailhead, a short optional spur reaches Adams Falls.
About a third of a mile from the trailhead, a short optional spur reaches Adams Falls. The water drops in several steps through a narrow rock gorge. The lower overlook faces the falls; from above, the view opens toward Grand Lake. This is a worthwhile early stop, but the falls spur is not included in the mapped 10.8-mile lake route.
East MeadowThe trail reaches East Meadow at about 0.
The trail reaches East Meadow at about 0.6 mile and follows its north edge beside East Inlet Creek. Mounts Cairns, Craig, and Wescott rise around the open valley. A low bluff near 1.4 miles gives a wider look over the meadow and creek before the route turns into a more sustained climb.
The climb above the meadowPast the meadow, the tread gets rockier as it climbs the lower slopes of Mount Cairns.
Past the meadow, the tread gets rockier as it climbs the lower slopes of Mount Cairns. Gaps in the trees look west toward Grand Lake, and smaller falls and cascades appear higher along East Inlet. The trail crosses East Inlet Creek before the lake. Expect the upper half to take more effort than the first, gentler stretch.
At Lone Pine LakeThe lake sits below steep granite slopes.
The lake sits below steep granite slopes. A broad granite slab near its southwest end makes a good place to stop, with Peak 12,260 and Andrews Peak rising across the water. For a photo, include the lake in front of those peaks; the granite shore gives the frame a clear foreground.
A historic park trailEast Inlet Trail is listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its historic…
East Inlet Trail is listed on the National Register of Historic Places for its historic naturalistic trail design. The register record identifies significant work in 1934 and 1945, so the route’s place in the park’s early trail history is part of the walk.
Wildlife
Wildlife in Rocky Mountain
3,124 sightingsElkMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
1,601 sightingsMooseMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
19 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 7 AMSighting map
19 sightingsBald EagleMost seen around 8 AMSighting map
30 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 10 AMSighting map
270 sightingsBighorn SheepMost seen around 11 AMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across Rocky Mountain. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
