Browns Lake Trail 941

From Coloradohikingtrails

Browns Lake Trail 941
Alpine hike past Crown Point to Browns Lake, nestled in a scenic basin. Tremendous views of the Rawah Wilderness, Mummy Range and Roosevelt National Forest, and varied terrain from thick pine forests to rocky, alpine areas above timberline.

Fast Facts
Distance(Miles):	4.0 one-way
Trail Surface & Condition:	Dirt-Rocky in places
Other Trail Users:	Backpackers, horses
Ownership:	National Forest
Best Seasons:	Summer and Fall
Type:	Out-and-Back
Beginning Elev (Feet):	10,480
Ending Elev (Feet):	10,530 *
Elevation Gain (Feet):	1,790 *
Difficulty Rating:	11.6
Browns Lake Trailhead GPS Coordinates:	Latitude: 40.649833 Longitude: -105.698357
Browns Lake GPS Coordinates:	Latitude: 40.604568 Longitude: -105.685439

Browns Lake Trail

Trailhead Information

Browns Lake Trailhead, Crown Point Rd
Near To: Pingree Park and Fort Collins, Colorado

Driving Directions To Trailhead Up Poudre Canyon, 26.5 miles from Ted's Place to the Pingree Park Rd (CR 63E). Proceed 4 miles up Pingree Park Rd. to Crown Point Rd. Turn right and drive 12 miles the the Browns Lake Trailhead Parking Lot. Parking Lot is on the right side of road, trailhead is across the road on the south side. No facilities.

Browns Lake Trailhead, Crown Point Rd

Elevation: 10,480'

Maps & Images Lat: 40.649833 Long: -105.698357

Street map from Google Maps or Yahoo! Maps

Satellite image from Google Maps or Microsoft Virtual Earth

Aerial image or topographic map from TerraServer-USA

Trail & Hike Description

From the trailhead, the trail immediately begins its climb toward Crown Point (11,463'), opening up to rocky, exposed terrain. Along the way are tremendous views of the Medicine Bow Range and the Rawah Wilderness to the West. Crown Point is not visible until you approach the saddle. At about 2 miles, you enter the Comanche Peak Wilderness, and the trail reaches the first of two saddles, topping out just west of Crown Point at about 11,400'. From here, the trail descends into a grassy valley, before ascending to a second saddle. This second high-point affords vistas of the basin where Browns Lake resides, the precipice above Browns Lake, and the Mummy Range beyond. From this point, the trail begins its 900' descent to Browns Lake. Soon, you drop below timberline into a heavily forested area. At about 3.25 miles, the Browns Lake trail crosses the Old Flowers Trail coming in from the east. Just to the west of the intersection are a spring, and an old sheepherder's cabin. The trail continues its steep descent, arriving first at Browns Lake, with Timberline Lake just beyond it.

You can make this a two-car shuttle hike by parking a car at Comanche Reservoir, at the end of FR 145 (accessed from the Tom Bennett Campground near Pingree Park). You can then continue hiking down the Browns Lake Trail to the intersection with the Beaver Creek Trail, and proceed east on the Beaver Creek Trail. This will add about 4.5 miles to the one-way distance to Browns Lake (for a total distance of about 8.5 miles).

Because of the elevation of this trail, it is often snow-covered well into June.

Camping

Browns Lake is a poplar backpacking destination, however it is located in a USFS Travel Zone. Travel Zones are established in high-traffic areas, to help reduce the impact on the area through overuse. In the Travel Zone, you must camp only in designated camping spots, open fires are not allowed (i.e. you need to use a cook stove), and you can't camp with stock. Horse riders can pass through the area, but cannot camp with their livestock in the Travel Zone. This Travel Zone extends from the wilderness boundary to the north, encompassing the Browns Lake Trail and Comanche Lake Trail south to (and including) Comanche Lake.

There are twelve designated camping sites near Browns Lake. All are marked with small wooden signs along the trail - but you need to keep your eyes open for them. Campsites 1 through 4 are near the intersection of the Browns Lake and Old Flowers Trail. Campsite 1 is accessed from Old Flowers Trail, to the west of the intersection. Sites 2 through 4 are located downhill from the intersection on the Browns Lake Trail. The remaining sites are located near Browns and Timberline Lakes.

* Note On The Difficulty Rating For This Hike From the trailhead, the trail ascends from the 10,480' trailhead elevation to 11,400' near Crown Point, before descending almost 900' to the lake. Therefore the typical difficulty calculation used on this site (see the FAQ for a detailed explanation) would seriously underestimate the difficulty of this hike. For this hike, we calculated the elevation gain as 1,790' (the gain from the trailhead to the 11,400' point near Crown Point, plus the gain from the lake back up to this point). This more realistically conveys the hike's difficulty.

External Links & References

Browns Lake Trail Description on US Forest Service web site