Lake Haiyaha

Lake Haiyaha, Colorado is an epic hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. From the Bear Lake trailhead, hang a left, following the well-marked signs towards Nymph Lake. Once you arrive at Nymph Lake, about a half-mile from the trailhead, you’ll be able to see the top of Hallett Peak which is also the direction towards Dream Lake and Emerald Lake. The trail to lake Haiyaha hugs the right shore of the lake before climbing up in elevation as the trail traverses along the steep mountainside.

After hiking for about a 1.0mi, the trail will split. Follow the sign with directions to Lake Haiyaha at the foot of Dream Lake. The trail climbs steeply up the north aspect of the mountain slope. This section of steep trail is not well defined and is more of a ‘social’ trail finding the path of least resistance.

Eventually, the ‘social’ trails will reconvene into a single well-defined trail that traverses around the slope above a small cliff band. As you wrap around the mountain, Longs Peak will become visible off in the distance.

Once on the south-facing side of the mountain, you have been wrapping around, you will encounter a snowfield with a steep drop off. You can either follow the tracks through the snowfield or you can follow an alternative track that heads straight up the mountainside, avoiding the snowfield all together. Both paths reconnect and continue towards Lake Haiyaha. You will know you are getting close when the trail opens up to a boulder field where you will navigate to the beginning of Lake Haiyaha. The mountains that create the backdrop are the beginnings of Chaos Creek.

As you reach Haiyaha Lake, you will notice that the shoreline is quite rugged. There are huge boulders circling the whole lake – with an obvious reward in the middle of Chaos Canyon. The view of Lake Haiyaha and the surrounding mountain peaks is simply breathtaking. The two peaks that stand out from all the other ones are the Otis Peak (12486ft)  on your left and the Hallet Peak (12713ft) on your right. In between the two magnificent mountains is the Chaos Canyon. It’s truly an amazing sight.

For those who would like to make the trail longer, you can return for (0ft) to a junction with the Glacier Gorge trail and hike an extra (1.0mi) to the Glacier Knobs and from there you can follow a trail to The Loch, which is a beautiful mountain tarn situated in a peaceful corner of the Rocky Mountain National Park. A perfect place to enjoy the wilderness on your own.

To get back to the Bear Lake trailhead, return the way you came by retracing your steps.

Want to find more amazing hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park? Check out Chasm Lake hike or the Sky Pond and Lake of Glass hike.