Stats, trail tips and important information regarding this trail are located at the bottom of the blog post. Unless explicitly noted, all pictures in this blog are owned by me and should otherwise not be used without expressed written consent.

As you can imagine, we absolutely love Colorado. It’s an outdoor enthusiast’s dream. The winters are nice and snowy with tons of fresh powder throughout most of the state. There are a slew of 14,000-ft elevation hikes (or “14ers”) in the state that are great to hike in the late summer. Tons of scenic OHV trails to go rock crawling.

Hiking Hope Lake was part of a 2021 road trip that took us from Austin through Estes Park (CO), Breckenridge (CO), Telluride (CO), Ouray (CO) and Taos (NM). Quite an amazing trip.

In between Telluride and Ouray we decided to hike near Ophir, a very small picturesque community. We parked at the trailhead not exactly knowing what we were getting ourselves into…

The road to Hope Lake probably isn’t ideal for a two-wheel drive vehicle. But Po seemed to do just fine. The trailhead is easily marked (the coordinates to this exact spot is in my trail stats at the bottom of this blog post)…

Little did we know we were about to post-hole it throughout most of the hike. Just before the post-holing began we arrived at this gorgeous mountain view…

Hey, at least the snow was super scenic. Howie initially enjoyed the post-holing, getting what I would call the “snowmies” (zoomies in the snow).

We paused for some mountain view pics; pics which I am quite fond of…

The post-holing became quite brutal. We paused to start rolling snowballs down the hill. It really helped us understand the phrase “the situation was snowballing”. 😂 The snowball would build as it kept rolling down the slope. Probably much cooler for a Texan than someone who lives in Colorado. Howie saw an opportunity to pounce on a snowball and did not pass it up 🐶…

We finally made it to the lake and oh…my…God…you have to see these pics to believe them…

Howie decided he was going to pose for his social media account…

So would I call this a destination hike? Kind of, but there are some scenic views along the way. Frankly, the hike was quite difficult for this Texan not adapted to the post-holing and altitude, but I’m sure it’s quite a bit easier in August when the snow is more melted (we hiked in November).

Afterward, we drove to our hotel in Ouray. Howie laid down on the bed with a faint whimper as we went out for a delicious steak at Brickhouse 737. We all slept good that night.

I’ll finish the blog post off with a pic of Po in Ouray in front of our hotel. Ouray is also a special place. I’d highly recommend spending a few days there afterward…

Total Distance/Time: 6.07 miles in 2 hrs 56 min
Calories Burned: 1,916
Trail Type: Out-and-back
Trail Features: Snow (most of the year), alpine lake, mountain views, creeks, switchbacks
Best Time to Hike: August
Difficulty Rating: 8.5/10 (during winter)
Trailhead Coordinates: 37.793, -107.848
Trail Tips:

• Bring snowshoes! This hike will probably have snow most of the year due to the altitude.
• Trail Access: A high-clearance, all wheel drive vehicle is probably ideal for accessing this trail.
• Explore the Area: Telluride and Ouray are both not far from here, and both absolutely stunning locations to visit. I would not pass up the opportunity.
• Camping Nearby: Matterhorn Campground is nearby and in between this trail and Telluride. There are 5-6 sites along the creek that are perfect. Tent sites are first come, first serve so get there early to snag a spot to sleep near the rushing water. It’s much cheaper than staying in Telluride.