Lake Dorothy (12,061') is located 3.65 miles from the 4th of July Trailhead in the Indian Peaks Wilderness. It's the highest named lake in the Indian Peaks, just off the Continental Divide in a deep cirque at the base of Mount Neva (12,814').

Lake Dorothy is located in a deep cirque below Mount Neva along the Continental Divide, just south of Arapaho Pass

At 12,061' Lake Dorothy is the highest named lake in the Indian Peaks

Fellfields occur on windswept slopes that hold little moisture, with rock comprising up to half its surface

Looking down on the Caribou Lake basin from Arapaho Pass

The Caribou Pass Trail continues south from Arapaho Pass atop the Continental Divide to Lake Dorothy

The flexibility of limber pine enables it to withstand harsh winds of the alpine tundra

Lake Dorothy is known for large cutthroat trout

Looking down on the Caribou Pass Trail as it skirts Lake Dorothy and continues over the Divide

Flowered covered slopes on the initial climb through treeline

Damp, open areas near the Arapaho Glacier Trail split

The Lake Dorothy cirque is capped by Mount Neva (12,814')

Diminutive stands of krummholz and willow on a level stretch through treeline

The upper valley is crossed by snow fed streams and tarns

Looking down on a large tarn above Caribou Lake from the Caribou Pass Trail near Lake Dorothy

Steep, narrow switchbacks drop 750' from the Continental Divide to Caribou Lake

A sturdy wind shelter on the shore of Lake Dorothy