Mirror Lake is located 6.1 miles from the Corral Creek Trailhead in the lightly traveled northwest corner of Rocky Mountain National Park. It lies near treeline in an isolated, steep-walled N-S valley in the Mummy Range. Visitors will enjoy large open valleys, pristine forests, abundant wildlife, and miles of remote wilderness travel on the hike to Mirror Lake:

The trail begins on a flat dirt road that soon becomes trail along a lively section of Corral Creek. It passes uneventfully through a lodgepole forest, enters Rocky Mountain National Park (1.3 miles), and breaks south into a massive valley carved by the Cache LaPoudre River.

It parallels the river for .5 miles to the Mummy Pass Trail split. Immediately south is a vast meadow fed by Hague Creek - consider detouring through this wildlife-rich area on a .7 mile long spur used to access the Hague Creek, Desolation and Flatiron backcountry campsites.

The Mummy Pass Trail climbs steadily for .75 miles in a spruce-fir forest accented by fallen timber and thick ground cover. It moderates for .5 miles, then pushes once more up a forested ridge to the Mirror Lake Trail split (4.3 miles : 10,700'). Turn north (left) towards Mirror Lake.

The Mirror Lake Trail undulates .75 miles in a thinning subalpine forest to a meadow beside Cascade Creek. It climbs past the north edge of the meadow to the Comanche Peak Trail split where you'll see a voluminous cascade two hundred yards shy of the lake.

The final quarter mile is highlighted by open rocky areas and abundant wildflowers.

Mirror Lake (6.1 miles : 11,015') is tightly ringed by several towering, unnamed peaks. The lake shore is somewhat cluttered, but easy enough to reach several good spots for fishing its healthy brown trout population. You can follow an unmaintained route up the lake's east shore and inlet stream to a small pond just north of Mirror Lake. Marked spur trails lead to several backcountry campsites in the lake vicinity.