By:
Submission
Sometimes you have to work a little harder to get to a trailhead. About six miles of dirt road with four miles really requiring a high clearance vehicle can make getting to the Fourth of July trailhead challenging. BUT, it is worth it! I was amazed at how full the parking area was when we arrived at 8:30 AM. Many of the vehicles were small sub compacts with low clearance but they braved the road successfully.
There are limited parking spaces directly at the trailhead but parking is allowed along the access road facing outbound. The best bet is to drive to the trailhead to turn around and then look for the first place you can sneak into as you head back out. With any luck you will not have to park too far away.
There is a clean outhouse at the trailhead that is busy with folks lined up before tackling the trails.
The trails are well maintained and offer nice shade in the lower portions. The winter of 2023 left snow tucked away in ravines and gulches that feed a constant flow of water cascading across the trail in lots of places. They are not difficult to cross and offer spectacular views of waterfalls surrounded by gorgeous wildflowers.
The trailhead is a great jumping off place for a day hike or access to the backcountry for camping and exploration.
Reading about this trail says it is 3 hours round trip, but it took us 4 hours to get to the lake and 2 hours back. We did take our time but it was a challenge for sure. SO BEAUTIFUL, the views are amazing. The trail is nice, but so many rocks and so much incline going up and up. Crossing the waterfall was definitely cool but a bit scary too. We highly recommend this trail, we felt so accomplished after completing it.
One of our favorite hikes is to Diamond Lake. Always SO many flowers and several waterfalls. Relatively easy elevation gain, and an amazing lake at the top. We regularly recommend this hike (but get there early because parking is tricky and fills up quick...like, 6am early, or try an early afternoon hike instead).
Wonderful for a morning or afternoon hike. Easy/moderate trail, perfect for Intro to Rocky Mountain Hiking. Dog/Cat/Pet friendly. Nice level parking lot plus roadside parking available. Very public trail, well-travelled, very busy, seems very safe (speaking as female travelers), especially on weekends. Nice restroom facilities. Very alpine scenery (see pics), gorgeous views of waterfalls from trail, beautiful lakeviews, trail very busy, well-maintained by park service (thank you), high traffic.
If you want a remote US Park in which to hike at your own speed, visit the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.; this one was like Mon morn rush hour.
Pretty challenging trail if you aren't used to the elevation! A long ways out and a long ways back but totally worth it. Would recommend taking the time to hike around to the opposite side of the lake and climb on some of those enormous rocks if you have the time. The road is treacherous for a few miles on the way in with hundreds if not thousands of potholes. Just a heads up.
