Lily Pad Lake

Lily Pad Lake

Lily Pad Lake is a very popular destination especially from the Lily Pad Lake Trail #50 trailhead (see Option 2). Hiking the complete trail from Frisco to Ryan Gulch pro- vides the most diverse scenery and wildflowers. The Summit Stage bus provides a nice shuttle opportunity with just one vehicle. Lily Pad Lake is actually two lakes, with Buffalo Mountain towering above. Good views of the Frisco area can be seen along the trail from the Meadow Creek trailhead. This trail section also contains the best variety of wildflowers. The hike from Ryan Gulch is easy and popular year-round. When you arrive at Lily Pad Lake, the bigger of the two lakes, you might wonder why it has no lily pads on it. The lake used to be smaller, but beavers built a dam and enlarged it. The yellow pondlilies did not like the enlarged lake, perhaps because of the change in depth or water flow. The smaller lake is probably a kettle pond left over from glacial times, and sports a large quantity of yellow pondlilies. Watch closely for duck families that enjoy swimming among the lilies. The little ducklings appear to be walking on water as they waddle across the green pads.

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