Silver Lake: Fall + Overlook

 Silver Lake is a really pretty lake located at the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon. The easy trail features the lake, streams, wildflowers, and this time of year, beautiful fall colors! Since it is so easy to get to, and a short easy, mostly boardwalk path it is a very popular trail! And one we tend to do often.

Since Big Cottonwood Canyon can get extremely busy on the weekends during prime leaf peeping season, we decided to take off work a little early and go up there on a weekday. And well, it was the perfect adventure for the first day of October.

Quick Details:

Length: It is about a mile around the lake. We added my favorite viewpoint and did About a 2 mile loop with spur.
Trail Type: Loop, other options.
Difficulty: The main loop is mostly boardwalk and hard packed dirt, DR2. Going up to the viewpoint is a bit more work, DR3 for that.
Elevation Gain: We did about 360 feet today. Normally it is about 100 feet.
Restroom: Yes, flush toilets in the parking lot and in the Visitor Center.
Dogs? No. Big Cottonwood Canyon is protected watershed.
Other Info: Fee area. $10.00 for a 3 day pass.

To Get Here:

Drive to the top of Big Cottonwood Canyon, just after you enter the Brighton Loop Road you will see the Solitude Nordic Center on the right. Overflow parking across the street.

The mountains look lovely (Passenger Seat Photography (PSP)).

Big Cottonwood Canyon on the left, Ferguson Canyon on the right (PSP).

Into Big Cottonwood Canyon (PSP).

Little line of color (PSP).

Little spots of color (PSP).

Up on the hills (PSP).

Entering the Town of Brighton (PSP).

Colorful hills (PSP).

Mill D has some nice color (PSP).

More color (PSP).

Silver Fork (PSP).

Approaching the Willow Heights Trailhead (PSP).

The aspens on the north looking like they are just about prime (PSP).

Not quite there on the south side though (PSP).

Around Solitude (PSP).

Near the top (PSP).

I am glad we decided to come up today! It is super pretty right now.

Up to the Brighton Loop (PSP).

Across the parking lot. I LOVE when aspens go gold and red (PSP).

Just to the side.

The Trail:

The trail can be picked up on either side of the Solitude Nordic Center/Silver Lake Information Center (or just the Visitor Center), but its more direct to the right. Left goes through a picnic area first.

Welcome sign.

The wetland. We decided to go right or counter-clockwise today.

The boardwalk.

Beaver dam.

Colorful patch on the mountain.

Willows.

When they rebuilt the boardwalk a few years ago, they shifted it over a little. You can still see the scar, but it is starting to fill in.

Beaver lodge.

Mount Millicent.

Silver Lake and it's outlet.

Super clear water.

Downstream, with another look at the beaver lodge.

Upstream again.

Into the woods!

Again, I love when aspen trees go this pretty gold and red. Apparently it is caused by different nutrients.

The new dock that came with the boardwalk rebuild.

The lake.

Color.

Panoramic.

Continuing along.

Colorful aspens.

Silver Lake.

Little bit of gold at the top.

Some red.

Again.

The back trails.

We decided to run up to my favorite viewpoint real quick. It isn't a named feature so I am just gonna call it the Silver Lake Overlook. Cause it overlooks Silver Lake.

So, quick detour. It was only about a mile out and back.

It will take us right through the pretty patch of color.

Super pretty.

Lovely mixed forest.

4 way split. We are going to go left along the Twin Lakes trail. We will not be doing the whole thing today though.

Old wooden sign.

Starting the climb.

I love when the leaves fall on pine trees and make little natural Christmas Trees.

Aspens.

Climbing up.

More color.

I just love this time of year.

Fallen tree.

With some big rings cut out. They are practically hollow so it seems pretty clear why this tree fell.

Another little patch of gold.

Yellows.

Looking up.

Color.

Neat damaged pine tree.

Silver Lake through the trees.

More color.

I love me a good aspen forest.

Continuing the climb.

The lake through the trees again.

Forest.

There are a couple of rocky spots. Also, do you see it?

Quick crop. We has a deer friend.

Color.

Oh, it is 2 deer friends. I am thinking it might be a mom and adolescent.

They were letting us get a little closer than most deer. Although I did notice the younger one skittered up away from us.

Well this is kind of cute.

The smaller one.

Momma.

Almost there.

Color above.

The service road above. It was widened while they put in new water lines for the snow machines last year and in doing so they pushed extra debris onto the trail here.

The trail has shifted a bit since last time we were here.

The enhanced service road is closed to public access now. I assume they are probably trying to revegetate it.

The big scree field. this is what I was after.

Yup, it looks like they are trying to revegetate.

Pika haypile. They do not hibernate, so they gather food and store them in these haypiles.

View across the canyon.

Silver Lake below.

Panoramic.

The lake again. Inlets on the right, outlet on the left.

Again, not really an official viewpoint, but I just keep going until I can see most of it.

With some color.

Panoramic.

Pretty patch of trees.

Scott Hill. It is pretty easy to pick out due to the “Mickey Mouse” shaped mine tailings.

Here we go, most of the lake.

Surrounding color.

Panoramic.

Guardsman Pass on the other side of the canyon.

The lake again.

This is one of my favorite viewpoints that I usually hit on the way up to Twin Lakes, but, we were just doing a quick leaf peeping adventure today. Twin Lakes is about another half mile up, but it is a ROUGH half mile up.

Color.

Panoramic. I like the way this one turned out.

Alright, time to start back down.

One last panoramic.

Across the canyon.

Scott Hill.

Ski boundary tree.

Pika and haypile.

Color.

Pika.

They are so freaking cute!

Another.

The scree field they like to hang out in.

The split that leads back down to Silver Lake.

Back into the color.

Pretty forest.

I love a good aspen forest.

Continuing down.

Leaf litter.

Some lovely gold.

The neat damaged pine again.

More color.

Golds and reds.

Some purple leaves.

Some more red.

Aspen leaves.

More red.

Green and yellow.

The 4 way split. Right will take us back to Silver Lake.

Looking up.

Mixed forest.

Back down to Silver Lake.

We decided to complete the loop around it.

One of the big docks.

Some nice reflection.

Panoramic.

Mount Millicent.

Dock.

I’m pretty sure this is the first time I have seen it without people. At least since it was rebuilt.

More reflection.

Another beaver lodge.

Another boardwalk section that takes you up the bigger hill in the back.

The lake again.

Colorful hillside.

The beaver lodge again.

Mixed forest.

A Steller's Jay and a squirrel we're fighting over something. They were moving so fast I am surprised I managed to get this picture.

The beaver lodge again.

Some color above.

On the other side of the canyon.

The lake again.

Panoramic.

Colorful patch.

I don’t know what’s going on here. It looks like there is some kind of plumbing caps that are open.

The overlook we were on before.

The lake again.

Into a large patch of pines.

Scott Hill above the lake.

The forest.

Back to the boardwalk through the wetland.

One of the inlets.

Upstream.

The aspens across the way.

The other big dock. We didn’t walk out to this one today.

A little dock over the other inlet.  This is also new with the boardwalk rebuild.

Duck in the inlet.

Scott Hill.

Color above the lake.

Inlet.

The boardwalk.

The fish are jumping.

Color.

Scott Hill.

The wetland seems a little more swampy than it was last time we were here. But we did have a big storm recently.

Mount Millicent.

More wetland.

Willows.

Wetland.

Trail split. Both ways lead back to the parking lot, right will go through a picnic area first.

The back of the Visitor Center.

Color across the canyon.

A couple of Steller’s Jays.

They were fighting or flirting, now they are looking for food.

They are one of my favorites. I love the little mohawks.

Some daisy like flowers still hanging on

The Visitor Center again.

Heading up towards Brighton (PSP). You kind of have to to leave. It is a one way loop.

Some lovely gold (PSP).

More color (PSP).

The water coming out of Twin Lakes (PSP).

This patch of trees near the Brighton sign always puts on a show (PSP).

Of course we had to pull over to get a better look.

So pretty.

Again.

The hill above.

Whoa. We found a fireweed still hanging on.

Back to the colorful patch.

The water coming out of Twin Lakes again.

Alright, time to head on down.

Building with a bunch of old Brighton signs (PSP).

Roadside color (PSP).

Super old looking cabin (PSP).

Scott Hill (PSP).

I briefly considered going over Guardsman Pass… but I think my stomach had other plans. It's dinner time.

Heading down the canyon (PSP).

Colorful hills (PSP).

Willow Heights is looking super busy still (PSP).

More color (PSP).

Slash piles (PSP).

Pretty canyon (PSP).

Single lit up tree (PSP).

Down to the S curve (PSP).

Near the mouth of the canyon (PSP).

Todays path.

Well, that was fun! I am glad we decided to make a special trip up to enjoy the colors and avoid the crowded weekends. Due to it being a weekday it wasn’t super busy. I absolutely love the view from the overlook. Plus we had some fun smaller wildlife sightings. 10 squirrels today.

As for difficulty, the loop around Silver Lake is super easy and stroller friendly, DR2. The trail up to the overlook it a little bit more of a climb, and is a bit rocky, DR3.

 

Dogs are not allowed in Big Cottonwood Canyon due to it being a restricted watershed