Ice Lakes Basin & V2
Ice Lakes Basin and Island Lake is on the short list of best non-fourteener hikes in Colorado. Deep in the San Juan Mountains near Silverton, it is a long way from any population center, but that doesn’t stop troves of hikers from converging on this hike every weekend between July and September.
This was our second time doing this hike. Our previous visit was in early October 2022, after 10 inches of snow the night before. We had hoped to enjoy the fall colors, but they were muted by the snow. It was a sea of white covering all of the colorful rock on the numerous thirteen thousand foot mountains in the basin. We enjoyed the turquoise lakes, especially island lake, but it was different that what we expected to see. It was a beautiful and unique experience, one which we wouldn’t trade, but we have since desired to return and see it in full color. This was our chance. Fortunately, we had perfect weather and were also early enough in the season, in mid-June, to avoid the big summer crowds.
In addition to having hike Ice Lakes Basin, we have also previously done hikes from Ophir, including Swamp Canyon. This canyon is on the other side of the saddle between Ulysses S Grant and V2 Peak. Ulysses S Grant is one of the great and most underrated mountains in the San Juans, and the yellow-green color of the ridge line on the north side of Ophir is especially scenic. Both of these highlights can been seen well from the V2 summit, so we decided to add this peak to the itinerary.
The initial 2.5 miles of this hike ascend through the forest, passing a waterfall about a mile in. At 2.3 miles, we took a trail spur toward Island Lake and, before reaching the lake, we took the trail to the right up to the saddle and toward V2. This section was steep and there was a lot of loose scree. Once we gained the saddle, we had 360 degree views over Island Lake to the south, Ulysses S Grant to the west and Swamp Canyon to the north. This were the best views of the hike. We continued to V2, where we had views of Golden Horn, Pilot Knob and Vermillion Peak overlooking Ice Lake and wider views to the north toward Ophir. After enjoying the scenery in solitude, we made our way down the trail to Island Lake.
Island Lake was also incredible. Completely different than on our last trip. Both the lake, the surrounding mountains and vegetation were rich in vibrant color. There were two guys swimming in the ice cold water of the lake and another couple camping, but by Island Lake standards, the crowd was pretty thin. I photographed the lake as we made our way around the east side and crossed the stream. This was our favorite lake in the basin.
We then made our way to Ice Lake, the smaller unnamed adjacent lake and then to Fuller Lake. Ice Lake was pretty, but somewhat crowded. The adjacent unnamed lake to the south afforded great reflections of Golden Horn. Fuller Lake was the only one which we had liked better in the snowy conditions when we visited four years before. Today we say the dilapidated remnants of an old camp, an oil barrel and an assortment of discarded trash. This was the only disappointing area in an otherwise fantastic day.
We then started our hike down, completing the loop around Ice Lakes Basin, and then through the forest and back to the trailhead. In total, the hike was 12 miles and nearly 4000 ft of vertical. This is one of the great Colorado hikes and shouldn’t be missed on a visit to the San Juan Mountains.
