Deluge Lake, located in off exit 171 in East Vail (only a 10 minute drive or 20 minute bus ride from the Antlers, is a great hike for a amateur hiker. Its fairly steep at first giving you a good warm up, then levels out to a nice long gradual ascent to a lake nestled in a valley between several peaks. The hike is about 7 hours round trip so be sure to bring food and water. Now a minor drawback to this hike is for the first 2 miles or so you are still within sight and sound of route 70. So it takes away from the whole nature experience early on. Still, I was blown away when we got behind the mountain, out of sight of the road, and into the Rockies. Gore Creek valley is an awesome sight to behold with many jagged cliffs overlooking the creek below. Then as we got further up the trail we discovered a valley straight out of the sound of music. Grassy knolls dotted with white rocks, a picture perfect creek running right down the middle. It was really an awesome place to be. Getting over that stream was pretty fun, it is a log hanging over a small waterfall that wasn’t exactly secure. We nearly lost one of our hiking members into that stream but luckily he was able to regain his balance. As you follow Deluge Creek up the valley, you will reach your destination, a secluded lake hidden between some massive, scree covered rocky crags.
View Deluge Lake and Gore Creek Hiking Trails in a larger map
This map includes the trailhead location in relation to the Antlers and Vail (just move the map a little west/left), Deluge Lake Hiking trail, and I included Gore Creek trail as well which is a hike I plan to accomplish very soon.
