Top 8 Lakes around Keystone

Visitors frequently enjoy Sheridan Lake, known for its numerous infrastructures and suitability for various activities. Center Lake is also a favorite, offering a quieter experience with a picnic area, playground, and small beach. For a peaceful lakeside spot, Horsethief Lake Campground is popular, especially with families.

Yes, several lakes are ideal for families. Center Lake features a picnic area, playground, and small beach. Sheridan Lake and Horsethief Lake Campground are also popular family destinations, offering camping and outdoor activities. Keystone Lake, centrally located, offers paddle boating, stand-up paddleboarding, and canoeing in summer, and transforms into a large ice skating rink in winter.

The lakes around Keystone are nestled within diverse natural landscapes. You'll find lakes surrounded by dense forests, like Center Lake, and others like Pass Lake, which is surrounded by dramatic alpine tundra and peaks. The region also features dam lakes, and areas with wildflowers, especially in summer.

Summer is excellent for water sports like paddleboarding and boating on Keystone Lake and Dillon Reservoir, and for enjoying wildflowers around Pass Lake. Fall offers beautiful foliage for hiking. Winter transforms Keystone Lake into an ice skating rink, providing unique cold-weather activities. The trail to Lower Crystal Lake is particularly suitable for nature hikers and birdwatchers from April to June.

Yes, there are several great hiking opportunities. The Grace Coolidge Trail connects Grace Coolidge Campground with Center Lake, offering creek and canyon views. The easy 0.8-mile Loveland Lakes Trail loops around Pass Lake, providing panoramic views. For more challenging adventures, the Mohawk Lakes System offers trails to six alpine lakes with significant elevation gain and stunning views. You can find more hiking routes in the Running Trails around Keystone guide.

Keystone Lake offers paddle boating, stand-up paddleboarding, and canoeing in summer. Dillon Reservoir is a hub for water sports, including boating, sailing, kayaking, and stand-up paddleboarding, with full-service marinas in Frisco and Dillon. Swimming is an option at Lily Pad Lake when weather permits.

While fishing isn't permitted in Keystone Lake itself, licensed anglers can fish along the Snake River. Dillon Reservoir is popular for fishing, stocked annually with rainbow trout. Pass Lake is a premier destination for various trout species, including Arctic Char. Lower Crystal Lake is home to cutthroat trout, and the deeper Upper Mohawk Lake is also preferred by fishers.

The Mohawk Lakes System offers historical interest with mining ruins dotting the landscape around its six alpine lakes. Sheridan Lake, a dam lake built in 1939, is named after Philip Sheridan, a career officer known for his role in the Civil and Indian Wars.

Center Lake is known for being quieter than some other lakes in the area, offering a peaceful spot to enjoy nature. Lily Pad Lake also provides a more secluded experience, accessible via wilderness trails.

Yes, the easy 0.8-mile Loveland Lakes Trail loops around Pass Lake, offering continuous panoramic views. Additionally, the Lost Trails at Center Lake lead around the lake in a loop, providing a pleasant circular walk.

Dillon Reservoir features a scenic 18-mile paved bike path encircling the reservoir, offering continuous mountain views. You can explore more cycling routes in the Road Cycling Routes around Keystone and Cycling around Keystone guides.