The Crater Lakes Trail takes you to group of lovely alpine lakes located in the James Peak Wilderness. The hike starts easily enough and there is plenty of shade as you wind through dense forests with intermittent crossing through open meadows. The trail can get hard to follow in a few spots so be sure to keep an eye out for the cairns that will show you the way.

There is a third lake that sits higher up, but it looked like quite a scramble up a lot of scree and weren’t sure how Ansel would handle it so we opted to not go any further. We noticed some camping spots along the lower lakes that looked incredibly idyllic. I’d love to come again for a little backcountry camping.

If you found this post helpful, you may also like reading about some of my favorite dog-friendly hikes near Denver:

• Adventure dog photography at Marshall Mesa in Boulder

• My favorite dog hike in the Indian Peak Wilderness

Want an epic hike with your dog and the photos to prove it?