time of year: summer

hike length: 1.2 miles one way

total time: about 3 hours there and back, but we stopped a lot to take pictures

Mirror Lake was a great hike that I would do again in a heartbeat. You can either walk on the one mile paved trail that takes you straight to mirror lake or you can take the unpaved trail loop that we did. If you take the trail loop, you hike through so many different landscapes starting with hiking through a forest of giant sequoia trees, walking past many rivers with rushing water, giant stones that create caves and finally the lake itself that is surrounded by a huge meadow with the most beautiful mountain views and sprouting wildflowers. I love hiking in natural places, so taking the unpaved trail loop was a very easy decision for us.

The hike itself is fairly easy, moderate if you're not a regular adventurer. I would recommend to wear sturdy boots that you don't care too much to get dirty as there is no paved walkway and it was very muddy at times. We spent a lot of time walking on the rocks right next to the track instead of the muddy tracks that we could have slipped on! 

Next time I would love to visit Mirror Lake in spring after the winter snow has melted and the lake is filled up. We went during the middle of summer while there were many hot days in a row and the lake was mostly dried up. That didn't get our hopes down though, with a little bit of camera trickery (hanging my arms over whatever water was left while I was taking a photo) I still got some photos I was super happy with of Mirror Lake reflecting the surrounding mountains. Here are the photos from our afternoon adventure.

all photos edited with my Disposable Film Lightroom Preset!