Middle Creek Road

Middle Creek Road is an easy, out-and-back road that passes Love Lake and several dispersed camping spots, and it travels through the 2013 West Fork Complex Fire burn scar on its way to the Copper Creek Trailhead. The road starts as a well-maintained, graded dirt road to a beautiful picnic area at Love Lake, the head of Middle Creek, where you can find tables, fire rings, and a restroom. Beyond the lake, the road slowly becomes rougher, with an increasing number of potholes and small exposed rocks no larger than a baseball. Twelve miles in, you reach the trail's best campsite. It is well off the road in a grassy clearing, looking out into the valley and Palomino Mountain in the distance. You then quickly get into the burn scar with the charred, skeletal remains of pine trees. The road ends at a small turnaround and parking lot where you can hike into the Weminuche Wilderness on Copper Ridge.

This road is suitable for any vehicle up to Love Lake. Beyond the lake, a factory SUV or crossover with good ground clearance is recommended.