John Guilford's Hikes

Lake Serene and Bridal Veil Falls on 2026-06-02

Date: 2026-06-02

Location: Lake Serene and Bridal Veil Falls

People: (including myself): Happy Hikers

			  	Alt.	Miles
Trailhead:		9:25	600	0
Trail to Falls:		10:07	1200	1.7
Bridal Veil Falls:	10:25	1500	2.2
Back to Main Trail:	11:00	1200	2.6
Lake Serene:		1:00	2540	5
Leave Lake Serene:	1:45	2540	5.5
Trail to Falls:		3:38	1200	8
Trailhead:		4:15	600	9.7

The trail is a workout, to be sure. It was more rugged than I remembered it from ten years ago.

The trail initially starts off gradually climbing on sandy terrain. There were a number of excavators and other machines near the beginning of the trail for trail work. It looked like there was some flood damage from last winter that was being repaired. This didn't get in the way of passage, though.

About a mile and three quarters in, there is a junction in the trail. The right trail climbs several hundred feet over a half mile to suddenly come out at Bridal Veil Falls.

After hanging out and taking pictures we descended back down to the trail junction. At this point you might return to the trailhead after just visiting the falls, but we continued on teh left trail up to Lake Serene.

About 2/3's of a mile past the junction the trail starts climbing in earnest. This is where the work begins. There are stairs in places as well as lots of rock and roots. I found I was mostly watching the trail right in front of me for foot placement, which is a shame as it is a very pretty area.

Near the lake you come out of the trees with the first good view of Mt. Index (southwest of the lake). The trail flattens out a bit and then you reach the lake. The trail skirts the right side of the lake after crossing a log bridge over the outflow from the lake ending at Lunch Rock, a rock on the edge of the lake with great views.

Some folks (not from my group) were brave enough to go swimming in the lake though I'm sure the water was freezing.

It was a hot day (getting up to the 80s in the afternoon), and we elected to eat lunch a bit away from the Lunch Rock where we found some shade.

After lunch we took our boots off and did some wading in the lake before heading down. In the shallows where we were, the water temperature wasn't bad.