Upper Piney Lake Trail is in the northern Gore Range

Gore Range

The Gore Range is a mountain range in the Rocky Mountains of north central Colorado in the United States. The range runs for approximately 60 miles northwest-to-southeast, through western Grand and Summit counties, and eastern Routt and Eagle counties...

, part of the Rocky Mountains

Rocky Mountains

The Rocky Mountains are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the southwestern United States...

 in the US state of Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

. It is located in the Eagles Nest Wilderness

Eagles Nest Wilderness

The Eagles Nest Wilderness is a U.S. Wilderness Area located in the Gore Range near Vail, Copper Mountain, Frisco, Silverthorne, and Heeney, in Summit and Eagle Counties Colorado. Eagles Nest Wilderness falls within the jurisdiction of Dillon Ranger District and Holy Cross Ranger District, White...

, Holy Cross Ranger District, White River National Forest

White River National Forest

White River National Forest is a National Forest in northwest Colorado. It is named after the White River that passes through it. It also contains the Flat Tops Wilderness Area, largely considered the birthplace of the U.S...

, Eagle County

Eagle County, Colorado

Eagle County is the thirteenth most populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado in the United States. The county is named for the Eagle River. The county population was 41,659 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is the Town of Eagle...

. Upper Piney Lake Trail is north of Interstate 70

Interstate 70

Interstate 70 is an Interstate Highway in the United States that runs from Interstate 15 near Cove Fort, Utah, to a Park and Ride near Baltimore, Maryland. It was the first Interstate Highway project in the United States. I-70 approximately traces the path of U.S. Route 40 east of the Rocky...

 in Vail

Vail, Colorado

The Town of Vail is a Home Rule Municipality in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The population of the town was 4,589 in 2005. The town was established and built as the base village to Vail Ski Resort, with which it was originally conceived...

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Upper Piney Lake Trail ascends seven miles from Piney Lake, 9,342 feet, to Upper Piney Lake, two thousand feet above the trailhead. In summer, the aspen meadows along Piney River are filled with the blooms of red columbine

Aquilegia

Aquilegia is a genus of about 60-70 species of perennial plants that are found in meadows, woodlands, and at higher altitudes throughout the Northern Hemisphere, known for the spurred petals of their flowers.-Etymology:The genus name Aquilegia is derived from the Latin word for eagle , because...

, Aquilegia elegantula

Aquilegia elegantula

Aquilegia elegantula is a species of columbine known by the common name western red columbine. It is native to the southwestern United States, particularly the Four Corners states, and northern Mexico, where it grows in moist areas in mountain coniferous forests. It is a rhizomatous perennial herb...

; lambstongue groundsel

Groundsel

Senecio vulgaris, often known by the common name Common groundsel, a humble in appearance member of the Asteraceae family and Senecio genus, is a tenacious deciduous annual whose presence now encompasses the globe in a wide area of easy to somewhat difficult growing conditions.The discussion of...

, Senecio integerrimus

Senecio integerrimus

Senecio integerrimus is a species of flowering plant in the aster family known by the common names lambstongue ragwort and tall western groundsel. It is native to western and central North America, where it grows in grassland, forest, and other habitat...

;lovage

Lovage

Lovage is a tall perennial plant, the sole species in the genus Levisticum, in the family Apiaceae, subfamily Apioideae, tribe Apieae.-Distribution:...

 or osha

Osha

Osha or oshá is a perennial herb. Osha grows in parts of the Rocky Mountains and northern Mexico, especially in the southwestern United States.-Common names:...

, Ligusticum porteri; common harebell

Harebell

Campanula rotundifolia is a rhizomatous perennial flowering plant in the bellflower family native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.In Scotland, it is often known as the Bluebell...

, Campanula rotundifolia; and wild rose

Rose

A rose is a woody perennial of the genus Rosa, within the family Rosaceae. There are over 100 species. They form a group of erect shrubs, and climbing or trailing plants, with stems that are often armed with sharp prickles. Flowers are large and showy, in colours ranging from white through yellows...

, Rosa woodsii

Rosa woodsii

Rosa woodsii is a species of rose known by the common name Woods' rose. It is native to North America including much of Canada and Alaska and the western and central United States. It grows in a variety of habitat types, including disturbed areas....

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Meridian Peak, Mount Powell,and the Lions Throne lie east of Upper Piney Lake Trail. As the trail rises to the south toward Upper Piney Lake, the Kehlstein, 12,005 feet; Twin Towers, 12,692 feet; and Eyrie Horn,13,041 feet, reveal themselves above the stream.

Greatest Hikes in Central Colorado: Summit and Eagle Counties, a hiking guide by Kim Fenske, provides a description of Upper Piney Lake Trail.