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Aspen Lake

Located within the 5,600 acre Big Buck Wildlife Area, Aspen Lake makes a perfect quick outting during the spring season. This weekend, being Memorial Weekend, usually means tons of people at all the snow-free trails, but not here. We only met a handful of hikers and four people on horseback. The walk to the lake is a short distance from the Elbow Coulee road; it took our slow and wandering family about 30 minutes to get there. The trail consists of an old road that is open to hikers, mountain bikers, and horses. The lake itself is fenced in from cattle, which were not out and about yet, but their calling cards (cow pies!) are everywhere. The balsamroot is in full bloom and the lupine is just getting started–both are carpeting the hillsides and are simply spectacular.