Deep Lake Loop

Dogs Leashed

Features Birding · Fall Colors · Wildlife

Though shared with mountain bikes, the trails around Deep Lake are a beautiful, well-maintained network for visitors to explore on foot. This loop heads northwest on the Deep Lake Trail toward the glacially formed Devil's Soup Bowl and more views the higher you go. The return uses the Deep Lake MTB Trail, which snakes its way through dense forest with lots of opportunities to spot birds and wildlife.

Trail direction changes for mountain bikers weekly. See signage at the parking/staging area to choose which direction you hike. It's often advised to hike in the opposite direction of folks on bikes.

Head to the east side of the park and the mountain bike parking/staging area off S Yankee Springs Road. Park near the first loop where the trailhead and map kiosk are and head southwest along the Deep Lake Trail as it shares the majority of the trail with the mountain bike-accessible trail. At the south side of Deep Lake, the trail bends around a wetland area before coming to the first major junction.

To follow this GPS route, bear left, staying on the Deep Lake Trail as it heads parallel to Gun Lake Road. Just before the 1.5-mile mark, the trail begins the sustained climb toward the Devil's Soup Bowl to the west and the Graves Hill Overlook to the southwest. From this westernmost point, begin the return on the Deep Lake Trail as it heads toward Deep Lake Road.

Around the 2.3-mile mark, stay to the right on the Deep Lake MTB Trail, winding through the woods at the wetland boundary surrounding Deep Lake before retracing the first half mile back to the parking area.

Ancestral lands and hunting grounds of the Ottawa peoples and Chief Noonday.