TheLakeInsiderThe insider's guide to America's luxury lakes
← Grand Lake (Colorado)
The local guide

Everything worth doing.Within 20 minutes.

Editors' picks across 8categories — the dock with the deepest channel, the winery with the view, the restaurant with the right wine list, the trail nobody's on at sunrise.

The table

Restaurants

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Grand Lake
Huntington House Tavern

A restaurant at the historic Grand Lake Lodge, established 1920, serving elevated New American fare with views over Grand Lake.

Grand Lake
The Historic Rapids Lodge and Restaurant

A river-side restaurant inside a lodge building dating to 1915, built around seafood, steak, and vegetarian dishes with an extensive wine list.

Grand Lake
Sagebrush BBQ & Grill

A boardwalk BBQ restaurant on Grand Ave with a large local following.

Grand Lake
White Buffalo Pizza Co.

Brick-fired pizza, a full bar, and arcade games on Grand Ave, with live music, open mic, and weekend karaoke in peak season.

Grand Lake
Lariat Bar & Grill

A historic saloon established 1934, known for its "Boardwalk Burger," with late-night live music and dancing.

Grand Lake
Miyauchi's Snack Bar & Homemade Ice Cream

Small-batch ice cream made daily plus burgers and grill fare near the marina and beach, with weekly-rotating flavors.

The tap

Breweries

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Grand Lake
The World's End Brewpub & Inn

On-site brewed beer with ten rotating taps and pub food on Grand Ave, with an attached inn.

The outdoors

Parks & trails

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Grand Lake
East Inlet Trail

A National Recreation Trail built in 1913, inside Rocky Mountain National Park, leading to Adams Falls (0.8 miles round trip) and continuing to Lone Pine Lake, Lake Verna, and Spirit Lake.

The harvest

Farms

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Grand Lake
Mystic Mountain Mushrooms

One of only two USDA-certified-organic mushroom farms in Colorado, growing Lion's Mane, Pioppino, King Trumpet, Oyster, Reishi, and other varieties on about an acre near town, sold wholesale and through local grocers.

The water

Boat launches

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Grand Lake
Grand Lake Marina & Boater's Choice

A marina directly on Grand Lake operating since 1972, renting pontoons, sport boats, kayaks, canoes, and paddleboards.

Grand Lake
Headwaters Marina

A Town of Grand Lake-owned marina across from Lakefront Park, renting pontoons, paddleboats, and fishing boats, with free day-use public boat slips and guided one-hour scenic pontoon tours.

Iconic stops

Iconic stops

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Grand Lake
Grand Lake Yacht Club

A private club on Grand Lake, commonly described as the highest-elevation registered yacht club in the world at roughly 8,269 feet, a legacy of early Denver society families who summered on the lake.

Grand Lake
Grand Avenue Boardwalk

A wooden boardwalk dating to 1881, originally built by shop owners to keep customers out of mud and dust, now lined with more than 60 shops, restaurants, and bars in Old West-style storefronts.

Grand Lake
Kauffman House Museum

A log building built in 1892 by prospector Ezra Kauffman, operated as a hotel until 1920 — the only surviving log hotel built in Grand Lake before 1900, listed on the National Register of Historic Places and restored as a museum in 1973.